Campaigning on hate
Does anti-LGBTQ prejudice actually entice voters?
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Onto the rest of today’s LGBTQ news!
Trump tries to reverse LGBTQ protections
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is supposed to be an independent agency, but Trump’s Justice Department is trying to convince it to reverse its LGBTQ-inclusive policies instituted years ago. This is part of the administration’s efforts to persuade the Supreme Court to rule in a group of LGBTQ discrimination cases that it’s perfectly legal to fire someone for their sexual orientation or transgender identity.
It seems unlikely that the EEOC would flip-flop on its past interpretations, but the pressure to do so is one of the most significant indicators yet that the Trump administration opposes even the most basic civil rights for LGBTQ people.
IMDB to finally protect trans actors
The Internet Movie Database has abandoned its past position and will now create ways for transgender actors and filmmakers to remove their deadnames from their profiles. The removal is still subject to a review, but once approved, “every occurrence of their birth name” will be taken down. This is an important recognition that trans actors are who they say they are and are not simply using a “stage name.”
Family sues Rikers Island over trans woman’s death
The family of Layleen Cubilette-Polanco is suing Rikers Island for allowing the 27-year-old trans woman to die in its custody. Cubilette-Polanco died of an epileptic seizure while in punitive segregation.
Ugh, Curt Schilling
Trump reiterated his support for Curt Schilling’s run for Congress today.
As a reminder, Schilling is a radical conspiracy theorist who peddles in transphobia.
A quisling for Congress
The owner of one of the top gay bars in the country, Pegasus Nightclub in San Antonio, is running for Congress as a pro-Trump Republican. During his failed 2018 campaign, Maura Garza actually used red hats that read “Make TX-21 greater,” a reference to Trump’s MAGA slogan. Local LGBTQ activists are now calling boycotts of Pegasus, not unlike the boycotts of Equinox gyms and SoulCycle.
Ganging up on a trans lawmaker
Virginia Del. Danica Roem (D) made history as the country’s first openly elected trans state lawmaker, but as she faces re-election, anti-LGBTQ forces are ganging up on her. Her opponent, Kelly McGinn (R), is an anti-LGBTQ bigot who once called marriage equality “morally repugnant” and part of a “Culture of Death.” And as The Daily Beast reports, McGinn is enjoying the support of many anti-LGBTQ organizations, including the Eagle Forum and Religious Freedom Institute.
Roy Moore vs. Colonel Klinger
Alabama uber-bigot Roy Moore went on another anti-LGBTQ rant over the weekend, this time invoking the television show M*A*S*H, which went off the air in 1983:
MOORE: Do you know what transgender is? That’s not Biblical. And when men want to be women? I was watching M*A*S*H the other day, talking about Korea, Vietnam ... talking about what’s his name, Klinger. He wanted to get out of the Army because they didn’t accept transgender. Now, I guess he would get a promotion.
And then, his Senate campaign actually bragged about the comment:
Who even is his audience?
Prescription-free PrEP
California lawmakers are considering a bill that would make PrEP available without a prescription. The California Medical Association opposes the change though because it means that patients would not be required to attend regular screenings and checkups.
Arizona official thinks gay men die at 42
Gay men joke about how young “gay death” occurs — a reference to the community’s ageism — but Mohave County Supervisor Ron Gould actually believes gay men only live to age 42. They die that young, he believes, because they’re gay. “That’s why they die. We all have our sins, but we should try to suppress them,” he said. “Alcohol is harmful, too, but we don’t see groups promoting alcoholism.” His pseudoscience is a couple decades out of date!
West Philly restaurant lays off queer staff
The brilliant reporters Nico Lang and Kate Sosin profile the West Philadelphia Trolley Car Station, which until April was a restaurant that provided sanctuary for queer workers. But it suddenly closed, laying them all off and making it very difficult for them to find new work. Read the full profile.
Indiana Catholics threatened student for speaking out
In the wake of some high profile employment discrimination — and pending lawsuits in response — the Indianapolis Catholic Archdiocese is trying to clamp down on dissent. Now comes news that they threatened a high school senior with expulsion simply for speaking out.
Meet Scotland’s only out trans lawmaker
Gregor Murray is the only out trans lawmaker in Scotland, serving on the Dundee City Council. He’s described the experience as being “isolating.”
Until next time, stay platinum!
(Roy Moore photo credit: YouTube/Roy Moore for Senate/screenshot.)