Latta town council rehires lesbian police chief

Crystal Moore has been rehired

This just came in and it is a must post. Crystal Moore has been rehired as Latta, SC's police chief:

Latta Town Council met Friday at a special meeting where they voted to rehire an employee its mayor fired. The meeting was the first since Tuesday's special referendum where residents voted to change the way the town's government works, striping some powers from the mayor.

Council unanimously  voted (6-0) to rehire previously fired Latta Police Chief Crystal Moore. Mayor Earl Bullard, who originally fired Moore, was not at the town council meeting on Friday evening. After she was re-hired, Moore was sworn in around 7:30 pm.

"Thank you for your hard work and dedication. I will see y'all on the streets,"  Moore told the town council and some residents at the meeting after she was sworn in.

 . . . The vote from Tuesday was certified on Friday afternoon and now, hiring and firing of key positions are done by the council and not by the mayor.

Earlier this week, Bullard hired a replacement police chief, Freddie Davis. However, on Friday evening, before re-hiring Moore, the town council voted that Davis' contract was not valid and asked him to step down as police chief The town council also voted 6-0 to expunge 7 reprimands from Moore's record. Those reprimands, which were all delivered to Moore on her firing day by Bullard, were the reason Bullard gave for firing her.

 Moore was appointed police chief before being fired by Bullard. The speculation was that Bullard fired her because she was lesbian. Bullard denied this, but a taped conversation in which he made rude comments regarding the lgbt community and children contradicted his claim. Since that time, Bullard and the Latta town council have been feuding over his actions

Related post:

Was a SC police chief fired because she is lesbian? The proof is in the mayor's statements

Know Your LGBT History- 'Night Warning'

The motion picture Night Warning (1982) is from the time when movies were gritty instead of stylized pulp and it is a surprisingly good little thriller. First, take a look at the trailer:

I should reveal that the trailer is extremely deceptive. The plot involves Jimmy McNichol portraying a high school student who lives with his aunt (portrayed by the late Oscar-nominated actress Susan Tyrell in one her infamously throw all caution to the wind performances). She has been taking care of him ever since an ugly auto accident took the life of his parents when he was an infant. Things begin to get strange when McNichol, a basketball star at his high school, has the possibility of receiving a scholarship to college. Needless to say, his aunt is furious because she doesn't want him to leave.

In fact the possibility of him leaving makes her so screwy that she tries to seduce the television repair man and ends up murdering him when he turns her down. Claiming that he tried to rape her, Tyrell is backed by McNichol who came in right after the murder. As the motion picture continues, Tyrell continues to become more unhinged.

However, for the purpose of this blog, let's talk about the policeman investigating the murder. Detective Joe Carson (portrayed with venomous glee by Bo Svenson) is right to believe that there is more to the story. However, his conclusions are not only wrong, but also fueled by a vicious degree of homophobia. At first, he accuses Tyrell of being a lesbian. Then, after he discovers that the murder victim and McNichols' coach were lovers, he suspects that McNichol was involved in a gay love triangle and subsequently committed the murder himself. Oh and he also forces McNichol's coach to resign in an ugly scene.

To say that Carson is homophobic is an understatement. His dialogue is frequently peppered with anti-gay slurs and regardless of the fact that another policeman attempts to convince him of another theory involving the murder, he is bound and determined to work the gay angle.

As the movie continues, Tyrell takes even more drastic steps to keep McNichol at home and we find out that her mental state has never really been secure. Needless to say as the movie reaches its climax, she begins to get a little "knife happy" (as all unhinged women did in thrillers back in those days). Night Warning reaches its crescendo as we find out unsettling things about the auto accident which orphaned McNichol as well as his aunt's relationship with him.  Of course there is the requisite bloody fight at the end, but just when you think its over, Night Warning throws a curve at you.

Detective Carson's homophobia, which was lurking throughout the movie, fuels an explosive climax which will leave you both sad and breathless at the same time. This movie is offered in its entirety on youtube so what the hell, here it is under its other name Butcher Baker Nightmare Maker. But is is NSFW:



Past Know Your LGBT History Posts:

'Religious leaders spooked about Obama's pending LGBT executive order' & other Friday midday news briefs

Editor's note - Unfortunately, a mishap with my home computer kept me from publishing a morning post today. I hope to take care of it when I get home via a little history erasing (okay a lot of history erasing) and rebooting several programs. This mishap took place at a bad time because I am super psyched about this afternoon's edition of "Know Your LGBT History." It will be posted come hell or high water because I've been waiting for almost a week to put it out. But on to today's news briefs:

140 Religious Leaders Petition For Exemption From Obama’s Pending LGBT Executive Order - Oh come on, guys!

Why I Outed Gay Republicans - A good friend of mine, Michael Rogers, reminisces about the justifiable chaos he caused by outing gay Republicans and I totally agree with his reasoning.  

For NC banquet, FRC assembles one of most anti-gay crews imaginable - For a North Carolina banquet, the Family Research Council is assembling a homophobic version of the "Legion of Doom" If there is a God, the entire wait staff will be gay folks.  

Majority Believe Marriage Equality And Religious Liberty Are Perfectly Compatible - Yet more proof that those who are the loudest about this issue aren't necessarily correct. They just know how to boggart.

  Ben Carson Explains How Gay Marriage Is A Marxist Plot To Impose The 'New World Order' - See post above this one.

'Anti-gay groups have a strange definition of 'sex parades'' & other Thursday midday news briefs

It would seem that several anti-gay spokespeople and groups, specifically the American Family Association, are sending out emails accusing Macy's department store of not just sponsoring "gay pride" events but rather sponsoring "sex parades." There is just one problem with that accusation as seen by the AFA email below. See if you can guess:

Now, I haven't performed my rendition of the "beast with two backs" in almost a year but I know things haven't changed so much that the above scene constitutes a "sex parade."

As a matter of fact, according to blogger extraordinaire Jeremy Hooper, AFA pilfered the above photo from a personal blog showcasing a 2010 West Hollywood gay pride parade and as it happens, there is absolutely NO SEX of any kind going on in those photos.

By the way, I am taking tremendous personal risk in revealing my lack of a sex life. If anti-gay groups are to be believed about the number of times us gays have sex in a year, I am waaaay below my quota, which means if the Gay Mafia finds out, I'm going to go up for re-education. Oh God, I just can't take anymore marathons of "Queer as Folk."

In other news:

William Owens: 'We Must Be Willing To Die' In Fight Against 'Abnormal' LGBT Rights - Willie, you know damn well you are not prepared as long as NOM is giving you $20,000 to act like a fool.  

Susan Collins Becomes Fourth Republican Senator To Support Same-Sex Marriage - Hot damn! Part 1  

Colorado County Clerk Begins Issuing Same-Sex Marriage Licenses (Updated)- Hot damn! Part 2

 UN Human Rights Council Adopts Resolution On “Protection Of The Family” - This is dangerous because of the potential omission of lgbt couples.  
Bryan Fischer Can't Understand Why Anti-Gay Bigots Are Demonized For Living In The World Of Common Sense - You ever had one of those questions which makes you swoon in anticipation of giving an answer?

Homophobic mayor blocking rehiring of lesbian police chief

Moore

Unbelievable. I am speechless with regards to how the situation with Crystal Moore in Latta, SC has turned. From the Huffington Post:

Crystal Moore was easily the happiest person in Latta, South Carolina on Tuesday night.

Residents in the town of 1,400 people had just overwhelmingly voted to reinstate her as their police chief and to strip the mayor, Earl Bullard, of some of his powers. Bullard fired Moore from her post in April for reasons that many residents believe had to do with her being a lesbian. Tuesday's vote, which came in direct response to Moore's firing, changed the governing structure of the town from “mayor-strong” to “council-strong," which meant the town council could and would put Moore back in her job as soon as possible.

But that all changed on Wednesday, when Bullard unexpectedly announced that he had just hired someone else for the post. WPDE NewsChannel 15 reported that Bullard hired someone named Freddie Davis on Monday, in what appears to be a final show of power by the mayor before he loses it at the end of the week to the council. Bullard's carefully timed move falls just outside a 60-day waiting period the council imposed in April to specify when another police chief could be hired.

 . . .  Latta council member Jarett Taylor said Wednesday night that it appears Bullard broke local laws by writing up a contract unilaterally with Davis."He needed council approval to do that," Taylor said in an interview on MSNBC's "The Last Word."

"We're going to test his ability to put the new chief under contract. The council supports Crystal 100 percent," Taylor said. "I've spoken to all six council members and we're still behind Crystal."

Moore was appointed police chief before being fired by Bullard. The speculation was that Bullard fired her because she was lesbian. Bullard denied this, but a taped conversation in which he made rude comments regarding the lgbt community and children contradicted his claim. Since that time, Bullard and the Latta town council have been feuding over his actions. With this latest move, the feud doesn't look like it will be over any time soon.

Marriage equality rulings destroy years of Gary Bauer's anti-gay propaganda . . . and he ain't happy

About the rulings today for marriage equality (Indiana and Utah; Utah's ruling being more far reaching and coming through after I published today's news briefs), let's forget the deliciously negative reaction from Brian Brown and NOM and Tony Perkins and the Family Research Council.

For my money, I am enjoying the sad reaction from old school anti-gay spokesman Gary Bauer:



A lot of you young folks don't know who Gary Bauer . He was the head of the Family Research Council from 1988 - 1999. It was under his auspices that the group specifically and without apology pushed anti-gay propaganda and created false research papers citing junk science studies to demonize lgbts - propaganda and false research papers which caused me more mental harm than I care to admit.

So it is satisfying as well as gratifying to watch the body of junk Gary Bauer helped to create over the years to hurt the lgbt community crumble into dust right before his very eyes.

There is an old saying about giving someone you love "their flowers" while they are living. In the case of Gary Bauer, I enjoy watching him being figuratively pricked by the thorns which he richly deserves.

Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.

'Indiana gets marriage equality, Colorado may get mega-homophobe in legislature' & other Wednesday midday news briefs

Judge strikes down Indiana's ban on same-sex marriage, says it violates equal protection - BREAKING!!! 

Town Votes To Give Fired Lesbian Police Chief Her Job Back, Strips Mayor Of Power - In Latta, SC, the controversy involving former - and hopefully soon-to-be reappointed police chief Crystal Moore - is almost over. The first crucial step has been done. Now all the town council has to do is to restore her position.

Gordon Klingenschmitt, The Demon-Obsessed Anti-Gay Exorcist, Wins GOP Primary In Colorado - Meanwhile, apparently those who voted in the Colorado Republican primary may have fallen the victim to "bad pharmaceuticals." Of all the people to win ANY primary or any election to serve in any state legislator, why does it have to be this guy, Gordon Klingenschmitt - the man who has led me to coin the new term "mega-homophobe." The following video showcases one of his "greatest hits." Right Wing Watch has more: 



Pastor Says 'Dismal Turnout' At NOM's March For Marriage Helps Satan, Seals America's Doom - FINALLY someone from the opposite side of the spectrum is admitting how much of a failure NOM's march was. Although, if I may be so presumptuous, I think it proves how much God loves lgbts.

North Carolina Republican Leader Compares Homosexuality To Fetishes And Disorders - Anti-gay propaganda never dies. It's just recycled.