Luke Prokop (screen capture via ESPN)Luke Prokop, a prospect for the Nashville Predators, came out as gay on Monday becoming the first active player under a National Hockey League contract to do so. “I am no longer scared to hide who I am,” the 19-year-old wrote on Instagram. “Today I am proud to publicly tell everyone that I am gay.” “It has been quite the journey to get to this point in my life, but I could not be happier with my decision to come out,” Prokop continued. “From a young age I have dreamed of being an NHL player, and believe that living my authentic life will allow me to bring my whole self to the rink and improve my chances of fulfilling my dreams.” The six-foot-four defenseman went on to say that while he is “new to the community,” he is “eager to learn about the strong and resilient people who came before me and paved the way so I could be more comfortable today.” Prior to Prokop, there has never been an NHL player, active or retired, who has publicly come out. https://www.instagram.com/p/CRgq7vCDgDq/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link Originally from Alberta, Canada, Prokop played for the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League last season, acting as an alternate captain. He was selected by the Predators in the third round of the 2020 NHL draft. In December, he signed a three-year contract with the team. https://www.instagram.com/p/CIlU0jFD8fo/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link Prokop told ESPN that personal struggles during his tenure with the Hitmen led him to the realization he needed to come out. “I was lying in bed one night, had just deleted a dating app for the fourth or fifth time, and I was extremely frustrated because I couldn’t be my true authentic self,” Prokop said. “In that moment I said, ‘Enough is enough. I’m accepting who I am. I want to live the way I want to, and I want to accept myself as a gay man.’”
Nashville Predators prospect Luke Prokop became the first active player under NHL contract to come out as gay. Prokop told @emilymkaplan that he wanted to come out publicly because he believed it would allow him to play his best hockey. https://t.co/v78SmOMQtupic.twitter.com/2jcF3SRdIQ
Prokop shares that the first team exec he spoke to about coming out was Operations/General Manager Brian Poile. “He, in that moment, showed me a lot of support and told me the Predators are behind me 1,000 percent and want what’s best for me and that they’re proud of me during this,” Prokop told ESPN. “I remember getting off that phone call and tears just started coming from my eyes, I was so excited.” “And in that moment, I thought, this is what it’s going to feel like for the rest of my life. For them to show that support that they did in that moment, it felt like I can rule the world.” Prokop’s announcement follows that of Las Vegas Raiders player Carl Nassib, who became the first out active NFL player last month when he shared with the world that he is gay. Prokop told ESPN that, while Nassib’s recent news didn’t prompt his own coming out, he did find the NFL player’s words, and the reaction of the NFL, inspiring. The Predators’ Twitter account quickly posted messages of support for Prokop as well as the National Hockey League and the official accounts for other teams.
“The Nashville Predators organization is proud of Luke for the courage he is displaying in coming out today,” Henry wrote. “And we will support him unequivocally in the days, weeks, and years to come as he continues to develop as a prospect.” Henry added that, “A long-stated goal in our organization is equality for all, including the LGBTQ community, and it is important that Luke feels comfortable and part of an inclusive environment as he moves forward in his career.” “Our message as a team [is that] we’re obviously very supportive of him,” Predators team captain Roman Josi told NHL.com. “We just reached out and told him [we’ll help with] whatever he needs and that we’re proud of him. It’s a big step for him and we fully support him.”
The Predators Instagram account also shared interview clips of Prokop speaking to SportsNet’s podcast, ’31 Thoughts.’ https://www.instagram.com/p/CRg3PsKFh_D/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link https://www.instagram.com/p/CRg2SCtDelf/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Investigation by AP found few potential cases of voting irregularities in Arizona Some news items you might have missed: • LGBTQ Nation: It seems Caitlyn Jenner is filming her ‘campaign’ for governor of California – any guesses why the reality TV celeb might be doing that? • OUT: Two gay men vacationing on the French island of Corsica were brutally attacked by group of up to 20 men while a large crowd gathered and watched but did nothing to stop the brutal assault. • It Gets Better: Regular readers of TRR know I’m not only a huge supporter of the Olympic Games but especially the Paralympic Games. Check out the journey of out lesbian Courtney journey who will be competing in wheelchair basketball for Team USA at this year’s Games.
• Instinct Magazine: Michael Henderson, the popular head coach of Murrieta Valley High School’s cheer and student program in southern California, was abruptly fired from his job last month. Henderson says he was fired for being gay and has filed a wrongful termination lawsuit alleging that the process leading to his dismissal was “flawed.” • Kenneth-in-the-212: Check out Kenneth’s round-up of the what’s what in LGBTQ publications including out swimmer Michael Gunning covering the latest from Attitude Magazine. (image via Attitude Magazine) • 4WWL: Alan Scott Lanoix tested positive for COVID-19 and spent 17 days in the hospital with several on a ventilator. His wife and 3 sons all tested positive too. Lanoix died June 9 at 54 years old. According to his sister, “He thought the vaccine was poison.” • AP: Investigation by the Associated Press finds fewer than 200 cases of potential voter fraud identified by Arizona’s local election officials out of 3.4 million ballots cast in last year’s presidential election.
BREAKING: Investigation by @AP finds fewer than 200 cases of potential voter fraud identified by Arizona’s local election officials out of 3.4 million ballots cast in last year’s presidential election. @APChristie@AP_Christina. https://t.co/SiHYm4dOa6
A federal judge in Texas ruled Friday that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program ― a policy that lets undocumented immigrants who were brought into the U.S. as minors stay in the country ― is illegal and must be suspended.
In his ruling, Judge Andrew Hanen ordered President Joe Biden’s administration to stop approving new DACA requests from such immigrants, referred to as “Dreamers,” once again upending the Obama-era policy Biden had just revived in January.
The decision by Hanen, an appointee of former President George W. Bush known for his harsh rulings on immigration matters, does not have any bearing on current DACA recipients, nor does it affect their ability to renew their DACA grants.
Hanen made a point of saying the presence of DACA recipients “contributes to a more competitive labor market, which makes it more difficult for legal residents of Texas to obtain work.” But in 2017, NPR fact-checked that idea and said it’s not true. Not only do DACA recipients tend to be well-educated, making the economy that much more productive, they also contribute to the U.S. as consumers. It’s important to remember that DACA recipients are young people who were brought to the U.S. as small children. They didn’t make a choice to break any laws. And the idea of deporting a 14-year-old to, say, Mexico, when they might have been brought here as a baby is ridiculous. Also – a Pew survey conducted last year showed almost three-quarters of respondents, including majorities of Democrats and Republicans, support finding a pathway to permanent legal status for Dreamers. Read more at HuffPost.
Just in: A federal judge in Texas has blocked the DACA program going forward — it won't affect current recipients for now (judge is putting that issue on hold, pending expected appeals), but it blocks DHS from approving new applications https://t.co/urJh8jnJDdpic.twitter.com/LqvSDWx2ao
A federal judge has ruled that DACA, the Obama-era program shielding certain undocumented immigrants from deportation, is illegal and blocked new applicants. https://t.co/w1t0RJIpCE
(image via Instagram) Some news items you might have missed: • Just Because: InstaHunk Yes.Its.Andy (above) shares this calming scene. Follow him here. Can I just say I liked the colors? • JoeMyGod: Republican senators have issued a statement calling for the repeal of wearing masks on public transportation because it could ruin family vacations. • Deseret News: Family nurse practitioner Aaron Hartle (45-year-old former triathlete and father of five) decided he wasn’t in any hurry to get vaccinated against COVID-19, even though the virus killed one of his patients. In June, COVID-19 sent Hartle to the hospital for a week. Back at home, he remains on oxygen and tires easily as he talks about an ordeal that that didn’t need to happen.
• NBC News: Britney Spears was granted a request to hire her own attorney on Wednesday, a development that could mark a major shift in how her 13-year conservatorship case has been handled. • Raw Story: According to Michael Wolff’s new book Landslide, Jared Kushner would apparently ‘slow-walk’ Donald Trump’s temperamental orders in order to lower the immediate temperature precisely to the point where the president would not notice (due to his short attention span) and Jared would not be blamed. • LGBTQ Nation: Today is International Nonbinary People’s Day and Twitter is celebrating with an outpouring of heartfelt emotion. #InternationalNonbinaryDay is trending with thousands of tweets from supporters and enbies themselves.
Jack Ciattarelli (image via Twitter) Jack Ciattarelli, the Republican candidate for New Jersey Governor, promised potential supporters during a campaign appearance that if elected he would put a stop to the LGBTQ curriculum currently being taught in schools. Ciattarelli made the remarks while visiting a gun range on June 26. Video of the comments were released on Tuesday, July 13, by The Gothamist.
“I feel lucky [our kids] are in their 20s and I don’t have to be dealing with what you’re dealing with right now. You won’t have to deal with it when I’m governor, but we’re not teaching gender ID and sexual orientation to kindergarteners. We’re not teaching sodomy in sixth grade. And we’re going to roll back the LGBTQ curriculum. It goes too far.”
First, kindergarteners are not being “taught” sexual orientation. A law recently passed in the state, Assembly Bill 4454, “requires school districts to include instruction on diversity and inclusion” beginning this fall for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. A second law, Senate Bill 1569, requires instructional materials “that accurately portray political, economic, and social contributions of persons with disabilities and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.” “Sodomy” is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “anal or oral copulation with a member of the same or opposite sex.” But, it’s often used as ‘code’ to equate LGBTQ people with deviancy. Ciattarelli was asked about his use of the word. The candidate said in a statement that it had “absolutely nothing to do with someone’s sexual orientation and the inference that it does is purposefully misleading.” He added, “Read my statement. It has to do with mature content being taught to young children. That is a parent’s job, not the school district’s.” I don’t think the Republican picked the word “sodomy” to reference all kinds of “mature content.” And I’m not alone.
Jack Ciattarelli, the GOP nominee for governor in New Jersey, is vowing to roll back school curricula that centers LGTBQ inclusivity, falsely claiming that “sexual orientation” is being taught to kindergarteners and sixth graders are learning “sodomy.” https://t.co/oMxmw3u32A
Christian Fuscarino, executive director of Garden State Equality, told The Gothamist that Ciattarelli’s use of the word sounded as if he was “speaking in code or virtue-signaling to a very specific group of people.” “He goes on to say more bluntly that he wants to roll back some of the progress the LGTBQ community has made,” added Fuscarino. “We’ve seen enough of that at the federal level the last four years with the Trump administration.”
Ciattarelli’s hate does not represent Jersey. His offensive comments are out-of-touch with Jersey values – love, acceptance and compassion. Our state classrooms educate students about the pivotal contributions of LGBTQ people in history despite the persecution they faced.
Teaching LGBTQ inclusive lessons reduces the rates of bullying in schools and can save lives. At a time when suicide and bullying rates among LGBTQ youth are still at alarming levels, we deserve elected leaders who will prioritize inclusion, not pander to far-right ideologues.
Ciattarelli’s opponent in November will be the current governor, Democrat Phil Murphy. Murphy, a longtime ally to the LGBTQ community, has received support and endorsements from several LGTBQ advocates and leaders in the Garden State.
Some news items you might have missed: • Instinct Magazine: A record 121 out athletes are set to compete in the Tokyo Olympics, more than doubling the number from the last Olympics in Rio. • Nevada Independent: As of Friday, Nevada (my state) had the fourth highest case rate in the nation per capita over the last seven days; for many days last week, it was first. The Delta variant was responsible for 54% of cases in June in Clark County (where I live) but only 38% are vaccinated. #ugh • OUT: A shirtless man, appropriately wearing a pink shirt wrapped around his head as a pitiful disguise, attempted to rip down a Pride flag, but the homeowners had anticipated such hateful actions and secured the flag with carabiners and screwing posts.
• PopCulture: Actor Jerry O’Connell is reportedly close to closing a deal to become the first-ever full-time male host of The Talk. O’Connell, who is a frequent guest host, would take over Sharon Osbourne’s seat, who left the show earlier this year amid scandal. • Tennessean: The average number of new cases per day in Tennessee has more than doubled in the past two weeks. But the state Department of Health has halted all vaccine outreach to kids – not just for COVID-19, but all diseases – amid pressure from GOP. • Out Music: Singer-songwriter Allison Ponthier recently shared her new single, “Hell Is A Crowded Room,” featuring crystal-clear vocals skimming along a gentle guitar. The delicate track explores the social anxiety felt by introverts (like me) and learning to push through those challenges.
Donald Trump (public domain) In the new book – Landslide: The Final Days of the Trump Presidency – author Michael Wolff shares some surprisingly bitter remarks by ‘the former guy’ about Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. “There were so many others I could have appointed, and everyone wanted me to,” Donald Trump told Wolff in an interview for the book. From Axios:
“Where would he be without me? I saved his life. He wouldn’t even be in a law firm. Who would have had him? Nobody. Totally disgraced. Only I saved him.”
For Kavanaugh to not do Trump’s bidding on the matter of ultimate importance — overturning the election — was, in Trump’s mind, a betrayal of the highest order.
Wolff writes that Trump feels betrayed by all three justices he put on the court, including Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, but “reserved particular bile for Kavanaugh.”
Recalling the brutal confirmation fight, Trump said: “Practically every senator called me … and said, ‘Cut him loose, sir, cut him loose. He’s killing us, Kavanaugh.’ … I said, ‘I can’t do that.'”
“I had plenty of time to pick somebody else,” Trump continued. “I went through that thing and fought like hell for Kavanaugh — and I saved his life, and I saved his career. At great expense to myself … okay? I fought for that guy and kept him.”
Trump unloads on Brett Kavanaugh for his Supreme Court votes: "Where would he be without me? I saved his life. He wouldn't even be in a law firm. Who would have had him? Nobody. Totally disgraced. Only I saved him." https://t.co/Y1AGAkYLMK
Democratic lawmakers in the state of Texas are reportedly leaving the state today in order to break the quorum required to pass new voting laws. The governor had called the special session into order primarily for the purpose of passing the legislation. From the Texas Tribune:
Upping the ante in both the legislative fight at home and the national debate over voting rights, most House Democrats are expected to board a flight out of Austin headed for the U.S. capital without a set return date.
At least 51 of the 67 Democratic representatives — the number needed to break quorum — were in the process of leaving, most arriving at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport Monday to board a chartered flight.
The House is set to reconvene Tuesday morning, but the absent Democrats would mean there will not be enough members present to conduct business under House rules.
Texas Democrats are hoping to find some (any) leverage to force their way to the negotiating table as them say they’ve been shut out of drafting of the voting bill.
My Democratic colleagues and I are leaving the state to break quorum and kill the Texas voter suppression bill.
We’re flying to DC to demand Congress pass the For The People Act and save our democracy.
Richard Branson and the Pride ribbon he wore into space honoring the Pulse shooting victims From The Advocate:
Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson made history on July 11 by flying to the edge of space in his Virgin Galactic rocket plane, and he did it while proudly wearing a rainbow flag pin in memory of the Pulse Nightclub victims.
“Somebody who lost a loved one at the Orlando massacre asked if I would do that,” Branson told the Daily Mail. “We also have many, many friends who are gay and I know people who lost friends there.”
In the video below, Branson says in a voiceover, “My mission statement is to turn the dream of space travel into a reality – for my grandchildren, for your grandchildren, for everyone.” On the word ‘everyone’ the camera cuts to a shot of the Pride ribbon clearly making a statement.
My mission statement is to turn the dream of space travel into a reality – for my grandchildren, for your grandchildren, for everyone.
(image via Depositphotos) A California teacher has filed a lawsuit against the city of Ceres, Ceres’s police department, officer Lorenzo Beltran, and several unnamed individuals in federal court. According to the teacher, David Cole, a school resource officer visited his home and harassed him after Cole had reported incidents of anti-gay bullying at his school. From the Modesto Bee:
David Cole made the accusations against school resource officer Lorenzo Beltran in a federal complaint, and last week told The Bee he struggles to feel safe after the incident two years ago. Cole added he has lost 75 pounds while dealing with insomnia and gastrointestinal issues from the distress.
The lawsuit claims Beltran and a plainclothes officer entered Cole’s gated community when school was closed for a holiday in February 2019 and ordered Cole to exit his home. Outside, Beltran allegedly questioned Cole about his reports of anti-gay student bullying, repeatedly gestured toward his gun and pressured the teacher to quit his job or go to the closed school with them.
Cole begged Beltran to leave, but the officer allegedly refused. The now 54-year-old teacher eventually ran into his home when his partner of 30 years opened the door after listening to the exchange, the lawsuit claims.
A gay teacher sued the city of Ceres, alleging a police officer threatened him at his home and flashed a gun in retaliation for reporting homophobia at Central Valley High School to school administrators. https://t.co/PWEEemcTF3
Ceres Unified School District paid Cole a $50,000 settlement in 2020 after firing him in 2019. The city maintains Beltran only visited Cole as a ‘welfare check’ at the request of the school saying Cole had missed scheduled meetings. Cole says he and his partner are now very concerned about their personal well-being when outside their home. “Now we’re scared to even be who we are,” Cole said. “That complete turnaround in my life to go from starting Rainbow Generation, the first queer club in the Central Valley at a school, to being terrified and not wanting the police to know it’s me or know that I’m gay. That’s where I’m at: just terrified of being outside in Ceres and at home.” Read the full details of the court case here.
