I can’t believe how time goes by. Twenty-three years ago today, I made my Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade debut with the 1995 Broadway revival cast of Hello, Dolly! (including the incomparable Tony Award-winner herself, Carol Channing)!
I remember this like it was yesterday. We all had to get up waaaaaaaay early, get down to the Lunt-Fontanne Theater where we were playing to get into costume, then get on a bus to ride about 10 blocks down Broadway to sit in a trailer before we headed out to do “Before The Parade Passes By.”
And it was so cold! You’d never know to look at Carol, though. And what a thrill to be on the most famous and watched parade with the world.
I then headed to home on the Upper West Side for a most fab dinner with (then boyfriend, now husband) Michael and my bestie, Carlye.
During dinner the phone rang, and it was Vanessa Williams calling from the West Coast to say “Happy Thanksgiving!” – and since she was watching the parade in California – “you look like you’re freezing!” LOL
I still love my Broadway Dolly! family all these years later. What a great memory to find this video today.
Back in April of this year, the international youth organization 4-H (Head, Heart, Hands, Health) introduced new guidance to help LGBTQ members feel welcome in an effort to expand and modernize the federally authorized group.
The national guidance was posted on several states’ websites but quickly drew fire from evangelical and conservative groups.
Within days of the LGBT guidance’s publication, Heidi Green, then-chief of staff for U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, requested that it be rescinded, Sonny Ramaswamy, then-director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, the federal department that administers 4-H, told the Register.
Afterward, a NIFA communications manager sent an “urgent” email to at least two states — Iowa and New York — urging the 4-H organizations there to remove the LGBT guidance from their websites, the Register found.
The subsequent decision to take down the policy set off a firestorm this spring that engulfed 4-H programs in at least eight states — including Iowa, Idaho, Wisconsin, California, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, Virginia and New York.
Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley told the Des Moines Register that the U.S. Department of Agriculture should not have pressured 4-H to rescind the policy welcoming LGBTQ members into the international youth organization.
“Common sense tells me that that for 100 years … 4-H has been operating as a very competent organization and I don’t know of any federal interference in the past,” he said. “So why would you have it in this particular case?”
4-H is a congressionally authorized youth program that is subsidized through a combination of federal, state and local funds.
In many small rural communities where music, drama and arts funding has been slashed, 4-H is one of the few organizations LGBTs have other than sports to find a place to belong.
Michael Ely and James Taylor (image via Metro Weekly)
James Taylor and Michael Ely of Arizona were together as a loving couple for 43 years having met in 1971 when Taylor was 20-years-old and Ely was 18-years-old.
In 1994, they moved to Tucson, Arizona. Taylor was the primary wage earner, while Ely managed their household.
In 2007, the couple celebrated their relationship with a commitment ceremony.
And they married as soon as they could when a court struck down Arizona’s ban on same-sex marriage in 2014.
Sadly, six months later, Taylor passed away of cancer.
But when Ely filed for Taylor’s Social Security benefits (which Taylor paid into his whole life), he was denied.
It turns out the Social Security Administration requires couples to be married for a minimum of 9 months before a survivor can access benefits.
It’s worth noting that the couple would have married sooner but were barred from doing because of Arizona’s marriage ban.
It would seem logical that a well-documented relationship of 43 years would somehow be able to overcome this legal snafu.
“Even though we’d been together for 43 years, I’m barred from receiving the same benefits as other widowers,” says Ely. “Even though my husband had worked hard for 40-plus years and paid into the social security system with every paycheck.”
Lambda Legal has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Social Security Administration saying the nine-month marriage requirement for social security survivor’s benefits is unconstitutional where same-sex couples were not able to be married for nine months because of discriminatory marriage laws.
“The federal government is requiring surviving same-sex spouses like Michael to pass an impossible test to access benefits earned through a lifetime of work,” said Peter Renn of Lambda Legal. “Michael and his husband got married as soon as they could, less than three weeks after Arizona ended its exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage, but they were only able to be married for six months before Michael’s husband died of cancer.”
“Now, the Social Security Administration is allowing the heartbreak of discriminatory marriage bans to persist by holding same-sex couples to a standard that many could not meet, insisting that they have been married for nine months even where it was legally impossible for them to do so.”
“These benefits are as essential to the financial security of surviving same-sex spouses in their retirement years as they are to heterosexual surviving spouses,” says Renn. “But the government is holding their benefits hostage and imposing impossible-to-satisfy terms for their release.”
Lambda Legal filed a similar lawsuit in September against the Social Security Administration on behalf of a 63-year-old lesbian in Washington state who was unable to marry her partner of 27 years due to the ban on same-sex marriage in that state.
Responding to a reporter’s question about a 9th Circuit appellate judge blocking his administration’s attempt to deny asylum to migrants trying to lawfully enter the country, Donald Trump lashed out saying, “This was an Obama judge and I’ll tell you what, it’s not going to happen like this anymore…We will win that case in the Supreme Court of the United States.”
It turns out the Chief Justice of the United Supreme Court didn’t take that ‘Obama judge’ comment lightly.
“We do not have Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges,” Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement to the Associated Press. “What we have is an extraordinary group of dedicated judges doing their level best to do equal right to those appearing before them. That independent judiciary is something we should all be thankful for.”
The Trumpster couldn’t resist continuing his rant:
Sorry Chief Justice John Roberts, but you do indeed have “Obama judges,” and they have a much different point of view than the people who are charged with the safety of our country. It would be great if the 9th Circuit was indeed an “independent judiciary,” but if it is why……— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 21, 2018
…..are so many opposing view (on Border and Safety) cases filed there, and why are a vast number of those cases overturned. Please study the numbers, they are shocking. We need protection and security – these rulings are making our country unsafe! Very dangerous and unwise!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 21, 2018
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts
Trump attacks a federal judge who ruled against him as “an Obama judge.” Chief Justice Roberts rebukes: “We do not have Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges.” Will be interesting to see how Roberts acts going forward as Trump attacks independent judiciary.
chief justice roberts rebuke of p. trump’s reaction to a 9th circuit judge’s ruling on immigrants was welcome and important. the constitutional framework of the American govt is designed to withstand presidential abuse. no trump hissy fit will change that
If you’re watching the news, Chief Justice Roberts just stood up for an independent judiciary.
If you’re watching “Hannity,” Chief Justice Roberts just outed himself as an open-borders Venezuelan-style socialist who hates our troops and is coming for your guns and Bibles.
A post shared by Taron Egerton (@taron.egerton) on Oct 27, 2018 at 11:39am PDT
It turns out the handsome actor was just being playful.
In an interview with Radio Times, Egerton explained, “One of the lads was at my London flat and I Instagrammed a picture of him and said ‘Look at this cutie’, and a million outlets reported I was coming out as gay.”
“I’m not gay but two of my mates came out when I was 15 and it was a joy to support them because, as a group, we are all secure in who we are,” he added. “I’m certainly not going to stop calling my mates cuties and gorgeous, because they are cuties and they are gorgeous.”
While Egerton is not actually a gay man, he will play one in the upcoming Elton John biopic, Rocketman.
The film, which chronicles John’s meteoric rise to pop much stardom arrives in movie theaters in May 2019.
Donald Trump’s midterm election campaign stunt of sending nearly 6,000 troops to the Mexican border in order to whip up more anti-immigrant frenzy will apparently cost the American taxpayer $72 million.
In the lead-up to the election, Trump insisted that the caravan of migrants traveling to the United States from Central America constituted some sort of “invasion.” Though the group of refugees fleeing violence and persecution bear all the attributes of a humanitarian crisis, Trump repeatedly insisted without evidence that the caravan was full of violent criminals and even terrorists.
To double down on his bluff, Trump deployed 5,000 active duty military personnel to the border weeks before the midterm elections, though that figure ended up topping out at about 5,900 troops.The exact purpose of their deployment remains a mystery, one to which Democrats in Congress are demanding answers.
This “misuse of active duty personnel” was widely panned as a political stunt designed to gin up fears to try to influence and energize Republican voters who are typically susceptible to this kind of fear mongering.
About half the troops are in Southern Texas, far from the Tijuana border into California where the caravan is set to arrive. Furthermore, the law prevents active duty personnel from arresting, detaining, deporting, or otherwise policing any of the migrants on US soil, so they’re only providing auxiliary support to the border agents who can.
As soon as the election was over, coverage of the caravan — particularly on Fox News and Fox Business — nearly vanished. Two weeks later, the caravan is still lingering in southern Mexico, and has even shrunk in size as some of its members have sought asylum in Mexico rather than continue to the U.S. border.
Though the majority of the caravan was not set to arrive until December, the military operation is set to end December 15. Some troops are already coming home, with everyone expected to be home by Christmas.
In related news, a federal judge based in San Francisco temporarily blocked the government late Monday night from denying asylum to those crossing over the southern border between ports of entry.
Judge Jon S. Tigar of the US District Court for the Northern District of California said that a policy announced November 9 barring asylum for immigrants who enter outside a legal check point ‘”irreconcilably conflicts” with immigration law and the “expressed intent of Congress.”
“Whatever the scope of the President’s authority, he may not rewrite the immigration laws to impose a condition that Congress has expressly forbidden,” Tigar wrote, adding that asylum seekers would be put at “increased risk of violence and other harms at the border” if the administration’s rule is allowed to go into effect.
Another college student, disowned by their parents for being LGBT, has been embraced and supported by the community.
Emily Scheck, a sophomore at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, found herself in dire straits when her mother found a picture of Scheck with her girlfriend.
The nightmare scene played out just about as badly as you could ever imagine.
According to NBC News, her mother reportedly called Scheck ‘disgusting’ and demanded that she attend so-called ‘conversion therapy’ to rid her of her same-sex attraction or face being cut out of her family’s life completely.
Soon after Scheck found her parents had removed the license plates from her car.
Scheck had paid for the car, but because her parents were paying for the insurance they had rescinded the payments. Her dad had driven to Buffalo and removed the license plates.
While there he had taken all of Scheck’s belongings from home in Rochester and stuffed them in her car.
She received a message that she was never to contact her parents or her siblings ever again.
Survival now became a very real, very difficult mountain to climb.
She had no meal plan at college, so eating was a daily challenge. She had just taken a vacation that her parents had agreed to pay for, but now reneged on that agreement, leaving her with a credit card bill from the trip.
She hadn’t purchased her books for the upcoming semester forcing her to borrow books from friends for classes.
All of this while she held down a part-time job at a grocery store as well as a work-study job at school.
Emily with girlfriend Justyna Wilkinson
And then there was the issue of tuition. It costs about $18,000 a semester at Canisius College, and her partial athletic scholarship for running track didn’t come close to covering the expenses.
Emily Scheck was in a very difficult position.
And then, her friend Grace Hausladen launched a GoFundMe campaign hoping to raise $5,000 to get Scheck through her immediate struggles.
That goal was quickly surpassed.
As Scheck’s plight went viral, so did the GoFundMe campaign. At this writing, over $100,000 has been raised by 2,573 people in 13 days for Scheck.
For a moment, though, the good news seemed tied to bad: NCAA rules didn’t allow for students to receive such funds.
Scheck was given an ultimatum: either return the money raised for food, shelter and college expenses or be forced to give up running track.
Clearly, survival was at the top of Scheck’s priorities and so she prepared herself to give up the sport she loved in order to survive.
Then, in a reversal, most probably due to the extremely bad press the story presented, the NCAA and Canisius College issued statements late last week saying Scheck could accept the donations and also retain her sports eligibility.
Emily Scheck can retain her eligibility and continue to receive GoFundMe donations that assist her with living and educational expenses. pic.twitter.com/jut5EjPLnU
A spokesman at Canisius College released a statement on behalf of Scheck expressing her deep gratitude to everyone who had stepped in to help her at such a vulnerable time in her life.
“Thank you to everyone who showed their love and support in this difficult time,” the statement began. “The positive outreach has been unbelievable. I never expected this amount of support.”
“What has been given is more than anyone could have expected,” Scheck continued.
“With Thanksgiving coming up, I am grateful for everyone in my life who have continuously been there for me,” Scheck continued. “I now know that family is not always something you have, but something you find.”
Let’s hear it for the LGBTQ community and allies for coming together to help Scheck at such a critical time.
A white man, who grew impatient as four black girls were paying for their food at a Minnesota McDonalds, harassed the women to the point of pulling a gun on them.
To make things worse, the manager of the McDonalds attempted to throw the women out of the restaurant where the man was waiting for them.
My jaw literally dropped upon watching that video.
According to the website MuslimGirl, the four girls (Farida Osman, Jihan Abdullahi, Amal Mohammed, and Zainab Hassan) had been studying a few blocks away but grew hungry.
Heading down to McDonalds, they ordered their food and wanted to try using their Apple Pay. They weren’t too familiar with the process and after some time gave up trying to use it.
I’ll let MuslimGirl take it from here:
“Jihan heard the man say, ‘You’re probably using EBT’, and she immediately turned to him and said “Just because I’m Black, doesn’t mean I use EBT.”
Electronic Benefit Transfer, or EBT, is an electronic system that allows state welfare departments to issue benefit payments.
In Farida’s vivid recollection, this outrageously racist comment and the ensuing retort was immediately followed by the man “cussing them out,” and advancing aggressively towards the defenseless teens. He continued advancing, forcing Amal to call her friend Amin, who was seated in a booth nearby, for help, “because the man was so close she believed he was going to physically hurt her.”
“Amin and his friends came over and that’s when…the man pulls out the gun,” concluded Farida. The rest of the incident plays out in its entirety on video. The patron is seen aiming the gun at the teens as they scatter, while he swiftly backs out of the restaurant in a cowardly attempt to escape from the consequences of his obvious overreaction.
The manager of the McDonalds in question
In the aftermath of this horrifying episode, the video depicts a McDonald’s employee screaming at the astonished teenagers, in an expletive-laced frenzy, insisting that they get out of her store. Equally incensed, another gentleman at the restaurant jumped to the aid of the teenagers in distress, vehemently protesting the idea that the victims of this heinous attack should be thrown out into the streets, along with the gun-toting lunatic.
The staff of the McDonalds was reportedly hesitant to call the police, but eventually did after extreme pressure from the frightened young women.
Paul Ostergaard, owner of the franchise in question, responded to MuslimGirl about the incident:
“Nothing is more important than the safety and security of our customers and employees. We take this matter seriously and are working with local law enforcement while we investigate the situation.”
