'Trans-themed deodorant commercial breaks down simple fact' & other Thur. midday news briefs

Secret deodorant’s amazing new trans-themed ad: ‘No wrong way to be a woman’ - This ad is awesome:



In other news:  

Struggle In San Francisco: Being Black And Gay In The Bay - A small look at a big problem in our community. Being black and gay.  

Breaking: Obama to Veto Defense Spending Bill if GOP Includes Anti-LGBT 'Religious Freedom' Provision - Sock it to them, Mr. President!  

Another North Carolina Republican calls for repeal of anti-LGBT law he voted for - Slowly but surely, HB2 will die.

 Sad North Carolina Bigots Asked Paypal To Give Them Back Their Bowl - As long as we exert the pressure.

Religious right hopes to con Georgia with newest 'anti-Christian persecution' victim

Eric Walsh, the religious right's 'religious liberty' symbol.

In the past, the religious right  has always played the "homosexuality is a dangerous lifestyle" card in order to fight our advancing equality. In the wake of minds changing about the lgbt community and several high-profile losses (including in the case of marriage equality), they have shifted their argument by playing the "persecution card."

It's a simple tactic. They exploit a public incident by exaggerating it immensely and publicizing it even more (making sure to control the conversation) in order to advance an argument that the progression of lgbt equality will lead "Christians" to lose their businesses and rights if they don't kowtow regardless of their religious beliefs.

'The lgbt community outlasts another bigot, but . . .' & other Wed midday news briefs

We laugh at overt homophobia but can't fight it when it's covertly semantic.

R.I.P. Jack Chick – Here’s His Top 5 Most Homophobic Religious Tracts - One of the most offensive homophobes has passed away but his awful characterizations of the lgbt community lives on. The lgbt community has outlasted another enemy, but as the next article demonstrates, what Jack Chick overtly put out can still be used against us in a covertly semantic manner and our leaders lose easily lose their heads instead of knowing how to fight it. 

Top LGBT Leaders Are Divided Over Compromising On The Bathroom Fight - Easily the most depressing article of the year: 

Conservatives have blocked LGBT nondiscrimination bills by claiming transgender people pose a threat in women’s restrooms. How to break the logjam? Some LGBT leaders say it’s time to support bills that cover housing and employment, but not public accommodations — and largely avoid the bathroom issue. 

Yeah, because the religious right won't see this as a capitulation and transfer their fear tactics to other fights. After all, it's not like they don't want us to have SOME rights. Listen. When it comes to lgbt equality, the big elephant in the room has always been the organizations who move people via exploitation of religion and fears about the lgbt community. They did it by aligning gay men with pedophilia, lgbts in general with AIDS, or our desire to marry to a desire to destroy Christianity. And now is the newest model of scaring people with images of "boys showering with girls" or "grown men using the bathroom with little girls." These are all the same fear tactics and lies repeated for as long as I can remember, but we don't publicly recognize them or call them out an aggressive manner.  In our fight for equality, we have yet to confront groups like the Family Research Council and people like Franklin Graham on the level they should be confronted. Our leadership seems to wait until they make the first move and then play defense and catch-up. Instead of fighting individual battles, there needs to be a GENERAL calling out of religious right groups and their tactics. In naming some of these organizations as hate groups, the Southern Poverty Law Center did a lot of that. But we should have and we still can. This so-called cultural battle should never be about why the lgbt community is deserving of equality under the law. The onus should be on the groups who seek to deny us that right. We have proven ourselves time and time again in the courts and in the marketplace of ideas. We should constantly ask organizations like FRC, the American Family Association and people like Bryan Fischer and Franklin Graham, "why do you all feel that we shouldn't have equality. And most of all, what's with all of the lies you tell in the name of morality and Christianity?"

 Bisexual Guys Open Up About Their Experiences Dating Both Men And Women - There are sa lot of myths about the bisexual community which need to be refuted.  

How Implicit Bias Affects the Health of Black Gay Men - Siiiiigh!

Political ad featuring mother of Pulse Nightclub victim is the one people should watch

I will be honest. I cringe when it comes to using victims of tragedies in political ads. Having said that, this ad packs a wallop. It features Christine Leinonen, the mother of Christopher “Drew” Leinonen — a young man shot and killed along with his boyfriend, Juan Guerrero, and 47 others at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. Ms. Leinonen talks about how her son supported Hillary Clinton and why it is important why we should vote for Clinton. It's both sad but very tasteful and also to the point. I commend Ms. Leinonen for her courage and bravery in the face of her loss.

The Golden Girls starring Trump, Pence, and Putin

 I apologize for my lack of posts today and I can't really blame the election for this one. A serious personal family matter kept me busy. It's all taken care of now and it reminded me just how blessed I am to have so many people concerned about me and my family.

On that note, I'm just going to go lighthearted and repost a video which I think gives an almost good conceptualization of this presidential election. I say "almost" because recent events lead me to believe that Korean dictator Kim Jong-un should be replaced by Wikileaks founder Julian Assange (I just know I'm going to catch hell for that one):

Support of Trump exposes ugliness, hypocrisy of religious right

If there is one good thing which comes out of this nasty election (other than the desired result), it's that the need for power has exposed the religious right. In supporting Donald Trump in spite of all of his many moral flaws, groups like the Family Research Council and people like Franklin Graham have revealed that their so-called Christian faces (under which they also demonize lgbts) are merely a mask. Behind that mask are power hungry, egotistical entities willing to work around the values they claim to uphold.

And if you need more proof of this, check out the following tweets, courtesy of People for the American Way's Right Wing Watch.

They are from a Trump rally at Regent University, the "Christian" college founded by televangelist and The 700 Club host Pat Robertson:

Hillary Clinton head on a pike at Donald Trump's Regent U rally pic.twitter.com/HhbBzB4iwF

— Peter Montgomery (@petemont) October 22, 2016

Sold at Trump rally at Regent U pic.twitter.com/NB57JJlQHV

— Peter Montgomery (@petemont) October 22, 2016

 
You can see more here (if you can stomach it).

'17 horror movies only lgbt people fully understand' & other Mon. midday news briefs

Scenes like this made 'A Nightmare on Elm Street 2' a covertly gay horror movie.

17 Horror Films Only LGBT People Understand - Yes, I am leading the news briefs with a frivolous article? Why? Because this election (even though it's careening to the desired results) is bringing me down. And I suspect that it's also doing it to a lot of my lgbt brothers and sisters. So let's be frivolous for a second (even though the list makes a huge error by omitting the original Fright Night (1985).

'We Won!': Trans Girl Can Now Use Girls' Bathroom at Military School - Victory in a controversy I mentioned last week.  

Gay Republican group praises Trump even after voting not to endorse him - I swear, those Log Cabin Republicans . . .  

10 Things LGBT People (And Everyone Else) Should Consider Before Getting Married - In my case, it's finding a groom. 

 Trump campaign mischaracterizes ISIS as anti-gay donor to Clinton - A mischaracterization which should have been tackled a long time ago.

Accommodating transgender students shouldn't be difficult

An interview from a while back but highly educational. Nathan Smith from GLSEN talks about why it isn't (or rather shouldn't e) difficult to accommodate our transgender youth in schools.

'Six religious right leaders who support Trump in spite of sexual assault charges' & other Fri midday news briefs

Any day FRC's Tony Perkins can be set up for future 'shading' is a good day.

6 Homophobes Standing By Donald Trump Despite That Little Sex Assault Problem - Line them up and memorize their names.  I don't want to forget ANYBODY for the sake of throwing future "shade."

Trans Girl Barred From Using Girls' Bathroom at U.S. Military Base School - Yet another story about how this bogus "bathroom predators" junk is hurting our transgender children. And yet another example of how it's only an issue when folks looking to stir up trouble make it one. 

 Thousands of Gay, Bi Men to Be Pardoned in the UK for ‘Gross Indecency’ Convictions - It certainly took them long enough. 

 Here’s How Marriage Changed These Two Men’s View On Creating A Family - I'm posting this article because it made me teary (just a little). Especially the part about the open adoption.

“One Attack A Week”: New Scrutiny On Adelaide’s Gay Hate Crimes - A problem affecting any segment of the lgbt community anywhere affects us all.

The movie about being black & gay told by those who are black & gay

I've done a post on Moonlight before, but since I feel this is a pivotal movie on so many levels, another post is due:



Tonight is the premiere of what I hope will be a multi-successful, much honored movie, Moonlight:

Based on an unproduced, semi-autobiographical play by Tarell Alvin McCraney, “Moonlight” is the story of Chiron, an introvert living in the Miami projects with his crack-addicted mother (Naomie Harris). Kids pick on him because he’s not as butch as the other boys. “What is a faggot?” he asks Juan, a neighborhood drug dealer (Mahershala Ali) who shows compassion for Chiron. Juan and his girlfriend, Teresa (Janelle Monáe), become surrogate parents. Chiron escapes to their orderly home for the food and comfort often denied to him. He struggles to understand his sexuality and his poverty, and he has nowhere else to turn. “My mama does drugs?” he asks Juan, and we melt with sympathy. “Moonlight” comprises three chapters, each a short film unto itself. In the first, Chiron (Alex R. Hibbert) is a grade-school boy who’s been branded with the nickname Little because he is smaller and daintier than the others. In the second division, Chiron (Ashton Sanders) ages into a teenager, able to fight back but keener to avoid confrontation, including that of his mother, who makes him hand over cash to feed her addiction. It’s in this phase of the film that Chiron realizes his only friend Kevin (Jharrel Jerome) might be gay, too ― what that means exactly, he still isn’t sure. But Kevin won’t defend Chiron outside of their private enclave, and the violent homophobia continues. In the third division, Chiron (Trevante Rhodes) has become a hardened drug dealer himself, pumped-up muscles and fake grills concealing a truth he’s determined to bury. Loneliness radiates off of him. 

Read more about Moonlight here

'Spirit Day combats bullying of lgbt youth' & other Thur. midday news briefs

Editor's note - Last debate is over (Thank God) and soon I will be back on schedule of monitoring and exposing the religious right. And that's not just words. I've been doing some serious reading and research. New junk seems to be on the horizon and it would be my great pleasure to put a couple of folks on blast.

But until then, bear with me:

Social media goes purple for Spirit Day to fight bullying of LGBT youth - Happy Spirit Day, folks! 

 Johns Hopkins to resume gender-affirming surgeries after nearly 40 years - In response to transphobic and homophobic actions by faculty members, Johns Hopkins University is righting a serious wrong with regards to the transgender community. 
 

Donald Trump Is Exploiting LGBT People To Perpetuate Islamophobia - Well duuuuh!

 ‘Walking While Trans’ Can Be A Death Sentence In The U.S. - An important story

'Judge deals Obama's transgender bathroom policy a setback' & other Wed. midday news briefs

Small setback on the road to equality

Judge largely maintains nationwide ban on Obama transgender school bathroom policy - Don't get discouraged. The fight for equality was NEVER supposed to be easy. 

I Am Young, I Am Gay, I Am Black: Australia’s First Openly Gay Aboriginal Politician Enters Parliament - Awesome reminder from Australia just how universal we are as a community.

  Donald Trump’s Long-Held Promise To Pick Rabidly Anti-LGBT Supreme Court Justices - Yes he will pick awful anti-lgbt justices. I don't care how far ahead Clinton is. THIS battle isn't over until he goes down in defeat. HARD DEFEAT. Vote!

  ‘My Faith Shattered’: In Viral Letter, Watermark Church Revokes Gay Man’s Membership - If THAT happened at a black church . . . never mind. I think my pastor knows about my blog so I don't want to get into trouble.

Jerry Falwell, Jr. under fire for censoring anti-Trump article in Liberty University newspaper

Jerry Falwell, Jr.

In his zeal to support GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, Liberty University president Jerry Falwell, Jr. is losing integrity amongst his students.

Politico just reported the following:

The president of Liberty University censored an article critical of Donald Trump, according to the sports editor of the school's official newspaper, the Liberty Champion.

The editor, Joel Schmieg, posted a statement on his Facebook account claiming it was Jerry Falwell Jr., the university's president and a Trump supporter, who spiked the column, which criticized Trump for lewd comments he made on a hot mic during a 2005 taping of "Access Hollywood."

"Yesterday I was told [Falwell] was not allowing me to express my personal opinion in an article I wrote for my weekly column in the Liberty Champion about Trump and his 'locker room talk,'" Schmieg wrote.

"I understand Joel's frustration regarding the situation," Cierra Carter, the opinion editor for the Liberty Champion, told POLITICO. "Our president has been very vocal with his opinions during this election season and we'd like that same privilege." 

The article goes on to point out that this is the second time Falwell's support of Trump has pitted him Liberty University students. Last week, a group of students issued a statement against Trump and called out Falwell for continuing to support the GOP nominee in spite of allegations of sexual assault.

'Pro-Confederate leader 'chased' out of the closet' & other Tue. midday news briefs

Editor's note - My apologies for not putting out a post this morning. Frankly this election has exhausted me. There are just so many times you can say "Donald Trump is a dumbass and the religious right have proven that they have no integrity for supporting him" before ennui starts gnawing at you. So forgive my brief rest period.

I don't think anyone feels sorry for the guy in the first article below.

Secessionists chase ‘rainbow Confederate’ out of the closet with ‘salacious’ rumors - Great. This junk just HAD to happen in my state of South Carolina. Way to gnaw on the evolutionary chain, guys!  Nobody is going to hold a protest march for your ass

GOP State Lawmakers Sign Brief Opposing Same-Sex Benefits - Next they will probably attempt to keep us from getting cheese on our burgers. Talk about mean-spirited.

 Anti-LGBT Dominican pastor appears to defend Trump -Surprising whom?

  Kid’s Magazine Apologizes After Eyebrow-Raising Response On LGBT Families - I mean it's not lgbts have children . . . 

  Most LGBT adults don’t have a will: survey - Get a will, folks (and leave me everything . . .)

'NC Gov. McCrory trolled by lgbt advert on birthday' & other Mon. midday news briefs

Advert trolls McCrory's transphobia.

North Carolina governor trolled with rainbow newspaper advert on his birthday - Hilarious! I swear us lgbts  and allies can be downright evil when we want to be. 

Miami Bans 'Ex-Gay' Therapy To Minors - Another one down. So many more to go . . .  

Peter Thiel Will Donate $1.25M for Trump - You jackass! Perfect time to repost my "reading" of this out-of-touch gay billionaire:

 Peter Thiel's obliviousness creates historic nonsense  

The New York Times just provided a massive platform for transphobia - Boooooooo!!!!

Gay Republicans want to "make gay straight again"

Let's slowly ease into Monday with this plea from gay Republicans to vote for Trump and help "make gay straight again."

 For satire, it gets a B+

'Publishers of faulty anti-lgbt report tripping over themselves explaining it' & other Fri. midday news briefs

New Atlantis can't make a bad report into a credible study.

Publishers of anti-LGBT ‘special report’ doth protest too much - So true. Zack Ford covers the sad attempts by the publishers to explain away this bad report's mistakes. Though I don't cover it here, I even got several tweets from the publishers of this monstrosity, The New Atlantic.

  Gavin Grimm Could Be A National Hero For Trans Students, But He’d Rather Be A ‘Normal Child’ - Mr. Grimm, you are a normal child and I know it's hard but because of your fight, you are helping so many transgender children to stand up for themselves.

“It’s Time For Us To Be Afraid Again”: Charlotte Observer Investigates Anti-LGBT Discrimination In North Carolina After HB2 - Never a time to be afraid. But always time to watch for the signs.  

Slur in video exposes racial rifts in Philadelphia’s iconic gay neighborhood - A problem we don't talk about enough.

The Queer Sex Ed You Wish You Had In High School - Yes we all need to know this.

James Dobson's support of Trump causes comment backlash at online 'Christian' publication

James Dobson

The American Family Association's fake news source, One News Now, has a clientele which generally takes in everything it says without challenge no matter how false or idiotic it may seem. This is seen by the site's comment's section.

There was only one time in which readers rebelled against the publication;s position (i.e. a controversy involving former quarterback Tim Tebow) by voicing their disagreement in the comments section.

A recent article about James Dobson's support of GOP candidate Donald Trump in spite his comments about sexually assaulting women seems to be causing yet another rebellion. The article said nothing about the new allegations Trump is now facing regarding actual sexual harassment. But the commentators still weren't having it. Some comments are as follows:

• “You got to cut him some slack,” Dobson insisted. “He didn’t grow up like we did.” - So that somehow justifies and gives Trump the ability to say and act however he chooses? I think not Sir...

•  Dobson should just admit the real reason: Party outweighs candidate. He would rather have a womanising buffoon who agrees with his policies than a competent leader who opposes them, and there is nothing wrong with that.

•  Dobson speaks as if Bill Clinton is running for president. He's not. If Bill was Hillary's brother, or cousin, or a current close colleague, would people like Dobson and Trump's advisers still be ragging on him? Why can't Hillary be the object of criticism and not Bill? That's an intentional distraction to try to pull people away from the main event which is that Trump is a womanizer, a molester of women (sexual assault), a guy who talks about grabbing women by the genitals, a bully who walks into women's dressing rooms claiming ownership of the pageant as his right to do this... and I believe there will be much more coming to light. Do you really want such a pervert to be president? If Dobson hopes that Trump will stand up for traditional marriage, he has a disappointment coming. Trump is twice divorced and doesn't respect women so do we really want such a person to lead the way on Biblical marriage when he is a lousy role model for it?

•  Dobson says vote for Trump, not because he is good, but because he is been (in Dobson's opinion) than Hillary. That is moral relativism at its worst.

 

• ---"To my knowledge, Donald Trump has never abused women physically" -- Apparently Mr Dobson lives in an information bubble with triple layer force field shields

• I have never trusted Mr Dobson as he has always seemed to justify bad behavior by conservatives and comdemn all behavior by liberals. He is a politican before a Christian and has led many people astray.IMO He, and many Christians politicals, seem more interested in wealth and power than doing positive things to advance people or the nation.I truly believe he has made many people uncomfortable about walking in faith due to his political activities

'James Dobson ushering religious right on Trump Train to hell' & other Thur. midday news briefs

James Dobson

James Dobson Continues To Support Trump Because His Comments ‘Don’t Threaten The Future Of This Nation’ - There was a time when this man was praised as a kingmaker of American politics. One of the MVPs of Bush's 2004 election is now our puppet as he continues to support Trump, thereby demonstrating to the world how the anti-lgbt industry never had any integrity. That is if, instead of yawning about it, we "exploit" (yes I said it) this moment.  We can be petty.

Republican Texas Judge Officiates Gay Wedding, Comes Out As A Democrat - Awwww, this is cute! 

 Massachusetts faces grueling, two-year fight over where trans people can pee - Unfortunately, "it's on" in Massachusetts.  

Belarus Leads Group of Nations Blocking LGBT Rights in UN Plan - This is NOT good, y'all. 

 Why it matters: Outcome of presidential race has implications for LGBT rights - Pay attention, write it down, memorize it!

Liberty University students rebel against supporting Trump

To call this election a hot mess would be a massive understatement. I won't go into detail about the very recent allegations by four women (and I think the number is growing) that Trump sexually harassed them. But I will talk about an interesting development regarding students at the conservative Liberty University:

Students at Liberty University have issued a statement against Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump as young conservatives at colleges across the state reconsider support for his campaign.A statement issued late Wednesday by the group Liberty United Against Trump strongly rebuked the candidate as well as the school’s president, Jerry Falwell Jr., for defending Trump after he made extremely lewd comments about women in a 2005 video. The students wrote that Falwell’s support for Trump had cast a stain on the school’s reputation.

“We are Liberty students who are disappointed with President Falwell’s endorsement and are tired of being associated with one of the worst presidential candidates in American history,” the statement said. “Donald Trump does not represent our values and we want nothing to do with him. … He has made his name by maligning others and bragging about his sins. Not only is Donald Trump a bad candidate for president, he is actively promoting the very things that we as Christians ought to oppose.”

Ironically, this statement came out just as Liberty University President Jerry Falwell, Jr. said he stands by Trump in spite of the growing allegations of sexual harassment.

The controversy at Liberty University is a microcosm of the conundrum facing the religious right when it comes to Trump. For years, they have painted lgbts as sexual predators. Recently, they've falsely pinpointed the transgender community with awful "bathroom bills," claiming that they are a risk to children. What are they going to do if it turns out that someone they are supporting turns out to be an actual sexual predator?