Author: Randy Slovacek

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Tweet Of The Day: A Loss & A Win At French Open

When tennis player Nicholas Mahut lost in the third round of the French Open last Friday, he became emotional holding back tears. Then his son, Natanel, ran across the court to console his dad.
Nicholas Mahut and son Natanel

Just a bit of humanity for you…

When tennis player Nicholas Mahut lost in the third round of the French Open last Friday, he became emotional holding back tears.

Then his son, Natanel, ran across the court to console his dad.

“I was really emotional to see him on the court. He comes on a win but also when I lose,” said Mahut, per Business Insider. “I have the comfort of my young boy. A lot of emotions. The tiredness of the match. My body was aching everywhere today. I finally, that match was over, and finally, he comes to comfort me.”

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House Democrats Introduce Resolution To Hold Attorney General In Contempt

CNN is reporting that Democrats in the House of Representatives have introduced a resolution meant to empower committees to go to court to enforce their subpoenas in an effort to give committee chairmen an effective way to hold officials in contempt while bypassing the House floor.

The plan comes after Donald Trump’s Attorney General, William Barr, and former White House counsel Don McGahn have stonewalled efforts by Democrats to get subpoenaed documents from the Trump administration.

The Democrats’ resolution next week to hold Attorney General William Barr and former White House counsel Don McGahn in contempt and take those cases to court will also include language stating that committees can move to hold officials in contempt of Congress, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said this week.

The resolution will also include language directing the House to petition the courts to obtain grand jury information contained in the Mueller report.

House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler pushed for the move in recent weeks as House leadership decided to wait to hold a floor vote on contempt for Barr until they could package officials together. Now committees themselves would be empowered to use civil contempt citations to go to court to enforce their subpoena.

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Washington State Supreme Court Upholds Ruling Against Anti-LGBTQ Florist

The Washington State Supreme Court has upheld its 2017 ruling which found florist Barronelle Stutzman had violated the state’s anti-discrimination laws when she refused to sell wedding flowers to a gay couple in 2013.
Homophobic florist Barronelle Stutzman

The Washington State Supreme Court has upheld its 2017 ruling which found florist Barronelle Stutzman had violated the state’s anti-discrimination laws when she refused to sell wedding flowers to a gay couple in 2013.

Stutzman’s legal team had appealed the original ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, but last June the high court punted.

Instead of reviewing the case, SCOTUS vacated the Washington state Supreme Court ruling and ordered the state’s top court to take another look at the caseto ensure they did not rule with any religious bias.

On Wednesday, the state Supreme Court upheld its original ruling in a unanimous decision,

Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson issued a statement which read, “Washington state law protects same-sex couples from discrimination based on their sexual orientation, the same way it protects Washingtonians from discrimination based on their religion, veteran or military status, disability, race and other protected classes.”

The case began when Robert Ingersoll and Curt Freed were planning to marry in 2013 after Washington state legalized same-sex marriage the year before.

They approached Stutzman for flowers for their event, Stutzman refused citing her Christian beliefs.

Washington state’s public accommodation laws specifically prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Stutzman was fined $1,000 and ordered to sell floral arrangements for same-sex weddings if she were to continue selling arrangements for heterosexual weddings.

Although she cried about financial burdens due to the ongoing court case, it’s worth noting that over $174,000 was raised via crowd funding for Stutzman. GoFundMe eventually shut down the campaign based on the company’s policy that campaigns can’t be used to raise funds for legal cases where formal charges have been filed.

However, Stutzman was allowed to keep the $174,000.

Following Wednesday’s ruling, Stutzman’s attorneys (from the virulently anti-LGBTQ law firm Alliance Defending Freedom) say they plan to take their appeal (again) to the U.S. Supreme Court.

(Source: KEPR)

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NYC Police Commissioner Officially Apologizes For Stonewall Riots

The producers of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50 have publicly asked for the New York City Police Department to officially apologize for the violent police raid at the Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969.
The historic Stonewall Inn (photo by annulla is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0)

Is it ever too late to apologize?

The producers of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50 have publicly asked for the New York City Police Department to officially apologize for the violent police raid at the Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969.

The brutal raids in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, led to what has become known as the Stonewall Uprising as drag queens, gays, lesbians, and transgender people fought back leading to more protests against police brutality. The event is credited for giving birth to the modern-day LGBTQ movement.

The Executive Board of Heritage Pride, Inc., the organization responsible for producing over 25 events in New York City celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, issued a statement which read, in part:

“Last night, we voted unanimously to demand that the NYPD formally apologize to the LGBTQIA+ community for the violent police raid that triggered the Stonewall Uprising. We offer our stage at the Stonewall 50 Commemoration Rally on Friday, June 28, 2019 for Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill to do so on behalf of the Department.”

The statement acknowledged “significant strides” made by the NYPD under Commissioner O’Neill, but asks the Department to “take responsibility for the decades of police violence committed against” the LGBTQ community in New York City.

The executive board added that the “small, albeit meaningful step” of an apology would demonstrate “what is possible for the future of our community and our movement.”

“Commissioner O’Neill and the NYPD, the eyes of the world are on our city, and we call upon you to show what real change can look like,” the board wrote in closing. “The platform is yours on June 28th.”

In an interview with radio station 1010WINS, openly gay City Council Speaker Corey Johnson also called for an apology.

“The NYPD in the past has apologized for other incidents that have occurred, and so I think the NYPD apologizing on this would be a very, very good thing, and it’s something they should do,” explained Johnson.

“I would love for it happen this month, and I will bring it up to the police commissioner,” Johnson continued. “Because I think it would be an important step toward further healing and reconciliation and recognizing what happened in that crucial moment, and not just in American history, but New York history in June of 1969.”

When reached for comment regarding an apology to the LGBTQ community, Commissioner O’Neill told 1010WINS, “The NYPD of today is much different than the department of 50 years ago, and a number of important changes have been implemented that bring the police and all the communities we serve closer together.”

With an estimated three million people expected to travel from around the world to New York City for the WorldPride events, O’Neill said, “We are looking forward to the many events surrounding this year’s milestone anniversary, and to working with all attendees to ensure that everyone not only is safe, but feels safe, too.”

This isn’t the first time the idea of an apology from the NYPD has been floated.

Back in June 2017, at an event hosted by the NYC Bar Association, an attendee in the audience asked O’Neill if he would “apologize for the discrimination and violence” that occurred at the historic raid.

“I think that’s been addressed already,” replied O’Neill. “We’re moving forward.”

But this morning, Eric Bottcher, chief of staff for Speaker Johnson, tweeted that O’Neill formally apologized to the LGBTQ community at the first ever NYPD LGBTQ Pride Month Community Safety Briefing this morning.

“I’m certainly not going to be an expert of what happened at Stonewall,” O’Neill told the press. “The actions taken by the NYPD were wrong … and for that I apologize.”

From The New York Times:

“I think it would be irresponsible to go through World Pride month and not to speak of the events at the Stonewall Inn in June of 1969,” Mr. O’Neill said.

“What happened should not have happened. The actions taken by the N.Y.P.D. were wrong, plain and simple,” he added.

“The actions and the laws were discriminatory and oppressive, and for that, I apologize.”

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Barbershop Ordered To Pay $75K For Refusing To Cut HIV+ Customer’s Hair

In October 2017, personal trainer Nikko Briteramos was surprised to be turned away at a barber shop because of his HIV status.

Briteramos had been a customer at King of Kuts barbershop in the Leimert Park area of Los Angeles several times before.

But apparently, another barber in the establishment who knew Briteramos shared his HIV status with the owner. And so, on that visit, owner Ramsy Milton declined to cut Briteramos’s hair.

What’s wild about this story is it took place in 2017, not 1987.

First of all, you can’t contract HIV by cutting someone’s hair.

Second, people with HIV are protected against discrimination under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).

Briteramos filed a lawsuit saying the barber shop and its owner violated those statutes.

According to Lambda Legal, which handled legal duties along with HIV Project director Scott Schoettes, the lawsuit was never answered in court.

This past January, Briteramos and his legal team asked the court to issue a default ruling in the case. Milton neither answered nor showed up for the hearing on March 1, 2019.

On Tuesday, Judge Andre Birotte Jr. ruled King of Kuts must pay Briteramos $75,000 in punitive damages, as well as $4,600 in attorney’s fees and $574.60 in litigation costs.

“This judgment is proof that what happened to me in that barbershop and what happens to people living with HIV who experience discrimination just trying to do basic things in life like go the dentist or get a haircut is simply not acceptable,” said Briteramos.

“Such discriminatory practices harken back to times not too distant during the period of American ‘Jim Crow’ and are equally unjust,” added the 35-year-old trainer.

The case became the impetus for the Cut the Stigma campaign.

Launched in 2018, Cut the Stigma works to “engage Black businesses, including barbershops, around the country to dispel misconceptions about the transmission of HIV” and in doing so, reduce the stigma attached to living with HIV.

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News Round-Up: June 5, 2019

Some news items you might have missed:

• Instagram: Out Olympian Gus Kenworthy and company share: “Tired, sore and sunburnt… Welcome to Whine Country!” Team Worthy reached the mid-point of this year’s AIDS/LifeCycle ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles. #AllForAGoodCause

• NBC News: A Texas school board unanimously voted to fire a teacher who tried to report undocumented students in her school district to President Donald Trump through a series of public tweets — that she thought were private messages to the president.

• NY Times: The leader of La Luz del Mundo, a church headquartered in Mexico that claims to have more than one million followers worldwide, was charged Tuesday in Los Angeles with more than a dozen sex crimes, including allegations that he forced children to have sex and made them pose naked for photos.

• The Guardian: The White House paid nearly $1 million to rent four limos during Donald Trump’s two-day trip to Ireland. Four limos, two days. Seriously.

• The Sun: Pop star George Michael left nothing in his will to his past lovers, Kenny Goss and Fadi Fawaz. His estate’s estimated worth is $98 million.

• Gay Star News: Sir Ian McKellen has launched a new program, Pride In Ageing, that will work to end the inequalities faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people over 50 in Greater Manchester and ensure that they have access to inclusive housing and care later in life.

• Netflix, which has nearly doubled the number of LGBTQ characters in their shows and movies over the last 12 months, has launched a collection of queer stories on the streaming service.

The streaming giant also launched a brand new Instagram page @Prism today, to spotlight queer stories, characters and talent.

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‘The View’ Host Says Jesus Would Attend A Pride Parade, Homophobes Burst Into Flames

Sunny Hostin of ‘The View’

During Monday’s episode of The View, the gabfest was discussing the beginning of Pride Month when a recent tweet by Catholic Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence, Rhode Island, came up.

Bishop Tobin had taken it upon himself to remind Catholics not to attend Pride events this month because “they promote a culture and encourage activities that are contrary to Catholic faith and morals.”

Tobin added that Pride events “are especially harmful for children.”

The irony here is that this is the same bishop who acknowledged in 2018 that he “became aware of incidents of sexual abuse” in his diocese in the mid-1990s, but said reporting the allegations were not part of his “responsibilities,” and so, he remained silent.

And complicit…


Back to The View, one of the show’s co-hosts, Sunny Hostin, shared that she is a practicing Catholic and she wouldbe attending a Pride event with her children because that’s “what Jesus would do.”

“I tweeted out that my Catholic children will be attending Pride events as this Catholic will,” she shared with her co-hosts. “And you know, my faith always taught me, ‘What would Jesus do?’ And I know Jesus would be attending that Pride parade, with pride.”

And the crowd goes wild!

 But wait – there’s more!

“And I also know that God is love, Jesus is love, love is love,” she added. “For a Catholic bishop to come out and say something like that given the history of pedophilia in the Catholic church, given what the Catholic church has hidden about the abuse of children, some would say that being at a Pride parade would be much safer for a child than it has been to be in a Catholic church for many years.”

 Boom!

Cue Whoopi Goldberg dinging her bell six times.

Now, we love Ms. Hostin for the awesome support – and the epic breakdown of obvious hypocrisy by the church – but, the story doesn’t end there.

Homophobic inhabitants of the Twitterverse started losing their minds attacking Hostin, and it got ugly quick.

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Trump Claims Trans Soldiers ‘Take Massive Amounts Of Drugs’

Donald Trump, currently on a three-day state visit to the UK, defended his ban on transgender soldiers in the U.S. military by lying about the ‘massive’ cost of hormone treatment.

Trump sat down with his old pal and former winner of Celebrity Apprentice, Piers Morgan, on iTV’s Good Morning Britainto chat for an hour on a range of subjects.

While mentioning the president’s recent tweet acknowledging Pride Month, Morgan wondered how the same Donald Trump could also support the new military policy that went into effect April 12 that bans anyone who is openly transgender or has transitioned from joining the military.

Only service members who were already enlisted, and diagnosed with gender dysphoria prior to the new policy, may serve in the military openly as their gender identity.

“They take massive amounts of drugs, they have to, and you’re not allowed to take drugs, you’re in the military, you take an aspirin,” defended Trump. “And they have to after the operation, they have to, they have no choice.”

The president, who famously avoided serving in the military himself, went on to claim that taking hormone treatment would “break rules and regulations.”

He also complained about “massive amounts of people” enlisting and then transitioning during their service in order to get free surgical procedures.

“Massive amounts of people going in and then asking for the operation, and the operation is $200,000, $250,000, and they have to take large amounts of drugs for that for whatever reason, large amounts, and you can’t do that,” explained the president.

However, Trump’s statement about the costs for transgender medical care is patently false.

According to MilitaryTimes, the Pentagon spent $8 million on transgender health care since 2016. That figure represents a tiny fraction of the military’s $50 billion health care budget.

And while Trump finds $8 million for trans soldiers’ healthcare to be untenable, he doesn’t seem to mind the $84.2 million the defense department spent in one year on erectile dysfunction medications.

When Morgan mentioned this fact, the Trumpster claimed he didn’t know that.

“It is what it is,” Trump replied.

Morgan tried to point out that many trans military members have been honored with medals for valor and achievement, but Trump didn’t care.

“I’m proud of them, I think that’s great,” said Trump, brushing the comment aside. “But you have to have a standard, and you have to stick by that standard, and we have a great military and I want to keep it that way.”

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Trump Pretends UK Protesters Showed Up To Support Him

You can barely see any protesters, huh?

Donald Trump, once again living in his own private reality, told his followers he “kept hearing” about “massive” rallies protesting his visit to London, but claims everyone was there to support him.

#liar

Check out his tweet followed by video footage of the protests:

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Senate Republicans Are NOT Happy About Trump’s Mexican Tariffs

Donald Trump 

Senate Republicans appear to be on a collision course with their own president over Donald Trump’s announced plans to place big ticket tariffs on imports from Mexico.

Via The New York Times:

Republican senators sent the White House a sharp message on Tuesday, warning that they were almost uniformly opposed to President Trump’s plans to impose tariffs on Mexican imports, just hours after the president said lawmakers would be “foolish” to try to stop him.

“I want you to take a message back” to the White House, Senator Ted Cruz, Republican of Texas, told the lawyers, according to people familiar with the meeting. Mr. Cruz warned that “you didn’t hear a single yes” from the Republican conference. He called the proposed tariffs a $30 billion tax increase on Texans.

Texas would be hit the hardest by the proposed tariffs on Mexican products, followed by Michigan, California, Illinois and Ohio, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

A 25 percent tariff would threaten $26.75 billion of Texas imports. “We’re holding a gun to our own heads,” said Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi called the tariffs “a distraction:”