Washington becomes the seventh state to mandate LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum

From NBC News:

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, signed a law last week that includes a mandate for the state’s public schools to teach LGBTQ history, as red and blue states continue to diverge on whether schools should expose kids to gay and transgender identities. 

The new law, Senate Bill 5462, mandates that the state’s school districts adopt curricula that is as “culturally and experientially diverse as possible,” including the histories of LGBTQ people, people of color and people with disabilities. Schools will be required to institute the inclusive curricula by the 2025-26 school year. 

 “The governor was happy to sign legislation that aims to ensure students of all races and identities feel safe and welcome at school,” Mike Faulk, a spokesperson for Inslee, said in an email Monday. Faulk also referred NBC News to research published in the journal Sex Education that suggests LGBTQ-inclusive curricula can reduce rates of bullying and make children feel safer in school.

 . . . Washington is the seventh state to enact legislation mandating that public schools incorporate LGBTQ-inclusive curricula in some capacity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ think tank. The other six are: California, New Jersey, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada and Illinois, states that have been won by Democrats in the last four presidential elections. The law also comes as conservative lawmakers introduce record numbers of anti-LGBTQ measures, including legislation to regulate how LGBTQ issues are taught in public schools.

First of all, this proves yet again that voting always matter. If LGBTQ people are to get positive outcomes, we must put in elected officials who will work for those positive outcomes. Voting matters. Always.

Secondly, in light of all of the nonsense the LGBTQ community is facing now, it's easy to think that this doesn't matter. But it does matter.  When I was growing up, I would never dream of something like this. Being gay, or LGBTQ in general, was something a lot of folks tried to make shameful. We were shuttered into the closets and other dark places like we were something vile and fetid. Our lives were crudely sliced and diced into salacious stereotypes of oversexed, disease-ridden societal outcasts who should be kept away from kids and decent folks. 

Granted, it's still happening due to people like Chaya Raichik and statewide legislation attacking our health and safety. But even in the face of that, our community is still progressing. We are still moving forward. All of the mad talk about "grooming," all of the lies about gender-affirming care - particularly for our trans kids - may have slowed us, but it hasn't stopped us. In seven states - and I hope more in the future - kids will learn about our lives and history. They will learn that LGBTQ people exist and aren't people to be ashamed of. They will see that we have contributed to society and will continue to do so. And LGBTQ kids will be especially helped by this. 

In the onslaught of hate and misinformation, it becomes easy to forget that LGBTQ people don't stop moving forward. We are in a better place than we were before and that's due to our tenacity. And as each day passes, we will continue to be in better places. We don't stop because we can't stop. 

Our victory is inevitable.

Video - Trump supporters think drag queens are more dangerous than guns

I wasn't going to post anything on Sunday and I apologize for presenting this video (because interviews with Trump voters are so damn annoying and jaded), but I feel that this video is necessary. It's not to attack any group for their beliefs, but one must call out basic ignorance, especially when it comes to the LGBTQ community and our culture. And the video above oozes with ignorance. 

 It practically reeks with it. OH MY GOD, where should I start? With the fact that these folks don't know the difference between drag queens and the trans community. The fact that they actually feel that drag queens are more dangerous than guns? Take your pick. But I will end with one sad fact - these people VOTE. And if we are going to defeat nonsense like this or at the very least contain it, we are going to have to stop getting distracted. We need to vote with as much energy as we waste laughing at these folks. 

'Victory - Over 40 anti-LGBTQ 'policy riders' removed from federal budget bill' & other Thur/Fri news briefs

Massive Defeat For Anti-Trans And Anti-LGBTQ+ Riders In Spending Bill As Dems Hold Firm​ - Fellow GLAAD award nominee Erin Reed is a one-woman wrecking crew when it comes to dismantling transphobia and basic bigotry. Support her work. 

 One policy rider proposed for the Food and Drug Administration would have defunded any hospital that “distributes, sells, or otherwise uses drugs that disrupt the onset of puberty or sexual development for those under 18,” a measure targeting not only transgender youth but also those experiencing precocious puberty. Another rider sought to bar any government funding toward “surgical procedures or hormone therapy for the purposes of gender-affirming care” in the Department of Health and Human Services. 

This move would have significantly impacted private and subsidized insurance in the Healthcare Marketplace. It also aimed to bar the enforcement of President Biden’s executive order titled “Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity,” which broadened anti-discrimination protections for transgender individuals. Additional riders included bans on funding for any organization that “promotes transgenderism,” Title IX protections for transgender youth, bans on legal challenges against states over anti-LGBTQ+ laws, book bans, DEI bans, and more. In total, over 40 riders were proposed and negotiated in the spending bills. None of these were found in the final bill. 

 Ultimately, the final spending bill released contained only a single anti-LGBTQ+ rider: a ban on pride flags being raised or displayed above foreign embassies. The policy, while certainly qualifying as anti-LGBTQ+ and a regression to Trump-era policies, notably does not bar personal displays of Pride flags by embassy workers. In the past, some embassies have gotten around such bans by not “flying a flag over the embassy” but rather, painting portions of the embassy in rainbow colors or draping flags on the side of buildings. 

White House Agrees To Ban Pride Flags At US Embassies In Spending Bill Deal - Unfortunately, this rider didn't slip by. I sincerely hope members of the community don't flip out over this. Compared to what could have been, this is very minor.

Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott donates over $30 million to LGBTQ+ non-profits​ - Great news. Goodness knows we need this. 

Alabama forces universities to implement trans bathroom ban while outlawing DEI - This right here is a hot mess. 

Florida tried to erase LGBTQ teachers. These educators refuse to go quietly - Keep fighting. 

Biden administration ties record for number of confirmed LGBTQ judges in federal courts - Voting matters.

Video - Four years ago, Donald Trump botched the COVID pandemic response. His campaign wants America to forget what he did.

Four years ago, Donald Trump botched the COVID pandemic response and refused to take responsibility for the carnage he was causing. Now his campaign is trying to gaslight America to forget all of it. Thank you Chris Hayes and MSNBC for the above reminder.

SCOTUS turns down appeal of parents who lost custody of trans teen

I am not a fan of the current Supreme Court because of how it seems to put religious beliefs on an undeserved pedestal.  However, in this particular case, SCOTUS made the right decision. In rejecting this appeal, the Court is saying, at least for now, that the religious beliefs of the parents don't supersede the health and well-being of their child.

 From USA Today:

The Supreme Court declined to decide Monday whether an Indiana couple who believe children should be raised based on their sex at birth should have lost custody of their teenager, a transgender girl. The court, without comment, rejected an appeal from the teen’s parents, who had warned that cases similar to theirs are likely to reoccur “due to developing conflicts between parents and their children concerning gender identity.” 

 “With increasing frequency, governments run roughshod over parents’ religious beliefs on gender identity, including removing children from parents, favoring certain beliefs in divorce custody disputes, and preventing adoptions,” lawyers for Mary and Jeremy Cox of Anderson, Indiana, told the court in their appeal. “These cases are sure to proliferate.” 

 The state said the parents, who are self-described devout Christians, lost custody not because of their views but because of the medical necessity of addressing the teen’s severe eating disorder. A provision of Indiana law that is similar to statutes in nearly every state allows government intervention in “a variety of situations in which even well-intentioned parent find themselves unable to prevent serious harm,” the state told the court. 

 Indiana also argued that the custody dispute is no longer relevant because the teen, who was 16 when removed from the home, is now an adult. 

 The LGBTQ news site Them also added several other details about the case:

 The case stretches back to 2019, when Mary and Jeremy Cox of Anderson, Indiana said their child — then 14 years old — came out to them as a trans girl. As PBS affiliate WFYI reported, the Coxes, both self-described devout Christians, refused to accept their child’s identity, a sustained conflict that lawyers for the Department of Child Services (DCS) say eventually led to the child developing a severe eating disorder and both parents losing custody in 2021. 

 The Indiana Court of Appeals in 2022 upheld the DCS decision to remove the child from her parents’ care, finding that her eating disorder was directly linked to emotional distress and lack of support at home. Mary Cox’s comments to her child included the statement that “[child’s preferred name] is the bitch that killed my son,” according to the ruling. 

The court determined that the custody order was necessary to protect the child’s physical and emotional health, and while the Coxes are free to express their religious beliefs, “they do not have the right to exercise them in a manner that causes physical or emotional harm to [their] Child.”

'Actress fired from 'Color Purple' stage show because of anti-LGBTQ comments loses lawsuit' & other Mon/Tues news briefs

Editor's note - As you have noticed, I haven't been as steady on the posts as I have been in the past. I've been going through some trying situations, but I still want to keep you up-to-date, educated, and entertained. And most of all, empowered by what I post here. Please bear with me as I continue to do what I have been doing these past 17.5 years and above all thank you for continuing to stand by me.

Seyi Omooba

Christian actress spent 5 years in court defending her right to make anti-LGBTQ+ comments. She just lost. - You cannot attack the sexual orientation of the character you are hired to portray and expect to keep your job. It does cause problems to your employers. Also, how do you expect anyone to believe that you were unaware that Celie from 'The Color Purple' was a lesbian:

 After hearing testimony in 2021 that Omooba had previously told her agents that she refused to play gay roles and had not bothered to read the script for the musical version of The Color Purple before accepting the role, an employment tribunal dismissed the actor’s religious discrimination claim, The Telegraph reported. The tribunal agreed with Curve Theatre that Omooba had not been fired for her Christian beliefs, but rather because her anti-LGBTQ+ statements would have likely led to “catastrophic” backlash for the theater if she had appeared in the queer role. 

California parents oust school board members who enacted anti-LGBTQ+ policy - Bye Felicias. Voting matters.

Idaho considers a ban on using public funds or facilities for transgender care - There is absolutely no point to this madness. Why push this ban? 

Death of Nex Benedict spurs calls for action, help for LGBTQ teens and their peers - Terrible situation but hopefully some good will come out of it. 

Ron “Don’t Say Gay” DeSantis can’t stop racking up humiliating losses in Florida- It's been a good month. 

On Fox News, Caitlyn Jenner defends trans athlete ban - GURL, u r a HOT mess.

'Ron DeSantis is feuding with Chaya Raichik and Libs of TikTok' & other Wed/Thur news briefs

In a recreation of one of those anaconda vs alligator moments on a nature show, Florida Gov Ron DeSantis (top picture) is feuding with Chaya Raichik and Libs of TikTok (bottom picture).

Editor's note - There is so many things going on that it would be best for me to cover as much as I can via news briefs.

DeSantis starts spat with Libs of TikTok - In a recreation of one of those anaconda vs alligator moments on a nature show, Florida Gov Ron DeSantis is feuding with Chaya Raichik and Libs of Tik Tok. Apparently, he got a taste of the medicine he supported her doling out to LGBTQ people. The spat is about immigration and crime, but it's still one of those "let's eat popcorn while enjoying the show" for our community. 

Glenn Youngkin signs bill that codifies marriage equality in Va. law - Pinch me on this one. Democrats control both the House and the Senate in Virginia so maybe Youngkin is trying to get along. If that's the case, it is yet more proof how voting matters.

 LGBTQ+ identification reaches new high of 7.6 percent among U.S. adults: Gallup - Closet doors are opening everywhere.

Lady Gaga shares powerful statement defending Dylan Mulvaney from anti-trans vitriol: “This is hatred” - Thank you, Lady Gaga.

New Survey Shows Broad Support for LGBTQ Rights Nationally, Despite Overall Declines in the Past Year - We're still hanging in there.