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Alabama Mayor Under Fire For Call To ‘Kill Out’ LGBTQs

In a Facebook post, Mayor Mark Chambers of Carbon Hill, Alabama, complained about LGBTQ people then told a commenters "the only way to change it would be to kill the problem out."
Mayor Mark Chambers is under fire for social media posts calling for ‘killing out’ LGBTQs

An Alabama mayor is facing criticism after posting controversial comments to his Facebook page.

Carbon Hill Mayor Mark Chambers wrote on his Facebook page in all capital letters:

“We live in a society where homosexuals lecture us on morals, transvestites lecture us on human biology, baby killers lecture us on human rights and socialists lecture us on economics.”

Chambers’ constituents responded to the post, but one response from a Facebook friend got the mayor’s attention.

“By giving the minority more rights than the majority,” wrote the supporter. “I hate to think of the country my grandkids will live in unless somehow we change and I think that will take a revolution.”

Having singled ‘homosexuals’ and ‘transvestites’ as the issue, Chambers wrote back, “The only way to change it would be to kill the problem out. I know it’s bad to say but without killing them out there’s no way to fix it.”

“To kill the problem out.”

“Without killing them out there’s no way to fix it.”

Chambers’ original statement on Facebook which was quickly deleted

Local news affiliate WBRC contacted the mayor to clarify the social media statements.

Initially, the mayor denied posting the comments telling WBRC reporter Brittany Dionne, “I don’t think I posted that, I think that’s somebody else’s post.”

Dionne pointed out she was on the correct Facebook page noting photos of his family and birthday greetings, and asked if someone might be using his identity on Facebook.

Chambers replied with a meek “I don’t know.” When Dionne asked to meet in person, the mayor hung up.

Chambers did call back a few minutes later wherein he admitted to writing the post but argued it was being “taken out of context.”

“I never said anything about killing out gays or anything like that,” he told WBRC. Chambers explained that his comments were in reference to what might happen in a “revolution.”

“If it comes to a revolution in this country, both sides of these people will be killed out,” he said.

During the second call, Chambers also claimed that immigrants were taking over the country and called them “ungrateful.”

The mayor added that the post was meant to be a private message and didn’t intend for the public to see it.

He complained that he didn’t realize his Facebook page was available to the public, and shortly after the call with Dionne, his page went to private status.

You can watch the full report from Brittany Dionne at WBRC’s website here.

Chambers was elected mayor of Carbon Hill, population 2,000, in 2014.

(source: WBRC)

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News Round-Up: June 3, 2019

(image via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• InstaHunk The Griffopotamous (above) is feeling fruity and fabulous this gorgeous Monday.

• The valedictorian for the 2019 Sheboygan Lutheran High School senior class says administrators banned him from speaking at commencement because he mentioned being gay in a draft of the speech.

• A federal grand jury charged a pair of Dallas men with conspiracy to commit hate crimes, kidnapping and carjacking. According to the 15-count indictment, suspects used the gay dating app Grindr to create fake profiles and pose as gay men interested in “dates” to lure gay men to an apartment complex in Dallas in order to commit violent crimes against them.

• Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are the first British Royals to ‘proudly’ celebrate Pride Month on social media.

• A Roman Catholic bishop who admitted last year to being “aware of incidents of sexual abuse” in the church but did nothing to stop them, warns Catholics that LGBTQ Pride Month is “harmful for children.”

• A former West Virginia Republican official who called Michelle Obama an “ape in heels” has been sentenced to 10 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to embezzling $18,000 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), funds that were intended to help flood victims.

• Don’t look now but there are more naked selfies by former Congressman Aaron Schock circulating the inter webs. Whatever you do, don’t click here.

More naked selfies of 'totally-not-gay' Aaron Schock are making their way around the interwebs
This is the most tame photo in the latest raft of Schock selfies

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Video: Hotel Clerk’s Reaction To Being Called The N-Word Goes Viral

A hotel clerk has gone viral after posting a video clip showing him refusing to rent a room to an apparently racist customer.

A hotel clerk has gone viral after posting a video clip showing him refusing to rent a room to an apparently racist customer.

In the video, the unidentified Black man politely rejects an unseen woman’s pleas to stay at the hotel over and over again as he references an earlier phone call with her where the woman had called him an ugly racial slur.

Woman: “I need to stay here, my mother died.”

Clerk: “I understand that but you called me a f**king n*gg*r.”

Woman: “I’m sorry.”

Clerk: “But you weren’t sorry when you said it on the phone. At the end of the day, in the climate we live in today’s society…”

Woman: “I’m sorry.”

Clerk: “I understand that but it’s above me now.”

Woman: “I need a room tonight.”

Clerk: “Well, there’s the Best Western next door.”

Woman: “Please, I’ve had a horrible day today.”

Clerk: “And I had a horrible time hearing that.”

At one point in the short video, the woman’s daughter enters the lobby and asks why her mother isn’t allowed to stay. When the clerk explains that he’d been called the n-word, the daughter glosses over the issue saying, “My grandma just died.”

As if a dying grandma justifies using such hideous language? The daughter doesn’t even apologize for her mother’s behavior.

She might as well have said, “My mother is upset and forgot to not be a racist bigot in public.”

It’s interesting that they still wanted to be accommodated after such hideous behavior.

Watch the minute-long clip below. Warning – the video contains an ugly racial slur repeated many times.

Of course, in this day and age, social media is having a field day as #ItsAboveMeNow and ‘Best Western’ are now trending on Twitter.

The Twitterverse is applauding the young man for holding her accountable as he kills her with his kind, warm tone.

*******************************************

UPDATE: It’s come to my attention that while social media is cheering the hotel clerk (identified by BuzzFeed as Craig Brooks in Austin, Texas) for his calm handling of the “case of the unwanted guest,” it seems he’s also quite transphobic.

Twitter-user Allan Brocka did a deep dive and found that in addition to being gay, Mr. Brooks has tweeted several anti-trans sentiments in the not-distant past.

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Pride Music: Mika “Ice Cream”

Out singer/songwriter Mika drops his perfect-for-summer new single, “Ice Cream,” in advance of his upcoming album, My Name Is Michael Holbrook.

The Lebanese-born artist calls the song “a daydream fantasy” that was borne during a sweltering August in Italy. “It shimmers like a mirage, and makes me feel like anything is possible,” adds the 35-year-old singer.

The song came to him near the end of a two-year writing period. After musically exploring some serious, personal issues in his writing, Mika says he felt “lighter and freer” and escape was on his mind.

“I wanted to run away to the sea, or just about anywhere,” says Mika.

Instead, Mika sat down and dreamed about “summer flings” and “the other person I always wish I was during the summer.” But with no air conditioning, Mika mainly recalls the heat, the sweat, work deadlines and bee stings – all of which gets referenced in the bouncy bop’s lyrics.

Mika (photo: Peter Lindbergh)

With a solid bass beat and a hooky, falsetto-filled chorus, “Ice Cream” sounds like the sonic lovechild of 90s George Michael and Prince tunes.

The lyric video is a groovy melange of bold, playful graphics that doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Released at the beginning of Pride Month, the timing couldn’t be more perfect as Mika wants his fans to “dare to be the more proud version of yourself.”

“Dare to be a sensual man, dare to express out loud the desires you always keep inside your head,” says the UK-based artist.

Mika first grabbed the spotlight in 2007 when he released his first album, Life in Cartoon Motion. The first single, “Grace Kelly,” went to number one in the UK and eleven other countries, and earned him a Brit Award and a Grammy nomination.

Since then, he’s been certified Gold and Platinum in 32 countries worldwide.

My Name Is Michael Holbrook, Mika’s fifth studio album, drops on October 4. Mika will follow its release with a world tour beginning in London on November 10.

Check out the new track below and let us know what you think in the comments.

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Madonna Announces WorldPride NYC 2019 Appearance

NYC Pride, organizers of WorldPride NYC 2019/Stonewall 50, announced today that Madonna will make an appearance, and is expected to perform a few songs, at Pride Island on Sunday, June 30, 2019.

NYC Pride, organizers of WorldPride NYC 2019/Stonewall 50, announced today that Madonna will make an appearance, and is expected to perform a few songs, at Pride Island on Sunday, June 30, 2019.

Madonna was the first to announce the news through a video aired during the Monday June 3, 2019 broadcast of NBC’s The Today Show.

“I hear you,” said Madonna in the video, while draped in one of her Madame X Rainbow Flags, “I will be on Pride Island, where I was born.”

Madonna will debut, “Dark Ballet” on June 7 from her highly anticipated 14th studio album Madame X. The album will be released globally on June 14 from Live Nation, Interscope Records and Maverick. Exclusive album pre-order bundles with limited edition merchandise are now available direct at Madonna.com.

Madonna has partnered with The Trevor Project and for the entire month of Pride, all of Madonna’s proceeds from the exclusive Madame X Pride collection of a limited-edition Pride Rainbow Vinyl, flag and digital download will be donated to the organization.

More than 4.5 million people are expected to visit New York City during WorldPride, events of which started on Saturday, June 1 and runs throughout LGBTQIA+ Pride Month across the 5 boroughs of New York City.

For more information about WorldPride NYC 2019 | Stonewall 50 and its official roster of events, visit http://worldpride.org/.

(via press release)

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Today Is National Cancer Survivor Day

Observed every year on the first Sunday of June, National Cancer Survivors Day® is an annual celebration of life that is held in hundreds of communities nationwide, and around the world.

Why do I know this? Because I am a cancer survivor.

On April 7, 2009, I was diagnosed with Stage One non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.

I know I was lucky. Six rounds of chemo and a really crappy summer, and I was declared cancer-free. Whoo-hoo!

A few rounds of chemo and I was a hairless wonder.
This is me with my portable chemo pump I nicknamed Bumpy.

Today’s celebration is for those who have survived, those recently diagnosed, and gathering support for families, and an outreach to the community.

On National Cancer Survivors Day®, thousands gather across the globe to honor cancer survivors and to show the world that life after a cancer diagnosis can be fruitful, rewarding, and even inspiring.

It is a day for everyone – whether you’re a cancer survivor, a family member, friend, or medical professional.

This day is an opportunity for all people living with a history of cancer – including America’s more than 15.5 million cancer survivors – to connect with each other, celebrate milestones, and recognize those who have supported them along the way.

It is also a day to draw attention to the ongoing challenges of cancer survivorship in order to promote more resources, research, and survivor-friendly legislation to improve cancer survivors’ quality of life.

And by the way…

The nonprofit National Cancer Survivors Day Foundation provides free guidance, education, and networking to hundreds of hospitals, support groups, and other cancer-related organizations that host NCSD events in their communities.

Through National Cancer Survivors Day®, the Foundation works to improve the quality of life of cancer survivors by raising awareness of the ongoing challenges of cancer survivorship.

#fuckcancer

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InstaHunk Round-Up: Weekend Edition

(via Instagram)

Checking out my favorite InstaHunks this weekend. First up, Spanish fitness model Fran Dullon is loving early summer in Madrid (above). Chippendales hunk Ryan Worley says we can call him ‘kid face,’ but he’s all grown up in this photo:

 

A post shared by Ryan Worley (@ryguy220) on May 31, 2019 at 10:36am PDT

Olympic hottie Gus Kenworthy is looking for a big, fat, juicy…donation. Click here to donate to his goal of raising $1 million at this year’s AIDS/LifeCycle.

 

A post shared by gus kenworthy (@guskenworthy) on May 31, 2019 at 8:11pm PDT

Joel Green is celebrating his birthday in his birthday suit:

Mitch Fit is giving you beard and beach goals for real:

Graphic artist Silverjow shares his “Hunks of the week:”

 

A post shared by Silverjow’s art (@silverjow) on Jun 1, 2019 at 2:46am PDT

Samurbi wants folks to caption this beefy bear moment:

 

A post shared by Jorge (@samurbi) on May 31, 2019 at 2:47pm PDT

And Olympian Brittany Bowe is celebrating Pride Month with her new rainbow kicks:

 

A post shared by B R I T T A N Y 💫 B O W E (@brittanybowe) on Jun 2, 2019 at 7:46am PDT

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Pride Music: Starley “Love Is Love”

Today’s Pride Music comes from Australian artist Starley, whose deeply personal single “Love is Love” was released in June 2018.

“Love is Love” was the follow-up to Starley’s global smash hit “Call on Me” which went 4x Platinum in Australia, #1 in Sweden and the Top 10 in more than 30 countries.

Along the way, all that fan love added up to more than 1 billion streams globally.

Using an earthy mix of rhythms and a sound that feels authentic and personal, the singer from ‘down under’ finds the center of her music. And in doing so, connects with the singer.

Even the approach to artwork for her music is has to have a true connection.

“The cover for ‘Love is Love’ is not to be about me,” said Starley. “Although, this song is my personal story, it’s a song for everyone, so I felt like a heart was the perfect way to go.”

“I feel like there should be a flag that represents love in all forms – interracial, interfaith, gay, straight, bisexual, trans, and so on,” she adds.

“Until that exists, I’ve chosen to use the colours of the bisexual flag because they relate to my personal journey,” says the Aussie singer regarding the inspiration behind her single artwork.

And while I have your attention, check out Starley’s debut single, “Call On Me” below.

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Rotten Tomatoes Ranks Top LGBT Films Of All Time

Rotten Tomatoes, the movie ranking website, has compiled its list of the Best 200 LGBTQ-themed films of all time.

Rotten Tomatoes, the movie ranking website, has compiled its list of the Best 200 LGBTQ-themed films of all time.

All of these films stand on the shoulders of other LGBT films that have come before. Our list of the 200 Best LGBT Movies of All Time – expanded from our original list of 150 movies, released last year – stretches back almost 90 years to the pioneering German film, Mädchen in Uniform, which was subsequently banned by the Nazis, and crosses multiple continents, cultures, and genres.

There are broad American comedies (The Birdcage), artful Korean crime dramas (The Handmaiden), groundbreaking indies (Tangerine), and landmark documentaries (Paris Is Burning). In this thorough update and expansion of the list, we added films from the last year in cinema that qualified (from 2018’s We the Animals and The Miseducation of Cameron Post to this year’s The Heiresses and Giant Little Ones and more) and worked to include more stories from outside of the U.S.

To be considered for the list, a movie had to prominently feature gay, lesbian, trans, or queer characters; concern itself centrally with LGBT themes; present its LGBT characters in a fair and realistic light; and/or be seen as a touchpoint in the evolution of queer cinema.

And it had to be Fresh. The final list was culled from a longlist of hundreds, after which the films were ranked according to the Adjusted Tomatometer, which acts as a kind of inflation adjustment, taking into consideration the Tomatometer score, as well as the number of reviews a film received relative to the average number of reviews for films released that same year.

It’s a pretty comprehensive list to be sure. Some folks are surprised at the ranking of certain films versus others, but I think it’s a great list.

Just a few of my favorites here are (in no particular order): Torch Song Trilogy, The Sum of Us, Cabaret, Trick, The Birdcage, Philadelphia, The Hours, The Color Purple, Beach Rats, Boy Erased, The Way He Looks, Rocketman, Longtime Companion, Brokeback Mountain, Victor Victoria, The Kids Are Alright, God’s Country, Call Me By Your Name, Moonlight and Love, Simon.

Click here to check out the list over at Rotten Tomatoes.