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News Round-Up: June 12, 2020

Some news items you might have missed: • Queerty: The sugar baby of a retired priest says he grieved for two days before collecting his roughly £260,000 ($330,000) inheritance. Now he’s insisting he is not a gold digger. • Australia: My hubby Michael recently helped coordinate pop icon Olivia Newton-John taking part in this terrific video (below) of unity from Australia and all the Aussies banding together to get to the other side of the COVID-19 crisis.

• NBC News: Despite massive problems at the voting booth, Democratic turnout in Georgia’s primaries skyrocketed — with three times as many votes cast in the Senate primary as in 2016. With 91 percent of the vote in as of Friday, nearly 960,000 voters had cast ballots in the Democratic Senate primary race won by Jon Ossoff, compared to 310,000 who voted in the Senate primary in 2016. • Out Music: Grammy/Emmy/Tony Award winner Billy Porter drops “For What It’s Worth (King Garbage Remix)” today. Porter released his acclaimed cover version of the classic Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth” on April 24 as a means to encourage and support voter registration and voter initiatives across the country. In light of recent events, the song is now organically taking on its original intent as the ultimate protest anthem.

• AP News: Joe Biden’s search for a running mate has apparently been whittled down to as few as six serious contenders after initial interviews. Those still in contention include Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Kamala Harris of California, as well as Susan Rice, who served as President Barack Obama’s national security adviser. Also in contention are Florida Rep. Val Demings and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, and New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. • Twitter: The legendary Liza Minnelli will outlive us all. If you don’t know it, make sure to check out this humorous Twitter account humor account, curated with love by Scott Gorenstein, of all the people, trends and pop culture references the diva Liza has outlived.

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Trump Reverses LGBTQ Health Care Protections On Pulse Shooting Anniversary

The Trump administration has finalized a rule allowing health care providers to refuse care to transgender people, including gender reassignment surgery. Reversing an Obama-era regulation, the change in rules at the Health & Human Services Department rolls back an interpretation of prohibiting sex discrimination under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act that included protections for trans people. Under the Obama administration, discriminating against trans people basically boiled down to animus based on the ‘sex’ of a trans person. In the Trump administration, discriminating against trans people is fine. The announcement on the HHS website adds the new rule will “relieve the American people of approximately $2.9 billion in undue and ineffective regulatory burdens over five years.” Mary Beth Waddell, a senior legislative assistant for the virulently anti-LGBTQ Family Research Council, celebrated the finalized rule in a statement which read in part, “Under the old Obama rule, medical professionals could have been forced to facilitate gender reassignment surgeries and abortions — even if they believed this was a violation of their conscience or believed it harmful to the patient.” Dr. Susan R. Bailey, president of the American Medical Association, issued her opposition in a statement: “Respect for the diversity of patients is a fundamental value of the medical profession and is reflected in long-standing AMA policy opposing discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or a woman’s decisions about pregnancy, including termination. “The federal government should never make it more difficult for individuals to access health care — during a pandemic or any other time.” Sam Brinton, Vice President of Advocacy and Government Affairs for The Trevor Project issued this statement: “Access to quality health care without discrimination is critical right now, and thankfully, whatever this new rule may say, LGBTQ people are still protected under the law. This rule sends a dangerous and confusing message to health care providers at the worst possible time. In the midst of a global pandemic with serious implications for the LGBTQ youth The Trevor Project serves, the last thing our nation needs is for the Administration to suggest, contrary to the plain language of the Affordable Care Act, that medical care providers don’t have to treat transgender and nonbinary people with the same care and respect as everybody else.” The Human Rights Campaign’s Alphonso David denounced the news saying LGBTQ people “should not live in fear that they cannot get the care they need simply because of who they are.” “It is clear that this administration does not believe that LGBTQ people, or other marginalized communities, deserve equality under the law,” said the HRC president. “But we have a reality check for them: We will not let this attack on our basic right to be free from discrimination in health care go unchallenged. We will see them in court, and continue to challenge all of our elected officials to rise up against this blatant attempt to erode critical protections people need and sanction discrimination.” And Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, of the pro-LGBTQ law organization Lambda Legal, announced his group is planning a lawsuit against the Trump administration. “We will be challenging the rule because at a time when the entire world is battling a dangerous pandemic, which in the United States has infected more than 2,000,000 people and killed more than 116,000, it is critical for everyone to have ready access to the potentially life-saving health care they need,” Gonzalez-Pagan said. While the reversal of the former regulations had been in discussion for some time, Health & Human Services decided to release the announcement on 4 pm just before the weekend in the middle of Pride Month. And the Trump administration’s assault on LGBTQ protections continues…

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Pride Plays 2020 Debuts Online Tonight

  Beginning tonight – Playbill is proud to present Pride Plays 2020 in celebration of Pride month. The festival, taking place throughout the month of June will feature four primetime live streams of key LGBTQIA+ plays and culminate in a musical celebration with Playbill’s Pride Spectacular June 28. The event, presented by Playbill, will serve as a fundraiser for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. The Pride Plays season will include: • one in two by Donja R. Love at 7PM ET tonight, June 12 • Masculinity Max by MJ Kaufman at 7PM ET June 19 • The Five Lesbian Brothers reuniting for a one-night-only live reading of their 1992 play Brave Smiles…Another Lesbian Tragedy at 7PM ET June 22 • Mart Crowley’s The Men From the Boys, directed by Zachary Quinto, at 7PM ET June 26. All live streams will air on the Playbill website at Playbill.com/PridePlays. Honoring iconic LGBTQIA+ musicals, creators, and musical performers, the Spectacular will feature performances by Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael R. Jackson (A Strange Loop), Tony Award winner John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch), Tony nominee Jenn Colella, Tony nominee Caitlin Kinnunen, Pose star Mj Rodriguez, Tony nominee Brandon Victor Dixon, Cheyenne Jackson, and more.

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Trump: George Floyd Protesters ‘Didn’t Know Why They Were Protesting’

In an interview with Fox News’ Harris Faulkner today, Donald Trump declared many of those protesting in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder “didn’t know” why they were there. The remarks came after Faulkner asked what the Donald believes the protesters across the county want or need from him. “So I think you had protesters for different reasons, and then you had protesting also because they just didn’t know,” Trump said. “I’ve watched. I watched it very closely. ‘Why are you here?’ And they really weren’t able to say. But they were there — for a reason perhaps. Perhaps? “But a lot of them really were there because they’re following the crowd,” he continued. “A lot of them were there because what we witnessed was a terrible thing. What we saw was a terrible thing, and we’ve seen it over the years. You know, this was one horrible example. but you’ve seen other terrible examples. You know that better than anybody would know it. And I know it. I’ve seen it too. I’ve seen it before I was president and during the presidency, I’ve seen it.” Earlier in the interview, Trump labeled the protests as ‘riots’ and ‘unnecessary.’ He also said that the date of his first campaign rally since the beginning of the COVID-19 health threat on Juneteenth wasn’t scheduled ‘on purpose.’ “The fact that I’m having a rally on that day — you can really think about that very positively as a celebration. Because a rally to me is a celebration,” Trump said. “It’s an interesting date. It wasn’t done for that reason, but it’s an interesting date.” As many know, June 19 is recognized as Juneteenth, the day the last slaves in the United States were freed. The Trump campaign picked Tulsa, Oklahoma, as the location for the rally. Black activists consider the date and the location a slap in the face in light of the 1921 ‘Black Massacre’ that occurred in the city 99 years ago. Nearly 300 Black Americans were killed in the incident that was sparked by the accusation a young Black man assaulted a white woman.

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Florida: Jacksonville Passes LGBTQ Protections AGAIN

For the second time, the City Council of Jacksonville, Florida, approved adding sexual orientation and gender identity to its non-discrimination ordinance. This is the second time the City Council has approved the legislative move. Back in 2017, when the amendments were initially approved by a vote of 12-6, the virulently anti-LGBTQ law group the Liberty Counsel filed a lawsuit to overturn the human rights protections. Because, of course, they did. Last month, the Liberty Counsel won its lawsuit in the First District Court of Appeals based on a ‘legislative technicality.’ The court didn’t rule on the issue of discrimination against LGBTQs in the areas of housing, employment or public accommodations. Instead, the victory came because the city didn’t follow a strict procedure that requires a period of public notification about the changes to the ordinance. When the amendments were announced, the city listed the 28 sections of the non-discrimination ordinance that would be amended and noted that the terms “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” would be added.

“Section 2. Amending Sections 60.105, 400.101, 400.301, 402.102, 402.107(g)(1), 402.107(g)(3), 402.201, 402.202, 402.203, 402.204, 402.206, 402.210, 402.211, 406.102, 406.104(g)(1), 406.104(g)(3), 406.201, 408.102, 408.204, 408.401, 408.402, 408.403, 408.404, 408.406, and 408.407, Ordinance Code.”

“The foregoing sections of the Ordinance Code are hereby amended as follows: wherever protected categories are listed, that sexual orientation and gender identity, as defined in Section 3 below, shall be added to the list.”

But according to state law, such changes require the re-publishing of the full text of the Ordinance Code with the new language inserted. The appellate court panel of judges voted 3-0 in favor of the Liberty Counsel’s argument. At the time, the Liberty Counsel’s Mat Staver gloated over the ruling writing, “The citizen plaintiffs were injured by the city’s deceptive practice in presenting the HRO for passage, and that this deceptive practice of not revealing the intent and scope of the law invalidates it.” And so, on Tuesday, the Jacksonville City Council essentially approved the exact same amendments to the Ordinance Code making sure to cross every ’T’ and dot every ‘I.’ Florida Politics reports the vote was treated as such a formality that no council members spoke on the bill before passage. In 2015, Jacksonville had one of the worst ratings on LGBTQ rights in a major city, according to the Human Rights Campaign, garnering a low 23 out of 100. Since adding the protections, the city now scores a 79 out of 100. In related news, the Republican National Committee has announced Jacksonville will host Donald Trump’s acceptance of his party’s nomination for reelection. It’s hard to overlook the irony that a city so dedicated to protecting LGBTQ citizens will now play host to a president who has repeatedly attacked that same community in so many ways including allowing adoption agencies to deny placement of children with gay couples, banning transgender people from serving in the military, opposing The Equality Act, and urging the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to reverse Obama-era policies of protecting LGBTQ people in the workplace. But the GOP, in an announcement so laughable it borders on parody, recently declared Trump has “taken unprecedented steps to protect the LGBTQ community.” Stop, stop – oh, my sides…ROTFL

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News Round-Up: June 11, 2020

Me and my high school buddy Addester Williams at Voodoo in Las Vegas
Some news items you might have missed: • Throwback Thursday: Amid all this turmoil in the country, I loved chatting with my high school doll Addester (above) last night who came to visit Las Vegas in February. A fun night at Chippendales, and then cocktails at VooDoo on the roof of The Rio. #GoodTimes • LGBTQ Nation: In May, haters succeeded in striking down LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections passed by the city of Jacksonville, Florida, on a ‘legislative technicality.’ So, this week the City Council voted to restore those protections – correcting the ‘technicalities’ – by a vote of 15-4. • AP News: In related Jacksonville news, the city has been selected to host the celebration marking President Donald Trump’s acceptance of his party’s nomination for reelection, the Republican National Committee chairwoman said Thursday. • The Advocate: Residents of Ketchikan, Alaska, have rallied around a same-sex couple denied flowers for their wedding by a local florist. Although the couple had wanted to support a local business, they have now ordered flowers from a Safeway supermarket. Supporters of the couple have donated hundreds of dollars to pay for the flowers. The couple plans to give any leftover funds to charity. • The Hill: Former Vice President Joe Biden holds a narrow lead over Donald Trump in Florida, according to a new poll released by Republican polling firm Cygnal on Thursday. The survey shows Biden with 47 percent support among likely voters in the Sunshine State as Trump trails by roughly 3 points at around 44 percent. • CNBC: The Labor Department reports unemployment claims last week totaled 1.54 million. Since the pandemic began, more than 44 million workers have filed claims. • Reuters: The United States surpassed 2 million confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus on Wednesday, as rising hospitalizations in states such as Texas, Arizona, and North Carolina prompt fears about reopening the country. The U.S. has now reported nearly 113,000 deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. Health authorities in Texas on Wednesday reported a record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations for the third consecutive day. #SoMuchWinning  

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GOP Votes To Leave Anti-LGBTQ Party Platform Unchanged For 2020

Donald Trump
Via Politico:

A vote by the Republican National Committee to leave the party’s 2016 party platform unchanged ahead of the November election has infuriated grassroots activists — including moderates who wanted to streamline its message and social conservatives who sought added language on emerging hot-button topics.

The decision by the party’s executive panel Wednesday means the GOP will maintain positions in the 4-year-old policy blueprint — including opposition to same-sex marriage and a nod to gay conversion therapy — and decline to stake out new positions on topics such as police reform, gender identity and third-trimester abortions.

Party officials and senior Trump campaign aides had previously discussed ways to pare down the 58-page document to a single notecard or abbreviated list of principles, but the effort broke down after several conservative groups registered complaints with the White House.

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Viral Video: Texas Man Explains Hypocrisy In Trump Supporters

Andrew Joseph Duffer (screen captures)
“Y’all know I pace when I talk, so let’s get started.” And thus southern charmer Andrew Joseph Duffer begins his viral rant from his “country-bumpkin podunk town in Northeast Texas” – population less than 5,000 – “where hypocrisy, racism and homophobia run rampant.” Posted on his Facebook page on Sunday, the video has over 268,000 views on his page alone and has been shared extensively across social media. “If you’re a Black person and you can act white and dress white – whatever the f*ck that means – you’re considered a “‘White/Black’ person (air quotes included) and you won’t experience racism in its full capacity,” says the tousle-haired Duffer continuing his laps around his hallways. “Don’t misunderstand me, you certainly will experience racism, it just won’t be as bad.” “Gay people, same for you,” he added as the rant ride continues. “If your parents are popular enough, well established enough, and you’ve been seen at the church at least once, then you won’t be destined for the Lake of Fire.” “All these years I thought it was the blood of Christ that brought salvation but in this instance, it was my daddy’s ability to do the townspeople’s tax returns,”  he says as the moment of clarity whizzes by. “Who would have thought? Thus, the hypocrisy – and that’s the toxic waste place that I come from.” “Keep your seatbelts fastened,” he takes another lap, “because we are now reaching the turbulent part of this video and I guaran-damn-tee you some panties are going to get in a wad.” Even though Duffer doesn’t make a habit of discussing the current occupant of the Oval Office with his neighbors, it seems the folks in town have reached out to HIM to express their “love and support” even as they support the Trumpster. But Duffer isn’t interested in their “love and support” if they can’t see the hypocrisy in trying to justify his actions. This is usually qualified by noting they think he’s “good for the economy,” “beneficial to my small business,” and this being Texas, he of course wants them to have assault rifles and “keeps the illegals out.” “Would you walk up to Anne Frank in the supermarket by the frozen peas and tell her that you ‘love’ her but you support Hitler?,” he asks of his local Trumpkins after segueing into an Anne Frank metaphor. “Because if you would, you need to be rammed in the ankles with a shopping cart immediately.” “You can’t sit there until your black friends, your immigrant friends, your Muslim friends, your Hispanic friends, your LGBTQ friends that you love and support them but you’re supporting Trump,” Duffer continues as the ride gathers speed. “Because we’ve got Mexicans in cages, we have got black people getting killed in the street, we’ve got gays being stripped of their rights left and right I mean every day I wake up Donald Trump is doing something to attack these people.” “He is not good for this country and you just, you sound dumb.” “And I need you to stop, ok?” Summing up the situation as he takes his final lap around his home’s hallways, Duffer shares, “It’s not a difference of opinion, it’s a difference of morality.” “Have a great f**king day – unless you support Trump.” Thank you, Andrew Joseph Duffer.

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OnlyFans Performer Secretly Records, Uploads Sex Scene With Ex

Fabricio Da Silva Claudino (Instagram)
An OnlyFans performer has agreed to plead guilty to recording consensual sex with his ex-boyfriend and then uploading the four-minute clip to his account without consent. Fabricio Da Silva Claudino, a former flight attendant for Emirates, reportedly filmed the episode without the boyfriend’s knowledge last year in July at their home in Marrickville, a suburb of Sydney, Australia. ABC News in Australia reports that Claudino indicated he will plead guilty to 11 counts of recording and distributing without consent several explicit images and a video clip. “The victim is clearly unaware of this activity being recorded and can be depicted in the recording as face down throughout,” read the police report entered into evidence. “At one point the defendant positions the mobile phone towards a mirror where his face is depicted … at no stage, did the victim consent to the defendant taking this recording.” Prior to posting the video, Claudino shared photos with the Australian boyfriend on the beach in Brazil with the caption, “Video coming up soon – stay tuned.” The 31-year-old amateur porn performer also shared graphic images of the victim naked in promoting his OnlyFans account to his social media accounts. He reportedly had 30,000 Instagram followers and over 100,000 Twitter followers at the time.
Fabricio Da Silva Claudino (via Instagram)
According to ABC News, the men met in Brazil, fell in love, and continued their relationship in Sydney. But the romance came to an end within five months. Claudino chose to remain in Australia after the affair and supported himself by modeling for life art classes as well as uploading content to his OnlyFans account. The Australian boyfriend told ABC News in February he discovered the videos while Claudino was visiting a friend in Melbourne. Apparently, distinctive body tattoos made it evident it was him. “I felt sick to the stomach when I recognized my body and then my face,” said the ex-boyfriend. “I didn’t know what to think, I couldn’t believe it.” Australian Federal Police arrested Claudino at Sydney airport when he returned from Melbourne after being contacted by the ex calling the privacy breach ‘revenge porn.’ Additionally, Claudino pleaded guilty on Tuesday to 15 counts of obscene and indecent exposure between September 2019 and February 2020. He had filmed himself exposing his penis while standing on the balcony of his apartment in full view of a Sydney high school and public park. He’s been held in Silverwater prison for the last five months having previously pleaded not guilty to the revenge porn charges. Claudino is due to be sentenced in court next month. (source: ABC.net.au)

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Woman Screams ‘I Will F**king Kill You’ At Mother & Daughter Leaving BLM Protest

Carrie Maxwell (screen capture)
Bakersfield news station KKTV reports police are investigating an incident where a woman verbally attacked an 8-year-old girl and her mom when they were returning home from a Black Lives Matter protest. The mother caught the exchange on video. As Erika Baze and her daughter were heading to their car to return home after a nearby protest in northwest Bakersfield on Friday afternoon. Baze had been taking part in the protests and explained her daughter asked to come along every day, so she finally decided to take her. The protest began around 6 p.m. After about an hour into the demonstration, Baze decided it was time to head home. She said they were walking back to their car when they were confronted by a woman. Baze said the woman told them they weren’t welcome in the area and that she was going to call the police. The woman, later identified as Carrie Maxwell, began to get violent so Baze began to record the encounter. At one point, Maxwell shouts “I will f-ing kill you” before her shirtless husband drags her away. In the background, you can hear Baze’s daughter sobbing, “I’m scared.”

After the video clip went viral, local NBC News affiliate KGET received a statement from Maxwell, a second-grade teacher, who issued an apology for what she described as a moment of ‘anxiety, frustration and panic.’ In a statement released by her lawyer, Kyle J. Humphrey, Maxwell said she offers her “sincerest apology to anyone who was hurt by my behavior in that video.” Admitting the situation became ‘confrontational’ she admitted she “responded in an inappropriate manner.” “I never intended to cause fear,” she added. Reminder – Maxwell screamed in the video “I will f**king kill you.” So, that sounds like it might incite some fear. But, maybe that’s just me. She goes on to say she is the caretaker for her 18-year-old autistic son and elderly mother, and recent news coverage of the protests caused her to be concerned. “I am humiliated by my actions. I am heartbroken to think that any of my students or their parents might see that video and believe that it is in any way reflective of my values or views regarding race or inclusivity.” Maxwell makes a point to say in her 12-year teaching career, she has “predominantly taught students of color.” Read the full statement here.