'Commentary - It's Not Just Florida. The GOP is pushing 'don't say gay' bills in 15 states' & other Thur midday news briefs

It’s not just Florida. The GOP is pushing “Don’t Say Gay” bills in 15 states now. - Oh it's on now. As much as part of me hates this mess, I like a good fight. "We didn't ask for this war, but it's on!" 

North Texas superintendent orders books removed from schools, targeting titles about transgender people​ - Constitutional concerns are being raised. 

Groups opposed to gay rights rake in millions as states debate anti-LGBTQ bills - Money doesn't take the place of truth. Your lies may get you over for a while, but truth always wins.

Joe Biden helps LGBTQ Ukrainian refugees with fast-tracked US resettlement - Trump would not have done that. 

Utah governor cites suicide rates for transgender youth in vetoing sports ban bill: ‘I want them to live’ - Facts.

Gay conservative Dave Rubin cancelled by his allies on the right after announcing that he and his husband are having kids

Prominent gay conservative Dave Rubin recently announced that he and his partner are going to become fathers. His colleagues on the right have been vocal with their disdain.

I don't like the 'I told you so' narrative about this but just because I don't like it doesn't mean it isn't important.

Dave Rubin is a prominent gay conservative. Forbes describes his clout as such:

Rubin has been cultivating an intolerant audience for several years, with his talk show The Rubin Report functioning as a cushy platform for hate-mongers like Stefan Molyneux and Milo Yiannopoulos, a safe space where all the questions are softballs. According to Rubin, his show is "a hub for misunderstood or canceled people or to-be-canceled people to express themselves honestly." Rubin has previously compared progressivism to a “mental disorder,” and through his talk show, attempts to push the idea that leftists and liberals are the real bigots, and that conservatives are more accepting of dissent. However, Rubin has struggled to prove this notion, hindered by his own audience’s refusal to accept his sexuality.

Rubin, a gay man in a socially conservative space, has never been been fully accepted by a vocal segment of his audience, or even his peers and supposed “friends.” This is underlined by an infamous conversation Rubin shared with fellow culture warrior Ben Shapiro, in which Shapiro flatly refuses an invite to Rubin’s anniversary party, citing Rubin’s sexuality as the reason he wouldn’t attend. Rubin passively accepts Shapiro’s intolerance as a reasonable reaction, calling his response ”interesting.”

"Passively accepting intolerance" shown towards him by his conservative colleagues seemed to have been a price Rubin willingly paid for the prominence and bank account which comes with being a "gay conservative." But as of recently, things have changed considerably. You see, Rubin and his partner announced that they are going to become parents. And many of his conservative colleagues have been, shall we say, not eager to congratulate him. On the contrary, some folks have been downright nasty towards him:

Edward Szall and Gillyan Christensen say that Dave Rubin and his husband adopting children "is the most evil thing that you could ever do" and call them "the spiritual version of neo-Nazis" for doing so. The only solution, obviously, is "to ban all gay people." pic.twitter.com/es8y8HgYP4

— Right Wing Watch (@RightWingWatch) March 23, 2022

'Former gay' Milo Yiannopoulos, whose nonsense Rubin amplified, had this to say:

The American Spectator has this to say:
 

While people cheer the happy baby news, each step of the baby-making, having, and parenting process uses, abuses, and negates women. More than that, it denies the humanity and needs of the child. Less than a baby to nurture, the child is a commodity. The child is a product. The consumer is an adult who cannot obtain progeny by natural means and so must buy one by artificial means.

And then we get the word from Jenna Ellis about sin. This is the SAME Jenna Ellis who consistently lied about voter fraud to get the 2022 election overturned. I guess she is so busy talking about the 'sin' of homosexuality' that the sin of lying totally escaped her:

And I won't even MENTION the comments on the far right conservative site Free Republic. They range from simply ugly to downright bloodthirsty.

I do NOT care for Dave Rubin for obvious reasons. But I support his right to have a family. I support the right of all LGBTQ people to create and have families. 

BUT I also have a message to Mr. Rubin

Attack us, malign us, or disrespect us 'on the left' all you want, just so long as you remember who was talking shit about you, your husband and your kids. That would be your friends on the right. 

The verbal blowback you are receiving is only a smidgen of what us less prominent LGBTQ folks have gotten from your allies. It's something you helped to happen.

How does it feel to realize that you too are on their menu?

Big hat tip to Forbes magazine.

'Ketanji Brown Jackson schools GOP senator who ranted about marriage equality' & other Wed midday news briefs

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson

Ketanji Brown Jackson schooled GOP senator who ranted about gay marriage​ - Only took her nine words to do it.

More Than One-Third of Trans Kids Are At Risk Of Losing Gender-Affirming Care - This is terrible. There is a reason why the right wants us distracted by lies regarding trans athletes. So folks can ignore this. 

Fox News hosts launch dehumanizing anti-trans attacks against Adm. Rachel Levine and UPenn swimmer Lia Thomas - Trash is trash. 

Disney employees stage walkouts to protest company response to Florida bill - That's right Disney. We haven't forgotten about yo' ass. 

Raven-Symoné and Cast of Raven's Home Walk Off Set Over Florida's 'Ridiculous' 'Don't Say Gay' Bill - Good for them!

Florida Gov Ron DeSantis goes beyond petty in using his office to personally bully trans athlete Lia Thomas

Florida Gov Ron DeSantis is using his office to personally bully trans athlete Lia Thomas.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is so eager to emulate Donald Trump as a presidential candidate that he's already making the mistakes which cost Trump the White House.

He's being belligerently petty.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an official proclamation Tuesday declaring a Florida resident the “rightful winner” of an NCAA women’s swimming championship race over transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. Thomas — the University of Pennsylvania swimmer whose record-breaking season has sparked national debate over whether trans women should compete on female sports teams — became the first transgender athlete to win an NCAA championship last week, placing first in the 500-yard freestyle race at the Division I finals in Atlanta on Thursday. DeSantis said he would "reject these lies and recognize" University of Virginia swimmer and Florida resident Emma Weyant, who came in second place, as the winner. 

The false narrative of trans female athletes having an unfair advantage over cisgender female athletes (strange how trans males athletes are made conveniently absent from this discussion) has been a somewhat successful wedge issue for conservatives and others on the far right. Just as in the issue of marriage equality, they have zoomed in on and amplified false assumptions about a complicated issue which takes more explaining than a sound byte.

And just like the issue of marriage equality, accuracy will eventually rule the day. Meanwhile, folks like DeSantis are embarrassingly eager to squeeze out whatever political capital they can, even if they target innocent people.

In other words, Governor Ron DeSantis is personally bullying Lia Thomas. There is should be no sugarcoating, no deceptions, and no lies about what this man is doing right now, DeSantis is exposing Ms. Thomas to ridicule and death threats and she doesn't have the same capital or political power to fight him as he punches down at her while making speeches, appearing on Fox News, and being interviewed at various other media outlets - all of which are sure to come from his latest stunt.

Technically, DeSantis is not leading a charge of hateful students to follow her in the restroom. He's not leading a gang of transphobic fools chasing her down the street while pelting her with rocks and abuse. No, what DeSantis is doing is simultaneously equally disgusting and even worse. He's crafting excuses for those who would want to do those awful things to Thomas. In his capacity as an authority figure and a political leader, he is sending a message that to treat Ms. Thomas as less than human is perfectly okay - something that a true Christian would do, even. 

People are supposed to look to him for some sort of guidance, but he would rather pass out the torches while directing the mob.

And keep in mind that DeSantis's attack on Thomas  comes on the heels of  his enthusiastic support of the 'Don't Say Gay' bill passed by the Florida legislature. DeSantis should take a step back and consider his political future. It's one thing to push an issue, even distort it, for political points. But it's quite another to eagerly target any one person or a group of people and use your political power to make life hell for them. Granted, DeSantis is probably doing it to fire up his base, a tactic that Trump perfected  while in office. But he should be aware of the other side of the coin with that technique.

Trump may have fired up his base during his years in the White House with his petty attacks and targeting, but he also fired up an opposition who came out on election day simply to vote against him. There is some truth to the belief that Biden partly won in 2020 because more people absolutely despised Trump than liked him.

In the long run, people don't like presidential candidates  or any politician who take perverse pleasure in dividing and targeting people. And DeSantis is getting way past that point.

'True story - Dog dumped at NC animal shelter because owners said he was gay' & other Tue midday news briefs

 

Dog Is Dumped At North Carolina Shelter Because Owners Said It Might Be Gay​ - OMG! I hope this turns out to be a fraud, but I doubt that it is. The above video confirms it.

I'm An LGBTQ+ Doctor. Here's What You Might Not Know About Texas' New Anti-Trans Law. - Cause we shouldn't stop talking about this travesty. Ever.

Biden Officials Meet With Florida LGBTQ+ Youth to Assure Support - Thank you. 

Barrington High parent: LGBTQ students targeted in TikTok-inspired attack - What all of this evil against LGBTQ people is leading to.

Other states trying to ignore Florida 'Don't Say Gay' backlash as they work to muzzle LGBTQ people. They will not be successful.

We knew this would happen. From The USA Today:

 Florida's "Parental Rights in Education" bill, which would restrict classroom discussions about LGBTQ people, is just the tip of the iceberg for similar legislation across the country, data shows. Florida's bill has inspired national backlash, but it contains language similar to many other bills – branded "Don't Say Gay" legislation by critics. Those proposed laws are currently in various stages of moving through state legislatures. The barrage of legislation represents a widespread attack against LGBTQ people and their allies, according to policy experts. Young people, who identify as LGBTQ at higher rates than older generations of Americans, stand to be harmed the most by the bills, experts said.

One bill in Louisiana is downright scary because the person behind it is up front about what she wants to accomplish. The bill not only seeks to shut down any discussion of LGBTQ issues from elementary school to the 8th grade. It would criminalize teachers for even mentioning sexual orientation and gender identity:

A bill that would bar discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in K-12 schools has been filed in the Louisiana Legislature. It follows similar efforts in Florida and more than a dozen other states referred to as “Don’t Say Gay” proposals. Filed by Rep. Dodie Horton, R-Haughton, House Bill 837 would make it illegal for schools to incorporate “classroom instruction or discussion relative to sexual orientation or gender identity” in kindergarten through eight-grade classes and for teachers and other school employees to discuss “personal sexual orientation or gender identity” with students in grades K-12th grade.

Horton inanely insists that her bill isn't a 'Don't Say Gay' bill despite what it does. She also said her bill is to 'protect children.'  

Again with the claims about wanting to 'protect' the children. It's an old but successful card. It's the close cousin to the 'protect marriage' and 'protect religious liberty' card. And LGBTQ Americans know it well. Every time the religious right get on a jag about 'protecting' something, we are the ones who end up needing bodyguards.

The USA Today article continues:

Eighteen other states have seen the introduction of bills similar to Florida's this year alone, according to MAP and the Equality Federation, which released a report Wednesday documenting hostile school and curriculum bills. Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma already have similar policies on the books from the 1990s. 

 Many of this year's pieces of legislation are called "parental rights" bills, but critics said the name distracts from stipulations that would harms kids for whom school is the only place they feel comfortable talking about LGBTQ issues. Among those bills are ones requiring parents to "opt-in" for students to learn about certain topics, giving families power to make decisions about learning that are typically made by certified educators and counselors, Goldberg and MAP policy researcher Logan Casey said. 

 “We end up in a situation where you have politicians who are not educators making decisions about what happens in the classroom, and it really does tie the hands of local school boards as well as state school boards to make those decisions in an informed and public way," Goldberg said.

So what do we do about it? Well sitting on our asses and twiddling our thumbs in abject fear won't get us anywhere. Truth be told, no matter how dire things look, we aren't defeated. Not by a long shot. They can try to shut us out, but they can't ever shut us down.

And that's the key. No matter how many bills they try to pass, the haters can't shut us down. They can make things incredibly difficult for us, but they can't shut us down because quite simply, they can't shut us up. They can't shut up our creative, our determination, and especially our dogged determination to have the last word each and every time one of them crawl out of their fraudulent ecclesiastical and fake ivory towers to come after us.

They want no one 'say gay?' We will have America saying it so much than even the haters will say it in their sleep. They want to erase our kids and families from the schools and libraries? Then we will go everywhere INCLUDING those schools and libraries. Every action they take to shut us down is an opportunity for us to raise the noise and conscious levels as to who were are. 

It's not like we haven't done it before. Hate may be their brand, but overcoming their hate is our brand.

You see the oppositions acts under the illusion that a few bills and laws can eradicate us. That's their belief, but it ain't reality.  And everything they do to force that belief on us is an opportunity for us remind them of what reality actually says.

'Nearly 240 anti-LGBTQ bill filed in 2022 so far, most of them targeting trans people' & other Mon midday news briefs

Nearly 240 anti-LGBTQ bills filed in 2022 so far, most of them targeting trans people - This is simply evil. You cannot tell me that these bills are necessary. LGBTQ people are the only Americans specifically targeted by name. Folks don't even try to hide it. There is something really wrong here. 

These billboards are going up across America to show love to transgender people​ - It's a step but those of us who aren't trans should do more. What we can. 

Watch First Video Footage of Brittney Griner Since Russia Detention - We have to keep this sista in our prayers, hearts, and minds. 

Iszac Henig 5th, Lia Thomas 8th in 100-free final, two trans All-Americans in women’s swimming - Two trans athletes went in and did their best in spite of all of the media attention, both good and bad. At the end of the day, their commitment wins it all.

Carl Nassib released by Las Vegas Raiders - Turns out it was a financial decision. At the end of the day, money talks. Always.