Category: anti-LGBTQ

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Judge Sues State Commission After Reprimand For Turning Away Same-Sex Weddings

Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley (screen capture)
A judge in Texas is suing the state agency that oversees judicial misconduct after she was reprimanded for refusing to marry same-sex couples. Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley, of McLennan County, has filed a lawsuit against the State Commission on Judicial Conduct saying the disciplinary action constituted a violation of her rights under the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act. On Monday, December 2, the Commission issued a warning to Hensley saying her refusal to perform same-sex marriages cast “doubt on her capacity to act impartially to persons appearing before her as a judge due to the person’s sexual orientation.” According to the Houston Chronicle, such warnings are the second-highest order of discipline the committee can take against a judge. Continuing to turn away same-sex couples could result in impeachment by the Commission, removing her from her judicial post. In 2017, Hensley told the Waco Tribune-Herald that her “Bible-believing” Christian conscience keeps her from performing same-sex weddings and she feels she’s entitled to a “religious exemption.” The Tribune-Herald reports Hensley is seeking $10,000 in damages as well as a declaratory judgment that the commission violated her religious rights. Additionally, she asks for class-action relief to allow any justice of the peace to turn away same-sex couples who want to get married. After the historic June 2015 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court which made marriage equality the law of the land, some judges and justices of the peace who did not approve of same-sex marriages stopped performing wedding ceremonies altogether to avoid discriminating against LGBTQs. The court filing notes that Hensley has officiated 328 wedding ceremonies since August 2016, all of them were for heterosexual couples. In the clip below, Hensley tells the local news station KXXV, “I have no desire to offend anybody, but the last person I want to offend is God.” A local LGBTQ activist, Carmen Saenz, told the news station Hensley is “free to believe however she wants.” Saenz added, “But you can’t discriminate against people as an elected official.” Hensley issued a statement to KXXV saying, “I sought a solution so that anyone in McLennan County who wants to get married can do so. I have, do, and always will follow the law.”

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Hallmark Channel Drops Then Reinstates LGBTQ Inclusive Commercials

The Hallmark Channel is having a decidedly difficult December. The cable television channel announced on Thursday it would stop airing four ads from the wedding planning website Zola which included lesbian brides kissing in marriage ceremonies after virulently anti-LGBTQ organization One Million Moms complained about the spots. At the time, a spokesperson for the company told the New York Times it did not accept ads “that are deemed controversial.”  The spokesman said the women’s public displays of affection “violated the channel’s policies,” but didn’t elaborate as to why a nearly identical ad featuring a bride and groom kissing was not rejected.

Zola then announced it would pull all of its advertising from the channel. In a statement released on Sunday, president and CEO Mike Perry said the team at Hallmark Channel’s parent company, Crown Media Family Networks, had “been agonizing over this decision as we’ve seen the hurt it has unintentionally caused” and that “they believe this was the wrong decision.” “Our mission is rooted in helping all people connect, celebrate traditions and be inspired to capture meaningful moments in their lives,” he said. “Anything that detracts from this purpose is not who we are. We are truly sorry for the hurt and disappointment this has caused.” Perry added his company would work with national LGBTQ media advocacy group GLAAD “to better represent the LGBTQ community across our portfolio of brands,” and that it planned on contacting Zola to “re-establish our partnership and reinstate the commercials.”

“We were deeply troubled when Hallmark rejected our commercials for featuring a lesbian couple celebrating their marriage, and are relieved to see that decision was reversed,” said Mike Chi, the chief marketing officer of Zola. “We are humbled by everyone who showed support not only for Zola, but for all the LGBTQ couples and families who express their love on their wedding day, and every day.” Sarah Kate Ellis, the president and chief executive of GLAAD, said: “The Hallmark Channel’s decision to correct its mistake sends an important message to LGBTQ people and represents a major loss for fringe organizations, like One Million Moms, whose sole purpose is to hurt families like mine. LGBTQ people are, and will continue to be, a part of advertisements and family programming, and that will never change.” Amid all the flip-flopping by Hallmark, Freeform, formerly ABC Family which has created LGBTQ-friendly content like The Fosters, The Bold Type, and Good Trouble, tweeted that it would be happy to air Zola’s inclusive ads over the holidays. “This is what happens when you focus all your energy on exclusion instead of clever plotlines,” tweeted Freeform. “Call us, Zola. We celebrate the holidays with everyone.”

Earlier in December, the Hallmark Channel network was targeted by outraged conservatives after CEO Bill Abbott said he was “open” to creating LGBTQ-themed holiday movies last month. (image via screen capture)

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Teacher Rants To Student: Why Would You Be Thankful For Being Adopted By Gay Dads?

Joshua and Louis Van Amstel (image via Instagram)
A week before Thanksgiving, a substitute teacher asked a fifth-grade class at Deerfield Elementary School in Cedar Hills, Utah, to share: “What are you thankful for?” Some mentioned the holiday feast to come, some their family dog, and another joked his thanks for not having to attend school during the Thanksgiving break. But one 11-year-old stood up and said, “I’m thankful that I’m finally going to be adopted by my two dads,” reports the Salt Lake Tribune. Stunning the class, the substitute teacher admonished at the young boy saying, “Why on earth would be happy about that?” According to the Tribune, the substitute teacher went on for ten minutes telling the class of 30 students how “homosexuality is wrong” and “two men living together is a sin.” Turning her focus back to the boy, she announced, “That’s nothing to be thankful for.” During the tirade, three girls in the class asked the woman to stop, but she continued with her hate speech. The girls finally left the classroom to notify the principal who had the sub escorted from the building. Even as she was being removed from the school she continued to press her homophobic point. Choreographer/dancer Louis van Amstel (Dancing with the Stars, So You Think You Can Dance) and his husband, Joshua, have been working through the adoptive process for several months. The adoption is scheduled to be finalized on December 19. “The substitute teacher was giving her very clear opinion, two men is wrong, homosexuality is wrong, and so you can imagine that set us off, and we are not letting this go,” Louis said in a video on social media.

“I am so proud of [the boy’s] school, not only did they let go of the teacher, they said this woman is never going to teach in the school ever again.” Van Amstel added, “I’m proud of those three girls and [the boy’s] school for standing up for our family against this bully. I’m truly disgusted that the bully in this situation is a teacher in a public school.” In a heartbreaking statement, Louis told the Tribune that the young boy understood what the teacher was saying but was afraid to speak up because he’s had two failed adoptions before and didn’t want his dads to change their minds. “He was so fearful that this could make us think that we don’t want to adopt him,” said Louis. “That’s definitely not going to happen. But this situation really hurt him. This person really hurt us.”

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Gay Couple On Vacation Arrested For ‘Immoral Acts’ In Their Hotel Room

(stock photo via Depositphotos)

 

(stock photo via Depositphotos)
(stock photo via Depositphotos)
Imagine being arrested for having consensual sex in the privacy of your hotel room while on vacation. That’s the situation two Vietnamese tourists found themselves in during a trip to Malaysia. The New Straits Times reports Tang Van Duc, 22, and Lee Vu Linh, 29,  were arrested by the State Immigration Department in their hotel room in Penang for participating in “immoral acts” with an undercover officer on November 12. The couple pleaded guilty to the charges in court, and Judge Norhayati Mohd Yunus ordered each of them to pay a fine of about $240 (RM1000). They also faced the embarrassment of their photo being posted by local news media. The men had been visiting the country since October 18 on tourist visas.

I’ve reported on the grim situation for LGBTQ people in Malaysia many times in recent years. Malaysia provides no legal protections for LGBTQ individuals, and those arrested for same-sex encounters face severe penalties – up to 20 years in prison as well as fines and public whippings. Earlier this month, five men in Kuala Lumpur were sentenced to at least six months in prison and being whipped with a cane in public for “attempting to have gay sex.” In August 2018, police raided a gay bar in the same city saying the arrests were an attempt to “stop the spread of LGBTQ culture in society, according to Pink News. The next month two Malaysian women were caned for “attempting lesbian sex in a car.” Duc and Linh enjoy a better legal situation in their own country of Vietnam. Same-sex relations are legally permitted, gay/bisexual people are allowed to openly serve in the military, and a 2016 survey found rising support – up to 45% at the time – for marriage equality in Vietnam.

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Homophobic Photographer Files Anti-LGBTQ Lawsuit ‘Just In Case’

A wedding photographer in Louisville, Kentucky, has filed a lawsuit challenging the city’s Fairness Ordinance saying it forces her to “use her artistic talents to promote same-sex wedding ceremonies.”

The photographer, Chelsey Nelson, asks in the lawsuit that the city not only stop enforcing the 20-year-old ordinance but also requests ‘compensatory damages.’ Continue reading “Homophobic Photographer Files Anti-LGBTQ Lawsuit ‘Just In Case’”

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Third Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s Anti-LGBTQ ‘Conscience Protection’ Rule

Trump walks past reporters with no comment

  A third federal judge has ruled against the Trump administration’s proposed change in regulations which would allow health care providers to deny care that offends ‘deeply held religious beliefs. Read that as legalizing discrimination against LGBTQ people. U.S. District Judge William Alsup of the Northern District of California ruled on Tuesday that the new Denial of Care rule is “not in accordance with law” by reason of conflict with underlying statutes. “When a rule is so saturated with error, as here, there is no point in trying to sever the problematic provisions,” wrote Alsup in his decision. “The whole rule must go.” Previously, Judge Paul Engelmayer of New York, and Judge Stanley Bastian of Spokane, Washington, also found the religious exemption rule announced by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would violate several federal laws. Alsup wrote in his ruling, “Under the new rule, to preview just one example, an ambulance driver would be free, on religious or moral grounds, to eject a patient en route to a hospital upon learning the patient needed an emergency abortion. Such harsh treatment would be blessed by the new rule.” The so-called ‘conscience protection’ rule would also expand the categories of workers who could choose to refuse to serve the public to include receptionists, accounting staff and emergency responders. Plus, the federal government would be allowed to cut funding to states and/or employers who might not respect the religious exemption to the degree sought by the Trump administration. Judge Alsup made note that there are already federal laws in place to provide for accommodating a health care provider’s religious or conscientious objections to some procedures like abortion. HHS announced the proposed rule change in May and was set to take effect this Friday. But Judge Engelmayer’s ruling in New York two weeks ago blocked the regulation. Jamie Gliksberg of Lambda Legal, which was one of the legal teams representing the plaintiffs, celebrated in a statement regarding the ruling: “That is now three judges in two weeks who have recognized the Denial of Care Rule for what it is, an egregious and unconstitutional attack on women, LGBT people and other vulnerable populations.” This doesn’t end the assault on LGBTQ people’s rights by the Trump administration, though. Earlier in November, HHS shared plans to allow faith-based adoption or foster care organizations who receive federal funds to decline to place children with LGBTQ families. Plus, the Trump administration is still working to remove parts of the Affordable Care Act that prohibits discrimination against transgender people. (source)

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Dallas ‘Straight Pride’ Event Draws A Crowd Of Two

(photo: Soraya Colli)
The highly anticipated (I’m joking) ‘Straight Pride’ parade/event in Dallas, Texas, on Saturday turned out to be the most epic fail yet for the ‘Straight Pride’ movement. Although the organizers promised discussions of abortion rights (they say it’s murder), traditional marriage (only one man + one woman), and gender identity (only two!!!!), we’re not sure how long those panels were since only two people showed up. According to the Dallas Voice, the two participants weren’t even from Dallas. Or Texas. The duo, presumably a part of Super Happy Fun America which produced the Boston ‘Straight Pride’ event this summer, were vastly outnumbered by approximately 20 protesters who showed up at the City Hall Plaza “event.” Local activist Soraya Colli shared video footage on Facebook and was sharing details via Twitter:

The story was similar on August 31 in Boston where 200 attendees were greeted by thousands of pro-LGBTQ protesters. The second ‘Straight Pride’ event, which was planned to occur in Modesto, California, couldn’t obtain a permit due to lack of insurance and was reduced to a handful of people protesting in front of a Planned Parenthood location. The Dallas Voice reports that one of the straight Pride participants in Dallas yelled insults at transgender protesters saying, “We know there are only two genders.” He also insisted, “I’m part of the oppressed majority.” And when the space between the protesters and the two Straight Pride attendees began to close, police separated them, putting an end to the fireworks. The local organizer of the Dallas event, Teresa Stephens Richenberger, didn’t bother to show up. In a statement posted on Facebook, Richenberger said the event had to be ‘postponed’ due to the city of Dallas “PRICE GOUGING us and asked for enormous amouts [sic] of money.” We’re guessing she didn’t bother to tell the guys from Boston who traveled to the Lone Star state for her shindig? Richenberger went on to say they would “regroup” and set a date for sometime in the future. She closed her post by shouting, “I AM NOT BACKING DOWN; AND NOT RUNNING;;; WE WILL HAVE OUR PARADE/MARCH.” “SOON……” added Richenberger.

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Boss Cuts Employee’s Salary In Half After Discovering He’s Gay

Stock photo showing a fired male employee sitting at his desk

Stock photo showing a fired male employee sitting at his desk
(stock photo via Depositphotos)
A gay man working at an event company found his salary cut in half after his boss found out he was gay. Two weeks later, the gay employee was fired. The New York Post reports Wesley Wernecke was recruited, hired and began working for Eventique in New York City on June 3 as a Senior Producer. One week into settling into the new gig, a coworker noticed his wedding ring and asked, “So what does your wife’s ring look like?” According to court papers filed with the Manhattan Supreme Court on Wednesday, Wernecke shared that his partner, Evan, had a similar ring. Eventique founder and executive producer Liron David was in the room at the time of the conversation, and soon Wernecke found himself left out of conference meetings as well as being excluded from after-work drinks with other male colleagues. Court documents for the lawsuit allege, “David took all these tactics to exclude Wernecke because David had already made up his mind that, despite the proficiency of Wernecke’s work, he would not accept having an openly gay man working in the office, and he intended to get rid of Wernecke.” Wernecke soldiered on for months, but on September 20 David informed Wernecke that he was reducing his salary from $145,000 to $70,000. “I couldn’t sleep at night thinking you were being paid so much more than the other females in the office,” David told the 32-year-old reports the Post. Wernecke says he believes David made the comment “to reinforce Wernecke’s understanding that David considered Wernecke to be a sexual deviant and unfit to work at Eventique.” Wernecke soon discovered his pay was actually slashed to $58,000. And two weeks later, on October 4, Wernecke was told he was being fired due to “deficiencies” and “errors” in his work. Wernecke’s lawyer, Anthony Consiglio at the law firm Cary Kane, told the Post his client is an “accomplished marketing director and producer of live events” who is now seeing a therapist for the first time in his life due to the discriminatory treatment. “These acts cannot be reconciled with the liberal anti-discrimination positions written into law in New York City and State to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and transgender people in their workplaces,” Consiglio said. Gena Zaiderman, David’s attorney, told the Post her client considers the allegations in the court filing “baseless” and “shocking.” “Mr. David firmly stands by his long-standing reputation for fairness and professionalism,” said Zaiderman. “We expect that the facts will be revealed in due course.” (source: NY Post)

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Recognizing National Adoption Month, Pence Extolled Anti-LGBTQ Adoption Rule

Former Vice President Mike Pence

Vice President Mike Pence
Vice President Mike Pence made an appearance at a National Adoption Month event held by the Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday where he praised Donald Trump for proposing a rule that would allow taxpayer-funded faith-based adoption agencies to deny LGBTQ people child placement in their homes. The Washington Blade reports Pence told the crowd that he “couldn’t be more proud” of the rule he said demonstrates the Trump administration’s understanding of “the role that communities of faith play in adoption.” “We’ve reversed the rule implemented in the closing days of the last administration that jeopardized the ability of faith-based providers to serve those in need by penalizing them for their deeply held religious beliefs,” said the Vice President. “We will stand for the freedom of religion and we will stand with faith-based organizations to support adoption.” He also commended HHS Secretary Alex Azar and his staff for “promulgating the new rule that respects the freedom of religion of every American, but also recognizes the vital role that faith-based organizations play in adoption in this country.” Pence ended his remarks saying, “And I’ll make you one more promise: Child welfare providers will never be forced to choose between their faith and serving those in need — not on our watch.” The HHS proposal would reverse a regulation implemented in the last months of the Obama administration prohibiting recipients of federal grants from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. Pence noted statistics that claim “four out of five families have pointed to faith and church support as a factor in successful fostering.” But what Pence failed to mention is that same-sex couples are “four times more likely to be raising an adopted child and six times more likely to be raising foster children than heterosexual couples,” according to AmericanAdoptions.com. “The Trump-Pence White House has proposed a horrific federal regulation that would permit discrimination across the entire spectrum of HHS programs receiving federal funding,” Human Right’s Campaign President Alphonso David said in a statement when the rule was announced. Sarah Kate Ellis, President and CEO of GLAAD, told Out, “Research has shown LGBTQ families provide the same kind of love, protection, and support as other families, and no child should be denied that kind of environment.” Ellis added, “The Trump Administration has once again demonstrated how they prefer to prioritize the gross work of anti-LGBTQ activists over the safety and well-being of our children.” (source: Washington Blade)

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Malaysia: Gay Men Sentenced To Public Caning Then Months In Prison

A gay man is caned in Malaysia

A gay man is caned in Malaysia
(image via YouTube)
Five Malaysian men in Kuala Lumpur have been sentenced to at least six months in prison and being whipped with a cane for “attempting to have gay sex,” according to Reuters. Additionally, four of the men have been fined RM4,800 ($1,163) and the fifth was fined RM4,900. The men, along with seven others, were arrested last November during a raid at a private apartment and convicted of “attempting to have intercourse against the order of nature,” which is a crime under Islamic laws. Five of the remaining seven men will face sentencing later this month. Calling the sentences “a gross injustice,” LGBTQ activist Numan Afifi – who attended the sentencing hearing today – told news site MalayMail that the sentences were “outrageous” and would “create a culture of fear.” Two Malaysian women were caned in September 2018 as well for “attempting lesbian sex in a car.” The caning of women is banned under civil law but some Islamic states allow it under shariah law. At the time, Amnesty International issued a statement saying the canings marked “an appalling day” for human rights in Malaysia. MalayMail notes that sodomy is a crime under Malaysia’s regular criminal code as well as under Islamic law. However, it is apparently rare for citizens to be found guilty of the crime. Malaysia provides no legal protections for LGBTQ individuals. Those arrested for same-sex encounters face up to 20 years in prison, as well as fines and whippings. (source: Reuters)