'Is rapper T.I. trying to use DaBaby controversy to settle grudge against LGBTQ community?' & other Fri midday news briefs

T.I. tries to defend DaBaby's homophobia.

T.I. Says Rappers Are Bullied by the Gay Community - Bullshit! 

 Related post from 2011 - Hey T.I., violence against gay children is NOT funny - T.I. just mad cause we called his ass out in 2011 when he defended comedian Tracy Morgan for making an ugly joke about stabbing his son if he found out he was gay. T.I. can kiss my a.s.s.

Stephanie Dolson is first out American athlete to win Olympic gold medal - Good for her!

Fight over trans student policies moves to Virginia’s school boards after lawsuit gets dismissed - Score another victory for the transgender community. 

BNT: Buck case highlights intersection of race & sexual orientation - This case depresses me but it needs to be spotlighted A gay rich older white man targeted younger black men down on their luck. He entices them with money to allow him to pump them full of drugs. Two ended up dying. He was put on trial and found guilty of their deaths, as he should have.

How Fox News & the TERF community turned an unverified story at a spa into a 'nightmare scenario' for the transgender community

Apparently the situation last month at WiSpa, the Los Angeles Korean spa where someone claimed that a naked trans woman exposed herself to a woman and a child, was uglier than we thought. Even though the alleged incident was unverified,  Fox News, the TERF community from places as far as Canada and Britain, and assorted conservative groups stoked the controversy until it led to two violent protests which saw people beaten, stabbed, and simply targeted for being transgender:

As The Guardian puts it:

The episode, experts said, offered a case study in how viral misinformation can result in violence, and provided clear evidence of the links between anti-trans and far-right movements, including QAnon conspiracy theorists, who believe that a cabal of elite pedophiles is manipulating the American government.

In a detailed article, A Nightmare Scenario: how an anti-trans Instagram post led to violence in the streets, The Guardian shows just how one unsubstantiated claim by a person with little credibility ballooned into chaos because of the prejudices and ulterior motives of the parties exploiting the claim:

On 24 June, an Instagram user with the name @CubanaAngel posted footage of herself inside the lobby of Wi Spa loudly confronting numerous staff members about a “man” who was naked in front of women and girls. In her video, an employee tried to explain that the spa cannot discriminate based on gender identity. A male customer walking by asked the woman filming if the customer she encountered was, in fact, a trans person. 

The woman filming, along with another woman complaining to staff, responded with transphobic language, denying that trans women exist, suggesting that the person was a “pervert”, and saying they would be defending women and girls “in Jesus’s name”. It is unclear whether a trans woman was actually present. There was no footage of anyone inside the changing room and no other witnesses have since spoken out to corroborate the account. A local LGBTQ+ paper reported that a spa employee said there were no trans patrons with appointments that day, leading some to question whether the incident was staged.

Nevertheless, some folks took the claim and ran with it: 

Cubana Angel’s original Wi Spa Instagram video quickly went viral on Twitter and Facebook, shared by accounts and pages with names such as “Conservative Update”, “Latino Exit From the Democratic Party” and “Women for Trump”, according to data from CrowdTangle, an analytics tool. Rightwing sites presented the woman’s claims as fact, and in several cases used a misleading screenshot of a male customer as a main photo, falsely implying he was the trans woman. 

 . . . In one week, Fox discussed Wi Spa in six segments, said Brennan Suen, LGBTQ program director at Media Matters, which tracks rightwing media. The host Tucker Carlson repeated, without evidence, that a “man” was naked in the “female kids section” of the spa. Another host warned that what happened at Wi Spa will occur “all across the land”.

 . . .The video was also shared by feminists who advocate against trans-inclusive policies – sometimes referred to as gender critical feminists, or trans-exclusionary radical feminists (Terfs). Moro documented a flurry of posts on Ovarit (a site for users banned from Reddit due to transphobia) and Mumsnet (a platform for UK mothers, which has attracted anti-trans feminists). An “LGB” group in Canada – part of a fringe movement of lesbian, gay and bisexual people who argue against trans rights – claimed with no evidence that the Wi Spa video raised concerns about pedophilia.  

What happen next was pure madness, including the targeting of a transgender activist after she was inaccurately accused of being the transgender woman in the middle of the controversy. There were also two protests in front of WiSpa between protestors and counter protesters with the police in the middle.

It went exactly how you think it would. The Guardian includes pictures of the battles and it's not pretty. And while it looks settled down at least for now, one thing was clear.

The tale of the transgender woman allegedly exposing herself to children and other women still has not been verified as truth.

You can read the entire article here. 

'Rapper DaBaby facing universal condemnation for homophobic comments' & other Thur midday news briefs

DaBaby

Celebrities, activists condemn rapper DaBaby’s homophobic comments - First of all, who the hell is this?

Rep. Katherine Clark leads bill to blunt discrimination against LGBTQ students at higher ed institutions - We'll see how it turns out. I'm highly cynical.

Lesbian Fox host says she wishes she could give back her COVID-19 vaccine - The LGBTQ community wishes we could give Tammy Bruce away. 

Illinois Decriminalizes HIV Exposure, Adds Gender-Neutral Birth Certificate Option And More As Pritzker Signs LGBTQ-Affirming Laws - Way to go, Illinois!

We need more Dorothy Zbornaks (from 'The Golden Girls') in America today

 

I interrupt my regularly scheduled beatdown of the anti-LGBTQ industry to let y'all know that I am burnt out and exhausted with the evil, corruption, and basic dishonesty in this country where people and groups are unfairly exploited for money and clout. Where idiots go online not to get educated, but suddenly think they are educated. Where any fool with a Twitter address anoints themselves as experts in subjects they can't even appropriately spell.  The solution? We need more Dorothy Zbornaks from The Golden Girls to lay the smack down on some people. Either that or I may be tempted to start grabbing more people by their hair and whipping them around like I'm Wonder Woman with her magic lasso.

'These kids had questions about trans athletes. So they asked one' & other Wed midday news briefs

These kids had questions about trans athletes. So they asked one. - For all of the false fears about children and LGBTQ issues, we find that there is really nothing to worry about. Children tend to understand these things better than some adults.

Infertility treatment coverage expanded for LGBTQ community under bills Pritzker signs to ‘chart a new path forward’ - Good! More possibilities for LGBTQ families. 

Antigay GOP candidate Josh Mandel’s deep obsession with LGBTQ people reaches new heights - People like this guy are so damn creepy.

Gay athletes more comfortable living their lives openly — and that’s a good thing - And it's about time, too.

VICTORY! Appeals court rules against web designer who challenged Colorado's anti-discrimination law

A Colorado appeals court just ruled that this will not be a legal reality in the state.

The religious right's attempt to exploit the concept of 'religious liberty' as a tool to strike LGBTQ non-discrimination laws failed on Tuesday afternoon.

According to The Associated Press:

A U.S. appeals court has ruled against a web designer who didn’t want to create wedding websites for same-sex couples and sued to challenge Colorado’s anti-discrimination law, another twist in a series of court rulings nationwide about whether businesses denying services to LGBTQ people amounts to bias or freedom of speech. A three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver on Monday denied Lorie Smith's attempt to overturn a lower court ruling throwing out her legal challenge. 

 . . .  In the 2-1 ruling, the panel said Colorado had a compelling interest in protecting the “dignity interests” of members of marginalized groups through its law. The anti-discrimination law is the same one at issue in the case of Colorado baker Jack Phillips that was decided in 2018 by the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court decided the Colorado Civil Rights Commission had acted with anti-religious bias against Phillips after he refused to bake a cake for two men who were getting married. But it did not rule on the larger issue of whether a business can invoke religious objections to refuse service to LGBTQ people.

Smith's case was handled by anti-LGBTQ hate group the Alliance Defending Freedom, which should surprise no one. Her case is one of many in which the group has tried to make a case that LGBTQ-nondiscrimination laws are automatically an affront to the idea of "religious freedom" because they supposedly force people to promote messages which are against their religious beliefs.

Luckily, the appeals court saw through that subterfuge. Lambda Legal submitted a brief defending Colorado's law.  The organization's senior counsel, Jennifer C. Pizer, broke it down rather nicely what this case was all about:

“This really isn’t about cake or websites or flowers. It’s about protecting LGBTQ people and their families from being subjected to slammed doors, service refusals and public humiliation in countless places — from fertility clinics to funeral homes and everywhere in between.”

'Woman doesn't know if she should invited her grandmother to her gay wedding. Her grandmother is Anita Bryant' & other Tue midday news briefs

Anti-LGBTQ activist Anita Bryant's gay granddaughter doesn't know if she wants to invite her to her wedding.

The granddaughter of a notorious anti-gay rights activist is marrying a woman — and she's not sure whether to invite her grandmother to the wedding - Uh I don't think you should invite her.

 
Michigan board rejects petition to include LGBTQ protections in civil rights law, organizers vow appeal - Keep fighting, y'all. 

Atlanta mayor hosts job fair for LGBTQ applicants - This is a WONDERFUL idea. 

Out judo star Amandine Buchard wins silver medal 1 month after publicly coming out - Good for her!

Two educators under fire for using district resources, revealing personal conversation with student during anti-transgender campaign

If there's one thing the religious right thrives upon, it's incidents which they can exploit and manipulate against the LGBTQ community. Religious right groups love to canonize 'ordinary American citizens' as victims of a so-called gay agenda which threatens to wreck their lives. That's pretty much what their "religious liberty" argument was all about. Now it would seem that they may have found two individuals to aid in their recent attacks against transgender youth.

From Oregon Public Broadcasting:

Two educators in Grants Pass were terminated by the school board Thursday. The board found North Middle School Assistant Principal Rachel Damiano and science teacher Katie Medart used district time and resources to promote their campaign to challenge school policies on gender identity. Both Medart and Damiano are outspoken opponents of policies meant to accommodate transgender students in Oregon schools. Last spring, they launched an online campaign called I Resolve. I Resolve calls for a rollback of those policies. For instance, they say teachers should not be required to call students by their preferred pronouns or name. They also want to change signs on restrooms and locker rooms to say “anatomical male” and “anatomical female.”

Can't you just see the headline - "Two educators fired because they would not adhere to the 'transgender agenda.'" 

I can picture Tony Perkins and the Family Research Council or the Alliance Defending Freedom and the Liberty Counsel  salivating over the mileage they could get out of this. They can probably go all day with different Fox News shows while pseudo-experts such as Abigail Shrier and the TERF community can pump up the situation to sell more books or make more ridiculous arguments about how women are being "erased."

But let's not get too hasty. Like the vast number of religious right cause celebres, this one has very interesting mitigating circumstances which may be conveniently overlooked.  As the above excerpt said, an investigation found that the ladies used district time and resources for their anti-transgender campaign. 

But it gets worse. One of the ladies seemingly exposed a student's personal business:

Medart, in particular, was accused of creating a disruption in the school district. In a video posted online, she talks about a student who had come to her with gender identity questions. Although she doesn’t mention the student by name, many in the district recognized who she was talking about.

Both former employees are suing claiming that their First Amendment rights were violated, so it will be interesting to see what happens next. One thing is for sure, though. I don't think it's fair to claim that these ladies are victims.  Using district resources for their own personal campaign in itself is a huge no-no, but mentioning private conversations had with students strikes me as worse. It's a violation of trust, not to mention something which could expose said student to embarrassment and violence. It was an absolutely selfish thing to do.

On that alone,  I fail to see how being terminated was not an appropriate action.

'Lil Nas X giving homophobes the vapors again' & other Mon midday news briefs

Y'all, Lil Nas X is raising hell and I am so here for it!! 

Lil Nas X Had A Fantastic Response For Trolls Who Accused Him Of Pushing The "Gay Agenda"

Twitter's Reactions To Lil Nas X's "Industry Baby" Are Exactly Why I'll Never Delete This App 

In other news:

These Trans Parents Gave Birth Amid a Pandemic and Right-Wing Hate - They caught hell but are coming through it with flying colors. 

Thousands join Pride event in Hungary as LGBTQ people face growing hostility - More bravery in the face of hatred and ignorance.

Televangelists want to create a safe space for young Christian men to congregate online - And the jokes write themselves.

' Joy and Hope to be Found' - CNN spotlights four parents who became fierce, loving advocates for their transgender children

CNN just published a very good article about four parents of transgender boys. The article allows them to relate about how their kids came out, how it affected their relationships, and how the recent anti-trans hysteria made them fierce for their children and other trans children.

 The article is simply amazing due to the honesty and brevity of the parents. They speak from the heart and you will learn more from reading this than any foul anti-trans book or talking points spewed from the mouths of right-wing phony experts.

Here is just an excerpt and after reading it, you will want to read more:

Anger has played a role in all four parents' efforts to speak out against transphobia. Stephen Chukumba of New Jersey told CNN he'd never considered what it meant to be trans until his son, one of his four children, came out as trans. He quickly caught up on the proper vocabulary and history and learned the myriad ways in which trans Americans have been excluded from society. "I found myself really incensed by it," he said of transphobia. "I just can't sit idly by." 

Amber Briggle would agree. It was rage that spurred the owner of a massage business to alert local media in 2016 to a Facebook post by a candidate for sheriff in Denton County, Texas, in which he endorsed physical violence against transgender people. The same year, she invited the state attorney general who criticized trans-inclusive policies to her house for dinner with her husband, daughter, and her son, Max, who is trans. She may not have changed the attorney general's mind that night, she said, but her dinner did get the attention of the Human Rights Campaign, with whom she helped create the Parents for Transgender Equality National Council. She did a TEDx Talk, too, about supporting her son's transition and started a blog about what it meant to be his mother in a state with hostile policies toward trans people.

. . . All four parents unequivocally support their children, though some said they could have been better allies in the beginning of their sons' transition. "I would say I failed at first, although my kid laughs when I say that," Trujillo said. 

From the time her son was 2, he showed her in different ways that he was a boy, Trujillo said. He'd draw himself as a boy and leave LEGO figures of boys around the house to hint at the way he saw himself, he told her. When she finally overheard Danny's friends use "him" in reference to her son, "all the puzzle pieces fell into place," she said. 

Danny was 8 when he socially transitioned, and Trujillo immediately affirmed him. Before he formally came out, she said she didn't see him as trans because she worried that she'd say the wrong thing or damage Danny in some way. But once he transitioned, she realized he knew himself better than she did. Briggle said she'd do "a million things differently" now than she did when her son came out. For one thing, she said, he'd been "expressing that he was a boy" since he was 2-and-a-half, but she didn't understand what he was trying to tell her.

After reading the article, I made one sad realization. Transgender issues are similar to the problems we are facing when it comes to misinformation about the COVID vaccine.  Too many people are being manipulated to draw their own inaccurate conclusions by others with ulterior motives.  They aren't being empowered to educate themselves. They are being empowered to think they know more than the medical experts and others invested in these issues. Sometimes people need to realize their limitations, shut their mouths, and listen to those who know what they are talking about. That would do a world of good.

Photo does not include children in CNN article. It was taken from the Human Right Campaign's Transgender Children & Youth: Understanding the Basics

'Here's all of the actions taken so far by the Biden-Harris administration to advance equality' & other Fri midday news briefs

Here’s all the actions taken so far by the Biden-Harris administration to advance equality - Thus far but no harm in wanting more. 

‘Nobody should be denied.’ Blue Cross NC expands coverage for transgender people - Kudos to Blue Cross NC. 

Senate confirms lesbian, trans nominees to high-profile defense roles - Awesome! 

Half of states now restrict conversion therapy for LGBTQ kids - Not bad. Let's work on the other half.

Video: Fox News is killing Americans

 

Not necessarily an LGBTQ issue in itself, but this situation does involve our community. There has been a snag in our country overcoming this COVID pandemic and that snag is Fox News. Even though employees of that awful network have most likely been vaccinated, day after day they spin lies and fear stories against vaccination. This has been accurately pinpointed as one of the main reasons why it has been so difficult to get folks to do the right thing. And none of them care - not Tucker Carlson, not Laura Ingraham, not Rupert Murdoch, nor anyone else employed at that network.  To them, hurting the Biden Administration is more important than saving lives.

'Louisiana lawmakers fail to overturn veto of transgender ban' & other Thur midday news briefs

Louisiana lawmakers fail to overturn veto of transgender ban - BOOM! Another well-deserved victory for the transgender community. 

Hollywood heavyweights line up to mentor LGBTQ screenwriters - A wonderful idea courtesy of GLAAD. 

Pence's 'Political Career Over' as '24 GOP Presidential Nom Slips Away - For now. But keep an eye on that rascal. Politics changes all of the time. 

House resolution apologizes for treatment of LGBTQ troops, federal workers - It's a nice start but I would prefer passage of the Equality Act. 

22 LGBTQ athletes to cheer at the Tokyo Olympics - Good luck to them.

Federal judge temporarily blocks Arkansas ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth

In what hopefully will be a preview of what's to come, a federal judge temporarily blocked an Arkansas law banning gender-affirming care for trans youth.

From Time magazine:

A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked an Arkansas law that would have banned transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming health care while a lawsuit challenging the law’s constitutionality proceeds. The law would have gone into effect on July 28. In April, Arkansas became the first state in the U.S. to approve a ban that would prevent doctors from providing gender-affirming care—including hormone treatment and puberty blockers—to patients under 18. The law would also prevent doctors from referring patients to other physicians who provide gender-affirming treatment. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit in May on behalf of four transgender children, their families and two doctors challenging the ban, arguing it violates the Constitution and threatens the well-being of trans youth. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Kay Moody in Little Rock, Ark., placed a preliminary injunction on the law’s enforcement while the case moves through the legal system.

The Arkansas law is part of a coordinated legislative act across the nation targeting trans youth.  Republican-led state legislatures have attempted to enacted laws outlawing gender-affirming care for these youth while falsely claiming that they are trying to keep them safe. 

But to trans youth, these bills and laws are having the opposite effect:

“This is who I am, and it’s frustrating to know that a place I’ve lived all my life is treating me like they don’t want me here,” said 15-year-old Dylan Brandt, one the plaintiffs, in a statement when the suit was filed in May. Should the law go into effect, Brandt will lose access to the gender-affirming treatment he’s received for nearly a year. “Having access to care means I’m able to be myself, and be healthier and more confident—physically and mentally,” Brandt said. “The thought of having that wrenched away and going back to how I was before is devastating.” 

According to NBC News: 

Brandt's mom, Joanna Brandt, spoke on behalf of the parents involved in the suit. "We have seen the benefits of this health care firsthand," she said during the news conference. "Our children were suffering, and with this care they have a level of hope and happiness we've never seen. We are no different than any other parent in Arkansas. We love our kids and we want them to grow up healthy, loved and safe." Joanna Brandt said the law "ignores" what medical professionals say about gender-affirming care. Major medical associations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association and the Endocrine Society, among others, support access to gender-affirming care for transgender minors.

Arkansas Gov Asa Hutchinson vetoed the bill when it was passed, calling it "government overreach." However, his vetoed was overriden by the legislature. 

Lastly, according to NBC News:

During Wednesday's news conference, Chase Strangio, an attorney with the ACLU, noted that the group has recently had success in a number of states where measures targeting trans people were blocked by judges pending litigation. Earlier this month, a federal judge in Tennessee blocked a law that required businesses to post a notice if they allow transgender people to use bathrooms that match their gender identity. Last year, a federal judge in Idaho also blocked a law that would've banned transgender girls from playing on girls' sports teams in middle and high school and college.

'Barriers exist for LGBTQ people as both foster parents and foster children' & other Wed midday news briefs

Barriers exist for LGBTQ people as both foster parents and foster children - Yep. 

State panel partially sides with Brewer High teacher who complained of anti-LGBTQ bias - Still a victory.

PrEP, the HIV prevention pill, must now be totally free under almost all insurance plans - Thank you, federal government. 

Political Pundits Can Now Be Gay Black Men Who Wear Nail Polish - Let me cuss a lot and you're on.

Olympic swimmer Markus Thormeyer performed at his peak after coming out as gay - Because he didn't have to deal with the stress of being closeted.

Video: Gay Life As Seen on 1970s TV

 

One of my hobbies is to explore how LGBTQ people were depicted on television and in movies before the days of Ellen DeGeneres, Will and Grace, and (I still hate that damn show) Queer As Folks. So this video is right up my alley. Some of you young folks don't remember how it was back in the 1970s when we were depicted as the drama of the week. Consider this video as your entry into that world and a realization of how far we've come as a people.

'California budget includes $3 million to train teachers about LGBTQ issues' & other Tue midday news briefs

California budget includes $3 million to train teachers on LGBTQ issues - I'd like to see more states do this even though I can just picture the religious right outrage.

Tireless mom becomes lawyer in her 40s just to fight for her trans daughter’s rights - Mama grizzlies do NOT play. 

These 15 Historical Examples Of LGBTQ Culture Around The World You Might Not Have Known About - A little history never hurts. 

Olympics committee backs transgender weightlifter, prompting criticism - Pissed off people need to get over it.

NPR: How Ben Shapiro and The Daily Wire market conservative outrage for the big bucks

Having watched Ben Shapiro and his publication, the Daily Wire, target LGBTQ people with lurid articles like the ones above, it should be no surprise to know that they only do it for the almighty dollar.

The National Public Radio just busted conservative Ben Shapiro and his publication, The Daily Wire, on something which should already be common knowledge. They market outrage to make a quick buck.

From NPR   

Daily Wire articles with headlines such as "BOOK REVIEW: Proof That Wokeness Is Projection By Nervous, Racist White Women Who Can't Talk To Minorities Without Elaborate Codes" regularly garner tens of thousands of shares for the site, and Shapiro is turning that Facebook reach into a rapidly expanding, cost-efficient media empire — one that experts worry may be furthering polarization in the United States. "There's a demand amongst certain subsets of the public for outrage politics," said Jaime Settle, director of the Social Networks and Political Psychology Lab at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. "This happens on both the left and the right. But the people who do this on the right have just found a lot more successful ways of doing it."

   . . . The articles The Daily Wire publishes don't normally include falsehoods (with some exceptions), and the site said it is committed to "truthful, accurate and ethical reporting." But as Settle explains, by only covering specific stories that bolster the conservative agenda (such as negative reports about socialist countries and polarizing ones about race and sexuality issues) and only including certain facts, readers still come away from The Daily Wire's content with the impression that Republican politicians can do little wrong and cancel culture is among the nation's greatest threats. 

 An NPR review of stories on The Daily Wire about the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two months found numerous stories about potential side effects from COVID-19 vaccines, but none that portrayed the scientifically demonstrated efficacy of the vaccines or that focused explicitly on the hesitancy that has slowed the U.S. rollout. Often the site's headlines seem like a conglomeration of conservative buzzwords: "CNN Medical Expert Urges We Must Make Life 'Hard' For Unvaccinated, Test Them Twice-Weekly" and "DeSantis Team Offers 'Don't Fauci My Florida' T-Shirt, Triggers Leftists." NewsGuard, a company started by journalists that rates the credibility of news sites based on a number of factors, scores The Daily Wire a 57/100. "They tend to not provide very much context for the information that they are providing," Settle said. "If you've stripped enough context away, any piece of truth can become a piece of misinformation."

Such is what the conservative moment is today. It's no longer a governing philosophy. Conservatism is now an grievance industry filled with no-talent shills making money from the politics of  anger, outrage, and resentment.   

'ACLU sues Montana over trans ID law requiring proof of surgery' & other Mon midday news briefs

ACLU sues Montana over transgender ID law requiring proof of surgery - I am loving these lawsuits.

2 LGBTQ Books Pulled From Elmbrook Schools After Daily Wire Story - Oh good grief. What tripe. 

A Christian teacher demanded a religious exemption to using trans students’ names. A judge said no. - Somebody thought they were being cute and got checked.

5 really queer reasons we love ‘American Horror Stories’ - Fascinating. 

Louisiana GOP To Attempt Override Of Anti-Trans Bill Veto - Try it.

Three adults put under arrest for beating a 12-year-old child, shaving the word 'gay' in his head

These three were put under arrest for beating a 12-year-old child and shaving the word 'gay' in is head on a video last month which went viral.

A child's life has been turned upside down simply because of toxic masculinity and homophobia. And of course none of it was necessary.

From LGBTQNation:

Police in Atlanta have announced that they have arrested and charged three individuals for child abuse following their part in beating a 12-year-old boy and shaving the word “GAY” in the side of his head, all on video that went viral on social media. Brittney Monique Mills, 35, and Lorkeyla Jamia Spencer, 19, were both charged with cruelty to children. Jordan Jarrode Richards-Nwankwo, 18, was charged with “Battery – Family Violence” in addition to cruelty to children. 

 . . . Last month, after a video of a family torturing a 12-year-old boy went viral, the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services stepped in. The boy’s mother filmed the abuse and broadcast it on Instagram Live. Footage of the attack was captured from the broadcast and reuploaded across the internet. The video shows the young man being repeatedly smacked and demeaned by adults, as they shave his head, embedding the word “GAY” in the design. The word was put in his head as punishment because, as one person said in the video, “You still doing gay shit.” The boy, identified only as “Tyler,” was subsequently removed from the home.

More details here.

'Right-wing media harassing trans couple for taking care of their newborn child' & other Fri midday news briefs

Right-wing media are harassing a trans couple for taking care of their newborn child - As they always do, the right deliberately distorts a situation and is now using it to harass this couple. Disgusting. 

17 GOP states ask federal court for right to deny transgender kids medical care - Trashy bastards. Sorry but my patience continues to ebb for these folks with their constant attempts to foster discrimination. 

EU begins legal action against Hungary over anti-LGBT law - Good. Sock it to 'em!

Cornell University study on impact of discrimination on LGBTQ of color - A very MUCH needed study. 

A Gay Cheer Coach Was Fired Abruptly — Now His Students Are Fighting For Him - Good for them.

Family Research Council doing its part to undermine Biden Administration's vaccination programs

It's hard to believe but in the middle of the country's attempt to beat this COVID pandemic, the GOP and their conservative operatives have been undermining the need for vaccinations by both raising unfounded fears and making the absurd case that getting vaccinated is an affront to our "freedoms." 

Luckily, a lot of people recognize this as a political attempt to in actuality undermine the Biden Administration's fight against COVID. You may think that it's too farfetched to contemplate that some elected officials and their cohorts are willing to sacrifice the public health for political power,  but in today's world of politics, it's not as much of an off-the-wall theory as one would think. Nor is the fact that some of these same people comparing vaccination programs to 'Nazism' today would turn around and feign sadness while pointing the accusing finger at Biden should their fear tactics reap unfortunate success.

And in the middle of it all is, of course, the religious right. One organization, the Family Research Council, seems to be devoting a considerable amount of time and energy in exploiting fears about vaccines in the same manner it continues to  push fears and ignorance about LGBTQ people. It's an easy blueprint the group is following. When your game plan is scapegoating, you can change targets but you never have to alter your methodology.

'Right-wing media spreads disputed story attacking trans-inclusive spa' & other Thur midday news briefs

Right-wing media spreads disputed story attacking trans-inclusive spaces - Because they are all lying sons of bitches. . . did I stutter?

Biden promised passage of the Equality Act in 100 days. We’re approaching 200. - Don't lay this solely on Biden. There is an over reliance by us to depend on one person or entity. We want this done, but putting pressure solely on Biden and/or the Democrats strike me as half-assed. 

CNN anchor spars with official over controversial LGBTQ law - Thank you CNN for giving a damn about what's going on in Hungary. 

Nick Wagman, headed to the Tokyo Olympics, talks for the first time about being a gay athlete, married to his husband - Good article.

Candidate for NJ governor thinks teaching LGBTQ history = teaching about sodomy

This is New Jersey governor candidate Jack Ciattarelli (R) and in this 15 second clip, he is indicative of the homophobia and willful ignorance spewed in this country about LGBTQ people. 

 From LGBTQNation: 

 “When I’m governor you won’t have to deal with it, but we don’t teach gender ID and sexual orientation to kindergartens,” he said. “In the sixth grade, we don’t teach sodomy. And we’re going to push back on the LGBTQ curriculum. It goes too far.” 

No one is teaching gender identity or sexual orientation to children in kindergarten and of course no one is teaching sodomy to sixth graders.

LGBTQNation writer Alex Bolinger said that when it comes to the sodomy claim, Ciattarelli is referring to a state law which requires school to teach about LGBTQ history. How this idiot equates teaching sodomy to teaching about LGBTQ history is a sad reality when it comes to this nonsensical culture war. To some people, sex is what LGBTQ people are all about. To them, it is our total existence.  That's why they are always whining about how LGBTQ visibility isn't proper or how children should be guarded from even an iota of something which shows us existing as normal people. It's not enough for them to define us via sexual behavior.  That is how they want the world to define us and that is how they want us to define ourselves. Because of this, they attempt to shut down any discussion or facts which deviate from their warped narrative.

To me,  that's dangerous. On Tuesday, I made the wonderful discovery that the first man to refer to himself as a "drag queen" was an African-American former slave by the name of William Dorsey Swann. He fought police over 100 years before Stonewall and sought a pardon from President Grover Cleveland in 1896 after being arrested for supposedly running a brothel.  His request was denied but still that made him the first American to push for legal action demanding the LGBTQ community's right to gather.

For a black gay man like myself who has been constantly searching for a link between the black and gay communities predating the 20th century, that's a pretty damn big deal. And it should be taught in schools, along with other facets of  LGBTQ history. 

It's neither fair nor right to force a one-dimensional definition crafted from homophobia on LGBTQ people and our families.  And I hope New Jersey voters agree.

'Emmy nominations are out and they are super gay and trans' & other Wed midday news briefs

SNL's Bowen Yang is just one of the many LGBTQ stars nominated for an Emmy.

The Emmy Nominations Are Out, and They Are Super Gay and Trans - Generally speaking, the LGBTQ community did rather well with Emmy nominations. Our folks made history. 

Israeli court annuls parts of surrogacy law excluding gays - The Israeli court clears the way for us to have children via surrogacy. 

News cameraman dies after being beaten by a bloodthirsty mob protesting a pride parade - I hate stuff like this and I hate posting about it. However it is necessary because the struggle is real and worldwide.

'Young People Are Taking Control Over Their Gender Identity.' New Research Examines Diversity of Nonbinary Youth - This is major news. 

Of course a homophobe with a mugshot accused of sexual misconduct is a 2022 GOP frontrunner - Ugh. We have major work to do in America.

Bewitched: It was Gay All Along?

 

This blog post features a change of pace, because even us so-called intrepid radical gay activists/Gay Mafia members need a light-hearted rest period. From a good friend of mine, Matt Baume, comes a very interesting expository on the famed television show Bewitched. Matt thinks Bewitched is one of the queerest shows he has ever seen. After viewing this video, tell me what you think.

'Anti-LGBTQ priest accused of sexual abuse to cure homosexuality' & other Tue midday news briefs

Anti-LGBTQ+ Priest Accused of Sexual Abuse to Cure Homosexuality - Lawd, hammercy!

Family Research Council Makes It Explicit: Attacks on Trans Youth Health Care Are 2022 Election Strategy - Must be time to fundraise. 

Hungary Bans LGBTQ Content From Schools, But Some Teachers Say They Will Defy It - This is what you called bravery. 

Theatre erupts into cheers as drag performer stops play to confront ‘d**khead’ who threw bottle - Do NOT mess with the drag queens. 

Netflix Documentary Goes Deep On ‘Gay Conversion’ Therapy Movement - Oh really?

Sloppy Bigotry - Family Research Council's attempt to blame gays for Boy Scout sex abuse is highly dishonest

The Family Research Council is blaming a 2013 decision to allow gays to participate in the Boys Scouts for sexual abuse which began decades before the decision was made.

Anti-LGBTQ hate group the Family Research Council never wastes an opportunity to blame the LGBTQ community for calamities and troubles. And it doesn't matter whether or not we had anything to do with said calamities and troubles.

A perfect example is the fall of the Boy Scouts. The organization had to declare bankruptcy last year because it faces thousands of child sexual abuse allegations going back decades. 

 According to an April 25, 2019 CNN article:

The Boy Scouts of America believed more than 7,800 of its former leaders were involved in sexually abusing children over the course of 72 years, according to newly exposed court testimony – about 2,800 more leaders than previously known publicly. The Boy Scouts identified more than 12,000 alleged victims in that time period, from 1944 through 2016, according to the testimony, which was publicized Tuesday by attorney Jeff Anderson, who specializes in representing sexual abuse victims. The numbers, Anderson said, come from what the BSA calls its volunteer screening database – a list of volunteers and others that the Boy Scouts removed and banned from its organization over accusations of policy violations, including allegations of sexual abuse. That 7,800 includes scout leaders and masters across the country accused of sexually assaulting “children under their charge,” Anderson said Tuesday at a news conference in New York.

Because of this, the group is working on an $850 million settlement agreement with lawyers representing over 60,000 victims of child sexual abuse. 

But guess who FRC is blaming for this scandal? It's a relatively easy guess when one reads the group's Washington Update:

After 100 years of teaching future presidents, explorers, and civil rights leaders to follow their moral compass, it's been sobering to watch the Boy Scouts lose their own bearings. And yet, the unhappy ending for one of America's proudest traditions was easy to predict once the organization started chasing the approval of critics it could never win. Now, eight years into this experiment in moral compromise, the country is watching one of the saddest "I-told-you-so" moments of a generation. Disgraced, bankrupt, unpopular, and on the edge of extinction, the Scouts' leadership is showing the world where cowardly conformity leads -- and it isn't where the culture promised. 

 For those who knew the Scouts in their heyday, the demise has been quick and painful. Since 2013, when the organization waved its first white flag on sexual orientation, the group that counted Martin Luther King, Jr., Buzz Aldrin, and George W. Bush as members has become barely recognizable. Ravaged by sexual abuse lawsuits and bleeding members, the road of moral surrender has not been kind to the 1910 institution. After years of successfully fighting to live by its moral code, BSA leaders gave into the lie that compromise would be their salvation. Nearly a decade later, the sad truth is: there's almost nothing left to save.

 "It's a shell of what it once was," Regent University professor Rob Schwarzwalder said mournfully. "At its peak, scouting in the United States had more than seven million members. Today, it's about a tenth of that." It's a dramatic decline, the former FRC senior vice president admitted on "Washington Watch," but a predictable one. Once the scouts walked away from 100 years of values, it was only a matter of time until the capitulation caught up with them. "They no longer are even able to define what they mean by things like honor and morality," Rob pointed out. Once headquarters opened the tent flap to LGBT members and scout leaders, their fate was sealed.

FRC and Schwarzwelder is referring to the 2013 decision of the Boys Scouts to allow gays to openly participate. Before 2013, gays banned from the Boy Scouts and the organization even won a Supreme Court case to that effect in 2000.

The Family Research Council have made the  false connection between pedophilia and the LGBTQ community numerous times in the past. And no matter how many times the lie is refuted, the organization continues to repeat it. 

But this time is flagrantly sloppy.

How can a 2013 decision be blamed for incidents which began decades before the decision was made? Or basically, how can anyone in their right mind blame a 2013 decision to allow gays to openly serve in the Boy Scouts for a sexual abuse scandal taking place between the years of 1944 and 2016?

You can't, but it's obvious that FRC is hoping that in this day and age of media oversaturation and the  unfortunate overstating of headlines (and the understating of nuances and details), it can get away with its latest scapegoating of LGBTQ people. 

No matter how basically tacky and dishonest the attempt may be.

'Caitlyn Jenner attended conservative conference. It did not go well for her' & other Mon midday news briefs

Caitlyn Jenner

Hecklers relentlessly deadname Caitlyn Jenner over an extremist-heavy CPAC weekend - Caitlyn, girlfriend. We all need a "meeting in the ladies room." Why are you trying blend in with these fools. They hate you for being trans. They will never like you. And the ones who aren't smiling in your face and pretending to like you are the honest ones. And that's the scary part. 

20 GOP Attorneys General Blast Biden's LGBTQ+ Policies - Just undermine Biden everywhere you can, why don't you? 

Violence Over a Transphobic Hoax Shows the Danger of Underestimating Anti-Trans Hate - In what's looking like a hoax regarding a naked trans woman, cis women, and children, we are reminded just how disgusting the religious right and TERFs are when combining their forces. Like a bunch of orcs from the JRR Tolkein books mixed with the Brood from the X-Men comic book series, and the parademons from DC universe. No use to anyone. A bunch of disgusting, misguided, frothing at the mouth, psychologically misshapen wastes of skin, bones, tissues, and cartilage. 

This is how the beautiful people of Augusta celebrated Pride. - Awwww! This is nice.

Anti-LGBTQ hate group leader caught trying to help overturn 2020 election

Michael Farris could talk for a long time about how God supposedly opposes homosexuality. But I bet he's silent on where God stands on his attempts to help overturn last year's presidential election.

I caught this item from LGBTQNation:

As the head of the hate group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), Michael Farris spends most of his time fighting LGBTQ rights. The ADF has been at the forefront of legal battles aiming to diminish LGBTQ protections by mandating religious liberty exemptions that would skirt nondiscrimination laws. But Farris has been expanding his repertoire lately.

 A recent report from Talking Points Memo (TPM) finds that Farris was advising the attorney general of South Carolina in November and December 2020 on how they could try and invalidate Joe Biden’s election.

According to the article, Farris was one of several right-wing lawyers attempting to overturn the election. The article also said:

Farris offered his legal expertise to state Attorney General Alan Wilson (R) while Wilson was pondering how he could challenge the national results. For the record, Donald Trump carried South Carolina by about 12 percentage points. The strategy at the time was for Republican-led states to challenge the results in states that Trump lost, an unheard of — and ultimately unsuccessful — approach. Farris sent Wilson a brief, and the attorney general followed up with a conversation with Farris. “Mike was very accommodating and knowledgeable about the legal issues raised in the pleading,” Wilson wrote in an email obtained by TPM. 

 Ultimately, SC joined the ridiculous and unsuccessful attempt by Texas to get SCOTUS involved.

ADF has been an anti-LGBTQ juggernaut, responsible for just about every recent attempt to undermine LGBTQ rights and health from bathroom bills to "religious freedom" to discriminate bills, to the recent attacks on trans youth athletes and adequate healthcare for trans youth.

Farris himself has been very outspoken against LGBTQ rights, from describing marriage equality as an "infection" to publicly defending laws outlawing gay sexual behavior.

Farris consistently brings up God when condemning LGBTQ people and our rights.  Strangely enough, he has been silent on where God stands about overturning a fair and safe election.

How convenient.

'Advocates slam Tenn law requiring transgender bathroom signs' & other Fri midday news briefs

TENN is in a fight over bathroom signs (sign pictured here is NOT sign in question)/

 ‘Not welcome’: Advocates slam Tennessee law requiring transgender bathroom signs - The law is idiotic in the first place. - UPDATE- the law has been temporarily blocked.

State officials say LGBTQ petition has too few signatures; should not be certified - Well damn. I'm not buying it. 

Anti-LGBTQ Hungary law takes effect - Ugh. I almost wish a religious right group or figure from America would vouch for this mess. I haven't went off good on someone in a long time. 

Florida parents sue Catholic school, question its teachings on race, LGBTQ community - A ridiculous lawsuit.

Repost - All of the 'evil and dirty' things that the gays do

Even in 2021, anti-gay memes and tropes still exist even after they have been refuted.

On Thursday, I wrote about a harmless, very funny video which was taken by a horde of ignorant people to believe that gays actually do 'recruit' children. Today, that video has me going back through past blog posts. The following is from  2014 and makes a very good point. If you looked at all of the things the religious right and anti-LGBTQ industry have accused gays of, there is a hilarious, yet fundamental flaw in their claims:

Yesterday, courtesy of People for the American Way's Right Wing Watch, I read Ohio anti-gay activist Phil Burress make a claim that gay men have "as many as 200 sex partners."

A day later, Burress' outrageous claim continues to haunt me not only for its inanity but because it brings to focus something which has been dwelling in my mind for a long time in little bits and pieces.

I've read and heard so accusations against the lgbt community by the religious right that I've now come to the conclusion that these folks are just sloppy with what they say. Seriously, it's as if they don't care that eventually, someone will demonstrate just how incoherent their claims are.

So with that in mind, bear with me here. The following are the claims made about the lgbt community over the years by religious right and anti-gay activists:

Gays are sick people:

 Their [gay] minds are perverted, they’re frankly sick people psychologically, mentally, and emotionally.” – Bishop EW Jackson 

 Yet almost all gays make lots of money:

 “You know, I saw yesterday how much -- how much money the homosexual community has. I mean, good gracious, the average homosexual makes four times more than I do . . . I mean, they're not -- these people are not in poverty or hurting or denied or anything else.” – Donald Wildmon, American Family Association 

Gays are only a small part of the population: 

“Relying on three large data sets: the General Social Survey, the National Health and Social Life Survey, and the U.S. census, a recent study in Demography estimates the number of exclusive male homosexuals in the general population at 2.5 percent and exclusive lesbians at 1.4 percent.” – Family Research Council in its inaccurate brief “Homosexuality and Child Abuse” 

 Yet gays “control” the culture: 

“Homosexual activists in many ways, drive our culture, they decide what’s going to be in a movie, we see all the portrayals, homosexuals are the most positively portrayed in the movies and on television.” – Peter LaBarbera, Americans for Truth 

 Gays “bully” all of those who oppose them: 

“Instead, what we have is the gay Gestapo who go out and try to intimidate morally, economically, professionally, and personally anyone who speaks out against the homosexual agenda.” – Jeffrey Kuhner, The Washington Times 

Gays “Recruit” children:

 “. . . Folks who cannot reproduce want to recruit your children. What we are facing is a radical force of people who want to change what America looks for the next twenty years . . .” – Bishop Harry Jackson 

And are plotting to either destroy or change America and “silence” Christians:

 “Those special gay rights would require Christians not to speak against –would require us Christians not to speak against homosexual rights . . . because if we did, we could be charged with bullying or censored for it.” – Buster Wilson, American Family Association 

“Through a carefully crafted, decades-old propaganda campaign, homosexuals have successful cast homosexuals - many of whom enjoy positions of influence and affluence - as a disadvantage minority” – Matt Barber, Unmasking the “Gay” Agenda 

And while generating all of this mayhem, gays still manage to find time to have all sorts of mind-boggling wild sex with multiple partners:

“One study determined that homosexual males have from between 20 to 106 sexual partners per year. It’s no wonder that homosexual men account for over 50% of all hepatitis cases, and still account for over 50% of all AIDS cases despite the fact that they only make up 1-3% of the population.” – Matt Barber, The Gay Agenda vs. Family Values, December 12, 2004 

“Homosexual activists claim their lifestyle, which in some cases includes thousands of sexual partners, should be sanctioned, protected, and granted special rights by society. Would you critique this stance?“ – a question on Dr. James Dobson's web page. Dobson is the former head of Focus on the Family.

Allow me to surmise.  According to the religious right, the lgbt community is comprised of sad and sick individuals who make a lot of money, who are only a very small of the population but yet control the culture, bully those who oppose us, recruit children, and work to silence Christians and alter America while finding the time to have lots and lots and lots of sex.

Wow! How do we find time to do all of that? How do we find time to be all of that?