Tennessee city learns $500,000 lesson after unsuccessful attempt to ban drag shows

 

In June 2023, I made the following comments about the right-wing push to ban drag shows:

We have now entered the phase in which those who spread and entertained the lie that drag queens are 'grooming' kids are going to have to defend their mess in a court of law. And under oath. They've f@cked around for a long while. Now it's time for them to find out. 

 A recent lawsuit settlement just proved my point. 

From The Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: 

 The Murfreesboro government has agreed to pay $500,000 and repeal an ordinance discriminatory to LGBTQ+ people to settle a lawsuit with BoroPride, the ACLU announced Wednesday. The American Civil Liberties Union provided legal representation with BoroPride annual festival organizers with the Tennessee Equality Project led by Chris Sanders, according to an ACLU press release.

 . . . The issue started October 2022 when Murfreesboro City Manager Craig Tindall sent a letter to BoroPride organizers telling them the city would deny future permits and accused the 2022 LGBTQ+ festival and drag show of exposing “children to a harmful prurient interest.”

 BoroPride attracted more than 7,000 people to the 2022 festival held at Cannonsburgh Village, a Murfreesboro historic parks and recreation property off U.S. Highway 41 and across the street from nearby City Hall in the downtown area. Festival organizers relocated the 2023 BoroPride to Tennessee Miller Coliseum in north Murfreesboro. The coliseum property is owned by Middle Tennessee State University.

 In addition, according to The Murfreesboro Daily News Journal, the city council also passed a "community decency standards ordinance." That ordinance was repealed in December due to the lawsuit. 

 Also:

 . . . The $500,000 settlement compensates for harm caused and reimburse attorneys’ fees . . . and accept and process any future event permit applications from BoroPride organizers, according to the press release. The Murfreesboro city manager is prohibited under the terms from reviewing any future permit requests from the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP), the press release said.

 "The parties filed suit in federal court after Tindall and Murfreesboro Mayor Shane McFarland engaged in a yearlong, concerted anti-LGBTQ+ campaign to chill TEP and Murfreesboro residents’ protected speech and expression," the press release said.

Editor's note - I am reposting this list of the times in which drag queens and drag shows have been deliberately mischaracterized as x-rated by those on the right. A paper trail exists for those willing to seek it out:

Far right activists don't know the difference between a circus act and a drag show

Undercover investigators say no lewd acts were performed at drag show targeted by DeSantis

Taken out-of-context video fuels ugly lie about drag queens 'grooming' children

Drag performer sues far-right blogger alleging defamation over edited video 

BUSTED! Far right caught spreading false story that a drag queen exposed self to children 

Candace Owens can't even tell a good lie. Far right personality busted using fake photo of 'drag queen' 

Babylon Bee editor Seth Dillon caught spreading false story about a child tipping a half naked drag queen 

Silly conservative 'activist' doesn't know the difference between drag queens, drag kings, and strippers

'Libs of Tik Tok's Chaya Raichik has meltdown when called out again by NBC News' & other Wed/Thur news briefs

 

Libs of Tik Tok's Chaya Raichik being interviewed by Tucker Carlson (left) and attending the Jan 6th insurrection (right).

Editor's note - You ever had one of those days when you are ill AND there is a lot of stuff going on; so much so that you have to put out news briefs instead of focusing on one issue? Apparently, that's MY day today:

After Libs of TikTok posted, at least 21 bomb threats followed - More of the same from Libs of TikTok's Chaya Raichik. And she is reacting to the article with the self-pitying, hysterical junk we've come to expect from her. 

Oklahoma library book ban committee member absolutely spiraling after NBC news confirms at least 21 bomb threats followed her posts targeting teachers, librarians, and queer people. pic.twitter.com/6YnWl1gqxn

— Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen) February 7, 2024

Chaya Raichik is probably the saddest, most pathetic bigot I've ever come across in the 17 years I've had this blog. She's a hyperactive version of a repressed old maid in that she anoints herself as a guardian of morality, so she doesn't to face the fact that no one wants or desires her. By pointing an accusing finger at LGBTQ people, Chaya refuses to take responsibility for what makes her a repellent person. If she did, she would realize that her attitude is the problem. She exudes vitriol and hatred from every pore like body odor. Or maybe Chaya is fully aware of this fact and that makes her all the more sadly repulsive. Just like a snake can't ever change from being a snake, a hateful pig can't stop wallowing in the mud. 

 In other news:

Indiana launched an anti-LGBTQ+ tip line. Mayhem & memes started right away. - Darn. I missed out on taking part in the fun. 

Transgender bathroom bills are back. Does the nation care? - I personally think it's because the conservative make-up of the Supreme Court has made certain people bolder. 

Speaker Mike Johnson's long history with anti-LGBTQ+ Family Research Council extremist exposed (exclusive) - Haters generally stick together.

Survey: 90,000 trans people overwhelmingly say life improves after transition - Folks need to pay attention to what trans people are saying instead of trying to legislate their lives out of existence. 

Missouri Republican candidate torches LGBTQ-inclusive books in viral video - Some people simply make social media a drag.

Transphobia costs - South Dakota settles lawsuit with transgender advocacy group for $300,000 and a public apology

South Dakota and its governor Kristi Noem recently learned a very expensive and hopefully humiliating lesson about transphobic animus. A lesson which cost the state $300,000 and a public apology.

From The South Dakota Searchlight:

The state of South Dakota has issued an apology letter and a $300,000 payment to a transgender advocacy group for the abrupt cancellation of a Department of Health contract in 2022. Those are the terms of a settlement agreement inked Thursday in a federal discrimination lawsuit filed by The Transformation Project shortly after the cancellation. The group had a contract with the state, paid for with federal funds, to provide community health worker services to the LGBTQ+ community from its Sioux Falls headquarters. The cancellation came on Dec. 16, 2022, shortly after a conservative news outlet contacted Gov. Kristi Noem to ask why the state had signed the $136,000 contract.

And here is the clincher. 

The Transformation Project’s lawsuit cited Noem’s public comments on transgender people and her response to the conservative news outlet, made through spokesperson Ian Fury, as proof that the decision was discriminatory in nature. 

“The contract was signed without Gov. Noem’s prior knowledge or approval,” Fury told the outlet. 

 The state offered a series of alleged failures on the part of The Transformation Project as reasons for the cancellation, but the lawsuit argued that those reasons were meant to put “a thin gloss” of legitimacy on a discriminatory action. 

 The Searchlight said the settlement is over double the amount of the contract and also covers attorney fees. In addition: 

The community health worker hired through the contract, Jack Fonder, was also named as a plaintiff in The Transformation Project’s lawsuit. 

 As part of the settlement, the current Department of Health secretary wrote an apology letter to Fonder and the project’s director, Susan Williams. “On behalf of the State of South Dakota, I apologize that the Transformation Project’s contract was terminated and for treating the Transformation Project differently than other organizations awarded Community Health Worker contracts,” Secretary Melissa Magstadt wrote in the Jan. 17 letter. 

 She went on to “emphasize that all South Dakotans are entitled to equal treatment under the law — regardless of their race, color, national origin, religion, disability, age, or sex.”

Noem is just one of the many Republican governors attempting to undermine the health and safety of the transgender community. Last year, she signed a bill into law which banned gender-affirming care for trans youth. 

Moms for Liberty now facing significant pushback against its agenda from other parents

This post is by no means an encouragement for pre-celebration, but yes Moms for Liberty is having significant problems right now. And it all comes down to the fact that more and more people are getting tired of the group's bullshit:

In Florida, where the right-wing Moms for Liberty group was born in response to Covid-19 school closures and mask mandates, the first Brevard County School Board meeting of the new year considered whether two bestselling novels – “The Kite Runner” and “Slaughterhouse-Five” – should be banned from schools. A lone Moms for Liberty supporter sat by herself at the January 23 meeting, where opponents of the book ban outnumbered her. 

 Nearly 20 speakers voiced opposition to removing the novels from school libraries. One compared the book-banning effort to Nazi Germany. Another accused Moms for Liberty of waging war on teachers. No one spoke in favor of the ban. About three hours into the meeting, the board voted quickly to keep the two books on the shelves of high schools.

 “Why are we banning books?” asked Mindy McKenzie, a mom and nurse who is a member of Stop Moms for Liberty, which was formed to counter what it calls a far-right extremist group “pushing for book banning and destroying public education.” “Why are we letting Moms for Liberty infiltrate our school system?” 

 Moms for Liberty, founded in 2021, expanded its mission to include efforts to ban certain books from schools, outlaw the teaching and discussion of gender and sexuality by teachers and halt the teaching of critical race theory. Now the group is at a crossroads.

 “One of their major challenges is the fact that most Americans are actually pretty positive about their own children’s schools,” Jack Schneider, a professor of education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said via email. “Although their message may have appeal in the abstract, at least to conservative voters, families aren’t clamoring for disruption in their own children’s schools.” 

 After effectively channeling conservative anger over cultural issues into action on the ground, from supporting candidates in school board races to spearheading campaigns against teachers, administrators and other political foes, Moms for Liberty’s burgeoning influence in Republican national politics may be faltering, observers say.

 . . . Jennifer Jenkins, who defeated (Moms for Liberty co-founder Tina) Descovich to win her seat on the Brevard County School Board in 2020, said the influence of Moms for Liberty is fading as more parents begin to question the group’s positions. 

 “I think that things have gone too far and people are finally standing up to say, you know, ‘This is my choice. These are my kids as well too. You don’t get to make these decisions for us,’” Jenkins said. “People are seeing, you know, news cycle after news cycle, the hypocrisy of the things that they advocate for and they say they stand,” she said.

Appeals court won't remove injunction against Idaho ban on gender-affirming care

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has given a major victory to trans kids in Idaho. 

From The Idaho Statesman

A federal appeals court has allowed gender-affirming health care for transgender children to continue while a lawsuit against Idaho’s ban on hormone treatments makes its way through court. Two transgender minors and their parents sued the state less than two months after Gov. Brad Little signed House Bill 71 into law, making it a felony for medical providers to prescribe treatments like puberty blockers and hormone therapy to children. 

The parents argued that the law was unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill issued a preliminary injunction against the law in December, days before the state’s ban was scheduled to go into effect. Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador appealed the case to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals this month and asked the appeals court to stop Winmill’s preliminary injunction. Three appeals court judges denied that request Tuesday.

 “This ruling should be celebrated by everyone who decries discrimination,” Paul Carlos Southwick, the ACLU of Idaho’s legal director, said in an emailed statement. The organization represents the transgender minors, along with other attorneys. “We celebrate alongside transgender youth and their families throughout Idaho who will continue to have access to the health care they need and deserve.” 

In terms of anti-trans measures, this would make Idaho 0-2 thus far. Last year, the same court refused to let the state enforce a ban on trans female athletes. 

Editor's note - A list of 30+ medical organizations who support gender-affirming care for trans youth and adults.

Utah situation shows how ban on trans athletes can be weaponized against other cis athletes

Editor's note - my apologies for not having the full article about the subject of this post. It is behind a paywall. However, the tweet included is the accurate summation of the situation.

A while back, transgender activists predicted that laws banning trans athletes from competing would backfire against cis athletes. A recent incident in Utah has proven them right.

A dad confronted two principals at a girls basketball game last week, insisting the shouldn't let an opposing player play because she was trans. But she wasn't.

Advocates say this is what to expect in a climate that emboldens people to target others.https://t.co/R1MdgTj68V

— Robert Gehrke (@RobertGehrke) January 27, 2024

And apparently a similar event took place in 2022. And in Utah. According to an August 19, 2022 article in The Independent: 

 Parents of girls who finished second and third in a Utah scholastic sporting event filed a complaint with the Utah High School Activities Association claiming that the first place finisher is transgender. She’s not. David Spatafore of the Utah High School Activities Association (UHSAA), the body responsible for enforcing the state’s new ban on transgender participation in school sports, told the Deseret News that he had no choice but to investigate the first place finisher’s gender after parents filed the complaint. He found that not only is the girl in question cisgender, but that his office has received other complaints about the girl including one that she stating that she “doesn’t look feminine enough.” 

 It gets worse. According to an article published on that same day by MetroWeekly, UHSAA made the school investigate the young girl's record all the way back to kindergarten.

Basically, these laws which supporters claim are created to protect cis female athletes can be used - weaponized is a much better word - by fellow cis athletes and parents disgruntled at losses during athletic competitions. They can also be used to target and denigrate cis athletes who don't conform to supposed standards of femininity.

So much for fairness.

Released audio reveals desire by legislators to completely ban trans healthcare

I don't know where the LGBTQ community would be without talented journalist (and GLAAD Award nominee) Erin Reed. Reed. Her work (you can and should be support here) revealed a scoop which doesn't seem to be registering as it should with the mainstream media.

Audio from a small Twitter Space featuring legislators from Ohio and Michigan was automatically posted publicly, wherein Republican legislators revealed the "endgame" of anti-trans legislation was to ban trans care "for everyone." The Space, which ejected uninvited guests, included several Michigan senators and representatives, as well as Representative Gary Click from Ohio, who sponsored the state's recent controversial gender-affirming care ban. Throughout the Space, the legislators seem to freely discuss their plans and strategies for targeting transgender care. Towards the end of the Space, the conversation shifts to a plan for the "endgame," where Republican legislators and anti-trans activist Prisha Mosley discuss various plans aimed at "banning this for everyone," referring to gender-affirming care. 

 The Space, hosted by Representative Brad Paquette of Michigan, was a free-form discussion over potential inroads in Michigan, as well as ongoing strategy for anti-trans laws in Ohio. Representative Gary Click was a prominent participant. Others included Michigan Representatives Josh Schriver and Tom Kunse, as well as Senators Lana Theis and Jonathan Lindsey. 

 . . .Never before have elected representatives spelled out the strategy of banning care for transgender adults so clearly. Representative Gary Click has ties to the Heritage Foundation and the Center for Christian Virtue, both of which are well known for playing a role in the development and authorship of anti-trans legislation. These freshly released recordings provide an important look into the endgame of anti-trans legislation: the elimination of transgender people from public life entirely through the banning of care at any age. 

 This shouldn't come as a surprise. Trans activists like Reed have repeatedly said that the false narrative spun against gender-affirming healthcare for trans kids masked a plan to ultimately target healthcare for all trans people. Keep in mind that these folks probably wouldn't stop with just the trans community if their desire came to fruition. My guess is that they have equally nasty desires for the rest of us in the LGBTQ community.