Is the anti-transgender 'bathroom bill' lie losing its sting?

 . . . given the public’s general lack of familiarity with transgender people and their experiences, it hasn’t been hard to get voters more concerned with the prospect of wig-donning criminals sneaking into public bathrooms.

The myth has been used to attack all kinds of pro-LGBT protections -- city non-discrimination ordinances, federal employment law, and school diversity policies. It’s not unusual for anti-LGBT conservatives to simply rebrand broad non-discrimination laws as “bathroom bills” – phrasing that was unfortunately often adopted by news outlets.

That trend was strong in 2014, with conservative media outlets like Fox News regularly peddling “bathroom bill” talking points to attack non-discrimination laws like the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance.

But the “bathroom bill” horror story appears to have lost some of the weight it once carried. Houston, San Antonio, Miami-Dade County, Plano, Springfield, Missouri, and other cities all enacted non-discrimination laws protecting transgender people from discrimination in public accommodations. The Cleveland City Council is currently considering an ordinance that would explicitly repeal the bathroom exemption of its non-discrimination law -- a proposition that would have been dead in the water just a few years ago. Schools across the country have adopted policies allowing transgender students to use the locker rooms that correspond with their gender identity, and the Department of Education’s official recommendation for public schools is now in line with that position.

According to Carlos Maza of Equality Matters, the "bathroom bill" fear tactic is losing its sting because of two factors - transgender folks are receiving visibility and the horror stories of predators invading women's restrooms are turning out to be more blather than truth.  While this homophobic lie does retain some power, it's nice to know that yet another religious right tactic geared to denying lgbt equality is slowly but surely going the way of  the dinosaur.

'How the Knights of Columbus bankrolls anti-gay, conservative movement' & other Tuesday midday news briefs

How One Religious Organization Bankrolls America’s Social Conservative Movement - And the Knights of Columbus do it via charitable donations. It's an ugly thing because it almost makes one not want to donate to charity. 

 Anti-gay activists Peter LaBarbera, Bill Whatcott found not guilty of mischief - Oh come, y'all. I'm not so nauseating as to wish a jail sentence for LaBarbera at Christmas time no matter how obnoxiously homophobic he has been over the years. Look at it this way - he can no longer exploit his "Canadian odyssey." Then again, scratch that. LaBarbera would exploit the relationship between Peppermint Patti and Marcie of 'Peanuts' if he could get away with it. 

Supreme Court To Consider On Jan 9. Whether To Hear Challenges To Same-Sex Marriage Bans - Get your rest, brothers and sisters because we get to begin it again in January.  

USA, Pennsylvania: Marriage Equality Support Jumps, New Poll Says - Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!! 

Camenker: Gay Student Clubs Love To Recruit 'Kids From Christian Backgrounds' - An interesting spin on the "gays want to recruit" children" talking point. The irony is that there is a small kernel of truth in this ugly claim and this kernel merely underlines the fact that younger Christians aren't as opposed to the lgbt community and lgbt equality as the anti-gay right would like. Ah yes. The future. It scares anti-gay activists and groups so much.  

How Michael Sam Knew He Made The Right Choice In Coming Out - I won't give it away but he is so right.

NOM's warped version of The Nativity Story leaves out 'peace on Earth' & 'good will towards men'

And now here is the Nativity story according to Brian Brown of NOM:

Brian Brown of NOM

Recently, reflecting on the story of the birth of Christ, I realized something... When Jesus came into the world, it was with nothing. No money. They had to move to a new city. His father, Joseph, had to start a new business. They didn't even have a home to stay in as he came into our world. But the one thing God did give him — seemingly the one thing God thought His only begotten Son could NOT do without — was a loving mother and father to care for and protect Him. It underscores the foundational importance of the mission that NOM has undertaken – to defend marriage and work to ensure that every child in our society, as much as it is possible, enjoys the love of his mother and father. We are winding down our year-end, $200,000 matching gift campaign. To date we have raised almost $60,000 toward our goal. If you haven't yet made a gift that will be matched dollar-for-dollar, please prayerfully consider making a generous contribution of $35, $50, $100, $500, or even a major gift of $1,000 or more to help NOM close the year on firm financial footing so we can provide marriage with the best defense possible in this pivotal coming year. We tend to think of Christ magically moving from an infant to an adult, with only scant glimpses of him as a teen. But the reality is that in assuming the human form, Jesus experienced the unique contributions of a father and a mother in his life. For years, Jesus learned how to live, act, feel, work, care and love by absorbing the unique gifts of his father and his mother, who represent the two halves of humanity. The Holy Family is the perfect example for the human family — a man and a woman coming together in love for each other, and to provide the ideal environment for any children born of their union. That is what marriage is, and the story of Christmas perfectly models it for us. 

Brown's rendition of the Christmas story would almost make sense except for the fact that women who had children without a husband were mostly shunned back then.  And  according to the Bible, Mary was a virgin and not pregnant with Jesus via any type of intercourse with Joseph but through the Holy Spirit.

So technically, Jesus had two fathers.

But who cares about all of that. Whatever happened to the "peace on Earth and good will towards men" part?

'Gay rights will cause Jesus to return?' & other Monday midday news briefs

Five Moments From 2014 That Definitely Were A Sign Of The End Times - I'm angry. We should be at the top of the list. Why are we only number three?

 Major Cleveland Outlet Is Dead Wrong About The City's Transgender Non-Discrimination Law - Looks like a Cleveland newspaper outfit is deliberately pushing a war of misinformation against the transgender community. 

Judge asked to rule against florist who refused services for gay couple’s wedding - Sorry it has to go down like this but if discrimination on the basis of "religious freedom" is allowed here, where does said discrimination stop? 

 Ben Carson stands by claim that gay marriage leads to pedophilia and bestiality - Lord, give me strength . . . patience . . . alcohol . . . acid . . . anything! Why are black conservatives so damn crazy?

Ugandans Won’t Be Getting A New Anti-LGBT Law For Christmas - I vote for the lump of coal in their stockings.

Marriage equality coming to Florida!!!

By now, I am sure everyone has heard the wonderful news of marriage equality coming to Florida early next month. But watch this short video of a newscast announcing the fact. The family interviewed underscores what this fight has all been about.

'Michigan's so-called 'religious freedom' bill dies in Senate' & other Friday midday news briefs

Good news from Michigan:

Michigan House and Senate adjourned without final passage of license to discriminate bills! #MiLeg #MiStareDown pic.twitter.com/uLjb1345rc
— Equality Michigan (@Equality_MI) December 19, 2014

 
Transgender Student Files Federal Complaint Against School District For Banning Him From The Boys Restroom - If anything, this case points out the hysterical lunacy our transgender brothers and sisters face everyday. There wasn't a problem with him using the boys restroom until anti-gay groups got parents spooked.

Bigotry doesn’t pay: North Carolina anti-gay group $15,000 in debt - Oh the poor babies (extreme sarcasm alert).

 Anti-gay orgs continue to offend children of single parents, gay parents, more - Children DESERVE a family who will give them love and support and that does not come solely from the one man/one woman dynamic.

Richmond's Gay Community Strikes Back With 'We Are All Born To Love' Billboard - Now that the 'ex-gay' billboard has backfired spectacularly, let's throw some real love in the situation.

Good news for transgender community has anti-gay group spinning fear about children and churches

Excellent news for the transgender community. According to the Huffington Post:

The Justice Department will now interpret the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as protecting transgender government employees from discrimination, Attorney General Eric Holder announced Thursday.

In a memo, Holder wrote that the "best reading of Title VII's prohibition of sex discrimination is that it encompasses discrimination based on gender identity, including transgender status." Holder said that while Congress "may not have had such claims in mind when it enacted Title VII, the Supreme Court has made clear that Title VII must be interpreted according to its plain text."

In a statement, Holder called the move an “important shift" that "will ensure that the protections of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 are extended to those who suffer discrimination based on gender identity, including transgender status."

And leave it to the Family Research Council to distort Holder's statement and spin a little fear into the situation:

FRC Senior Fellow for Policy Studies Peter Sprigg released the following statement:
"Parents are deeply concerned that giving a special status to transgender persons will lead to troubling situations for their children, and religious leaders are left unsure how this arbitrary new rule will affect hiring within their ministries.  This is another example of the Obama administration circumventing the role of Congress in imposing its own radical re-interpretation of the law.  It seems safe to assert that not a single member of Congress in 1964 would have believed that they were granting special rights to people who want to reject or change their biological sex.

In other words:

Granted, the graphic above is by the Traditional Values Coalition but FRC is saying pretty much the same thing, albeit in muted terms.

It's still a vicious lie and an ugly stereotype.