The cast of ‘Schitt’s Creek’ (via Instagram)
LGBTQ Entertainment Critics Announce Nominees For 2020 TV Honors
Billy Porter Makes History As 1st Out Black Man On Cover Of ESSENCE
Billy Porter in an outtake from his ESSENCE photo shoot
Porter also directly addresses the conflict he sees while standing at the intersection of the Black Lives Matter movement and the homophobia he’s experienced by conservative Black people. “You all want to act like you’re concerned about our salvation,” he says referencing church-going African Americans who don’t embrace LGBTQ authenticity. “But don’t worry about my salvation. Let me do that. If you think I’m going to hell, you keep that s–t to yourself. I don’t need tolerance. I don’t need acceptance. We demand respect for our humanity, too.” He also addresses the November election (“get your little asses registered”), and his upcoming projects including the role of ‘Fairy Godmother’ in Sony’s live-action remake of Cinderella. It’s an excellent profile of an artist who has learned to lean into his own truth. “Did it take two-plus decades? Yes,” says Porter.”But it’s happening and this is my ministry.” Read the full article at ESSENCE.
GoFundMe Campaign Raises $100K In Tips For Barista, Now ‘Karen’ Wants Half
L-R Lenin Gutierrez, Amber Lynn Gilles (screen captures)
Gutierrez also shared that, before the coronavirus health threat, he had taught dance to children. “That’s all I really want to do — to just be able to show dance to others and show them how much I love it and how much it affected me,” he said. “And if I can show that to someone else, that would be amazing and change their life like it changed mine.” In an update to the crowdfunding page, Cowan underscored that Lenin will be receiving 100% of the funds from the campaign. A financial adviser has been arranged to help Lenin “plan how to properly invest and use the large sum of money.” “Lenin has said that he plans to use some of the money to pursue his dreams of becoming a dancer,” Cowan added. “He also wants to donate to some organizations in the San Diego community.” In a video shared by local NBC News affiliate KNSD-TV, Gilles claimed she was “denied and discriminated against” in the incident, and says since her post went live she’s received ‘thousands’ of death threats. Gilles also admitted she is an anti-vaxxer and believes masks are ineffective. “I didn’t harass anyone,” she says in the video. “I called them out because I’m frustrated.” Gilles also says that she plans on suing Cowan for defamation and slander, AND she wants at least half the money raised through the GoFundMe campaign “because they’re using me to get it.”
“I never threatened him.” Hear from woman who was denied service at a Clairemont Starbucks for refusing to wear a mask. She publically shamed the barista. A Go Fund Me Page on his behalf is now over $22,000. She says she’s getting death threats. #nbc7 & https://t.co/ylvk5rP6Vf pic.twitter.com/gCREw0LR5V
— Artie Ojeda (@ArtieNBCSD) June 25, 2020
Trump Cancels Alabama Rally Amid Rising Coronavirus Concerns
Donald Trump (image via public domain/White House)
Trump was slated to travel to the state ahead of the Senate race between his former attorney general Jeff Sessions and the former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, but plans were called off as state officials voiced concerns about a mass gathering and campaign officials ultimately decided against it.
A person close to the campaign said there are currently no rallies on the horizon, but aides are scoping out possible venues for when they decide to host them again.
“We don’t ever confirm where we’re looking until a rally date and location are announced. There is always work underway to identify sites,” said Tim Murtaugh, communications director for the Trump campaign.
On Tuesday, Alabama Republican Gov. Kay Ivey announced an amended order, which will extend the current rules until the end of July. The order encourages minimizing travel outside the home and wearing face coverings when doing so. The order also states that “all non-work related gatherings of any size, including drive-in gatherings, that cannot maintain a consistent six-foot distance between persons from different households are prohibited.”
You’ll recall Trump’s recent return to the campaign trail in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was a less-than-spectacular result as eight pre-event campaign staffers tested positive for COVID-19 just before the rally. Following the event, which drew less than half capacity, dozens of Secret Service agents had to self-quarantine after two agents tested positive as well.
Pride Music: Celebrating Trans Romance ‘Love In Transition’
Legacy Recordings and digital studio Cut.com have partnered to release Love In Transition, an inspirational video celebrating the beauty of transgender love set to Elvis Presley’s timeless romantic classic “Can’t Help Falling In Love.” Love In Transition, released in celebration of Pride Month, shares the stories of six couples who describe falling in love while a trans partner discovers and embraces their true self. Through each couple’s honesty, warmth, and humor, the video showcases how each couples’ love transforms, deepening as they learn more about each other’s truth and resilience. 
For its appropriately moving soundtrack, Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love” was selected to underscore the simple beauty and endurance of love. First released in 1961 and featured in Elvis’ blockbuster film Blue Hawaii, “Can’t Help Falling In Love” spent four weeks at No. 1 on the U.K. charts and peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, earning a Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) Platinum award in 1992 for certified sales of more than 1 million units. Check out the uplifting video below and click here to explore more of Elvis’s iconic music catalog.
Why Does The US Have Far More Deaths From COVID-19 Than EU?
L-R Donald Trump, VP Mike Pence (image: public domain/Flickr)
Most other high-income countries are dealing with modest numbers of new cases — often an inevitable consequence of reopening — and the countries are responding aggressively. Many are following the advice of public health experts, ordering social distancing, mask-wearing and partial lockdowns and doing their best to track people who came in contact with new patients.
The United States is not. President Trump and many governors continue to flout scientific advice and send mixed messages about the seriousness of the virus.
As the U.S. soars past the EU in coronavirus-related deaths, it’s worth noting that the population of the EU (446 million) eclipses the U.S. (328 million) by nearly 120 million. In the graphic below, check out how many more deaths due to COVID-19 the U.S. has suffered versus the EU. Also, Japan – which has a population of 128 million – has far fewer deaths. But wearing a face mask in the Asian country is a common practice, year in, year out. (graphic via New York Times)
Gilead Sciences Announces Pricing For COVID-19 Drug Remdesivir
(image via Depositphotos)
Patients suffering from the illness caused by the novel coronavirus are usually given six vials of remdesivir over five days. The price, which comes to $520 a vial, would apply to commercially insured patients in the U.S., according to a letter from Gilead Chief Executive Officer Daniel O’Day posted on the company’s website Monday.
It plans charge $390 a vial, or $2,340 for a five-day regimen, for direct government purchases by the U.S. or other developed countries.
Gilead’s pricing decision is consequential because it sets a precedent for how much future Covid-19 treatments might cost. While it’s higher than some patient groups had pushed for, it was close to a level that some drug-pricing watchdogs have said would be acceptable based on remdesivir’s expected benefit.
Gilead has promised to donate 940,000 doses of the medication through the month of June. So far, nearly a quarter of a million treatment courses of remdesivir have been made available for free.
News Round-Up: June 29, 2020
Jwan Yosef and Ricky Martin (image via Instagram)
• BuzzFeed LGBTQ: BuzzFeed is relaunching its dedicated vertical on the BuzzFeed.com site focused on LGBTQ content. Its mission is to elevate new voices and curate content that highlights every aspect of queer life – from the big stories to the small everyday moments, in Pride Month and year-round. Zach Stafford, who recently departed his position as editor-in-chief of The Advocate, will be the Editor-at-Large. • Revry TV: The first LGBTQ+ virtual cable network is 100 percent free, 100 percent queer, and features LGBTQ+ programming for a diverse range of audiences through their app, the web, and platforms like Roku and AppleTV. Revry Premium provides access to the streaming platform’s full library of on-demand titles without commercials for as low as $4.99 a month. Get one month of Premium for free thanks to The Advocate by signing up here and using promo code M201. • Back2Stonewall: Even though flying a rainbow Pride flag violates Russia’s hateful ‘anti-gay propaganda’ law passed in 2013, the American embassy in Moscow is proudly and defiantly displaying the flag for all to see.
Broadway Theaters To Remain Dark Until January 2021
(photo: Ludovic Bertron/Flickr)
Broadway will remain closed for at least the rest of this year, and many shows are signaling that they do not expect a return to the stage until late winter or early spring.
The Broadway League said Monday that theater owners and producers will refund or exchange tickets previously purchased for shows through Jan. 3. Given the unpredictability of the coronavirus pandemic that has prompted the shuttering of Broadway, the League said it was not yet ready to specify exactly when shows will reopen.
“Returning productions are currently projected to resume performances over a series of rolling dates in early 2021,” the League said in a statement.
Among the logistical issues industry leaders are discussing with government and medical officials: “screening and testing, cleaning and sanitizing, wayfinding inside theaters, backstage protocols and much more.”
Since March 12, all 41 Broadway theaters have been dark due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
NYC Police Pepper Spray Peaceful LGBTQ Demonstrators
Pandemonium broke out at the Queer Liberation March Sunday afternoon in New York City as New York Police officers swarmed what was described as a peaceful demonstration on the 51st anniversary of the Stonewall riots. The incident occurred near New York’s Washington Square Park amid supporters for the Black Lives Matter and Black Trans Lives Matter movements. The Gothamist reports two demonstrators were being arrested for graffiti when protesters attempted to intervene. Police officers reportedly responded using pepper spray on several in the crowd. One witness told The Gothamist the mood was like an upbeat dance party prior to the arrival of the police. “We were dancing right in front of the arch on 5th ave and out of nowhere, cops started storming into the crowd,” Mike Perles, a 29-year-old city employee, told The Gothamist. “They pushed everyone in front of them out of the way and onto the ground. They pushed a reporter who was taking photos down and started randomly pepper-spraying people.” “I couldn’t see anyone instigating,” added Perles. “It seemed like they felt outnumbered after entering a huge group and panicked and started beating people up.” Pippa Bianco, a volunteer for NourishNYC, described the scene before the police arrived as “totally peaceful.” She was picking up food for a volunteer food station when the police rushed into the crowd. While helping demonstrators get water after they were pepper-sprayed, Bianco says she saw a police medic pouring water into the eyes of two other officers who were standing downwind of the pepper spray and accidentally got the irritant in their eyes. “The arrests that apparently incited the clash were reportedly over graffiti,” wrote Teen Vogue politics editor Lucy Diavolo, who attended the march. “In the midst of the blockade, I heard someone try to start a ‘graffiti is art’ chant.” Diavolo adds that she could identify herself in videos posted to Twitter. “I can see the cops going wild; in one video, an officer uses a nightstick to knock down someone already on their knees with their hands raised above their head.”
These cops just got ran up on people pic.twitter.com/RnibVPjKfm
— Eliel Cruz (@elielcruz) June 28, 2020
This one clearly has issues with queer folk. pic.twitter.com/6GNtuL0HSC
— brewster (@confident_wrech) June 28, 2020
The police just started a riot at Washington square park pic.twitter.com/Zb7VyQvPI9
— Mike Perles (@mike__perles) June 28, 2020
NYPD is pushing on #QueerLiberationMarch and have made arrests near Washington Square Park. Tensions are rising. pic.twitter.com/vLtiXPDxMC
— NYC Protest Updates 2020 (@protest_nyc) June 28, 2020
Police have retreated from the area. It doesn't seem like they were able to bring the protester they were attempting to arrest, but that's not certain. As police pull away, what was very nearly a violent confrontation turns into a dance party. pic.twitter.com/eCR7ZzB2ad
— NYC Protest Updates 2020 (@protest_nyc) June 28, 2020
On the anniversary of the start of the Stonewall riots, the NYPD is attacking LGBTQ people who are marching for Pride. Let that sink in. https://t.co/j4ZL4jMHsa
— GLAAD (@glaad) June 28, 2020
Pepper spray, including of a cop, another falls off a motorcycle, other cops pushing…. at splitter Pride march. pic.twitter.com/kauOXsAwbG
— Matthew Chayes (@chayesmatthew) June 28, 2020
At 11pm on @NBCNewYork, a #Pride weekend demonstration ends with police confrontations and pepper spray. We ask #NYPD what prompted this officer to push a bike-riding protester? pic.twitter.com/8XRRNHnrpK
— chris glorioso (@glorioso4ny) June 29, 2020
The first #Pride started as a response to police brutality. Today, peaceful protesters were pepper sprayed on the 51st anniversary of Stonewall. This is incredibly disturbing.
We need a full investigation into what happened today. https://t.co/QpUG9OIej7
— NYC Council Speaker Corey Johnson (@NYCSpeakerCoJo) June 29, 2020
City Council Speaker Corey Johnson is calling for a full investigation into clashes between protesters and police in Washington Square Park yesterday, during a demonstration celebrating Pride. He said it's incredibly disturbing that peaceful protesters were pepper sprayed. pic.twitter.com/CvditkcnpD
— Spectrum News NY1 (@NY1) June 29, 2020