LGBTQ news and entertainment
Some news items you might have missed: • OUT: The original Fab Five are reuniting in December to celebrate the 20-year anniversary of the Emmy Award-winning Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. Continue reading “Original ‘Fab 5’ Reunite For 20th Anniversary + More News”
|
| Keith Kozak (screen capture) |
Keith Kozak, the now-former outreach minister for the Catholic Discese of Cleveland, finds himself unemployed after liking a photo of a same-sex wedding on Facebook.
Showing up for a Human Resources appointment, Kozak though the meeting would be about a promotion. Instead, he got quite the opposite.
“When they called me in, I was thinking it had something to do with that,” Kozak said. “They sat me down and they said we had seen some things on Facebook and Twitter and that would like to talk to you about that.”
The next day he received a termination letter.
The 39-year-old admits he wasn’t out at work. “I didn’t feel comfortable doing it, but I also thought it wasn’t important at the time,” said Kozak.
Saying the Church had been “very discriminatory,” Kozak took his case to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission.
 |
| Keith Kozak (screen capture) |
Just last month, Cuyahoga County added sexual orientation and gender identity to its protected classes.
But in this case, it appears the Catholic Church may be exempt from following those laws.
From the local ABC news affiliate:
While the organization didn’t specifically comment on his case, a spokesperson told News 5 the Cleveland Diocese might be within its rights, citing “ministerial exception.” It prohibits clergy members from bringing claims under federal discrimination laws because the relationship between an organized church and its ministers is its lifeblood.
“It’s a wake-up call for me, it’s a wake-up call that I didn’t really realize the Catholic Church would act like this,” said Kozak.
For its part, the Catholic Church issued a statement saying it doesn’t make public comments on personnel decisions, but is confident Kozak’s firing was “appropriate.”
The first day of the 2016 Republican National Convention devolved into chaos as #NeverTrump folks lost in their effort force a roll call vote in hopes of derailing the nomination of Donald Trump.
From USA Today:
Pro-Trump delegates tried to shout down the insurgents, led by Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and former Virginia attorney general Ken Cuccinelli, whose move for a vote could have delayed the proceedings by hours on the convention’s opening nights.
At one point, the podium of the convention was empty, leading Lee to say the convention had fallen into disarray on its first day, which was scheduled to emphasize law and order.
“I’ve never seen the chair vacated like that,” Lee said, calling the situation “surreal.”
Never Trump delegates chanted “roll call vote!” and “point of order!” from the floor, seeking to force the issue. A similar effort failed last week before the convention rules committee.
Despite the flurry of activity by Trump’s opponents, their attempt was quickly stymied. Some GOP activists, such as conservative analyst Bill Kristol, said it resembled the strong-arm tactics of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Cuccinelli, a leading supporter of a roll call vote, threw his credentials to the floor and walked off, claiming party leaders rammed through the voice vote in spite of petitions calling for a separate ballot.
“They just blatantly violated the rules,” he told reporters.
By a unanimous vote, the Cleveland City Council has passed Ordinance 1446 — a measure which protects the rights of transgender citizens to use the restrooms and facilities that align with their gender identity.
While a 2009 law granted trans protections in employment and public accommodations, until today transgender people have continued to face legal discrimination in access to single-sex facilities such as locker rooms and restrooms.
From the Human Rights Campaign:
Today’s pro-equality vote comes just days ahead of the 2016 Republican National Convention, which is being held in Cleveland. A slew of anti-LGBTQ provisions have been proposed this week by the party’s policy subcommittee, including a provision supporting anti-transgender discrimination, a provision calling for a Constitutional amendment undermining marriage equality, and another supporting the discredited and dangerous practice of so-called “conversion therapy.”
Cleveland now joins 19 states and more than 100 cities that have explicit non-discrimination protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in public accommodations, housing and employment. Columbus and Cincinnati also have similar protections in place.
Taking one final swipe at blaming Tamir Rice for his own death (at the hands of Cleveland Police officers for playing with a toy gun in a public park), the head of the Cleveland police union issued a statement saying he hopes Rice’s family will use some of the $6 million settlement they receive will be used to teach kids to not play with toy guns around police officers.
From the Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Steve Loomis, the president of the Cleveland Police Patrolman’s Association association, was criticized on a national scale for statements he made to the media in the weeks and months after two officers in his union were involved in Tamir’s death.
The usually talkative Loomis issued a news release that said “we can only hope the Rice family and their attorneys will use a portion of this settlement to help educate the youth of Cleveland in the dangers associated with the mishandling of both real and facsimile firearms.
“Something positive must come from this tragic loss. That would be educating youth of the dangers of possessing a real or replica firearm,” the release continues.
I call this a real ‘dick’ move.
As everyone knows by now, Cleveland police officers drove up to a public park in November 2014, where 12 year old Tamir was playing alone in a park with a toy gun. Video clips showed the officers jumped out of their car and shot him dead without pause. Cleveland police maintain the officers’ actions were warranted.
Cleveland mayor apologizes, drops Tamir Rice’s ambulance charge: https://t.co/rSUa2ajTYX pic.twitter.com/UCh2OvxJSA— MSNBC (@MSNBC) February 12, 2016
From MSNBC:
Cleveland’s mayor and other city officials apologized Thursday for asking for reimbursement from Tamir Rice’s family for the medical services he received after he was fatally shot by a police officer.
But Tamir’s family wasn’t buying it, calling the incident “deeply disturbing.”
The claim, filed Wednesday in probate court, sought $500 for the ambulance ride and treatment provided to Tamir, the 12-year-old boy who was shot by Cleveland police in November 2014 while in possession of a pellet gun.
Tamir’s family on Wednesday slammed the city’s “callousness, insensitivity and poor judgment” in sending the bill.
“I want to start off again apologizing to the Rice family if this, in fact, has added to any grief or pain that they may have,” Mayor Frank Jackson said at a news conference Thursday.
City Finance Director Sharon Dumas said the city never actually billed Tamir’s family for the medical services and has no intention of doing so.
She and Richard Horvath, the city’s chief corporate counsel, said the claim filed Wednesday was a “routine” result of the probate process, in which Tamir’s estate asked for a billing statement for services rendered to identify any potential creditors.
Speaking without notes, wide receiver Andrew Hawkins spoke to the press today about wearing a T-shirt during warmups for this past weekend’s NFL game that read “Justice For Tamir Rice and John Crawford.”
The T-shirt earned criticism from the Cleveland Police Union, who called the protest “pretty pathetic” and demanded an apology from Hawkins.
The Cleveland Browns issued a statement of respect for the Cleveland Police Department but added their support for “our players’ rights to project their support and bring awareness to issues that are important to them if done so in a responsible manner.”
Here’s Hawkins’ statement:
“I was taught that justice is a right that every American should have. Also justice should be the goal of every American. I think that’s what makes this country. To me, justice means the innocent should be found innocent. It means that those who do wrong should get their due punishment. Ultimately, it means fair treatment. So a call for justice shouldn’t offend or disrespect anybody. A call for justice shouldn’t warrant an apology.
“To clarify, I utterly respect and appreciate every police officer that protects and serves all of us with honesty, integrity and the right way. And I don’t think those kind of officers should be offended by what I did. My mom taught me my entire life to respect law enforcement. I have family, close friends that are incredible police officers and I tell them all the time how they are much braver than me for it. So my wearing a T-shirt wasn’t a stance against every police officer or every police department. My wearing the T-shirt was a stance against wrong individuals doing the wrong thing for the wrong reasons to innocent people.
“Unfortunately, my mom also taught me just as there are good police officers, there are some not-so-good police officers that would assume the worst of me without knowing anything about me for reasons I can’t control. She taught me to be careful and be on the lookout for those not-so-good police officers because they could potentially do me harm and most times without consequences. Those are the police officers that should be offended.
“Being a police officer takes bravery. And I understand that they’re put in difficult positions and have to make those snap decisions. As a football player, I know a little bit about snap decisions, obviously on an extremely lesser and non-comparative scale, because when a police officer makes a snap decision, it’s literally a matter of life and death. That’s hard a situation to be in. But if the wrong decision is made, based on pre-conceived notions or the wrong motives, I believe there should be consequence. Because without consequence, naturally the magnitude of the snap decisions is lessened, whether consciously or unconsciously.
“I’m not an activist, in any way, shape or form. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred I keep my opinions to myself on most matters. I worked extremely hard to build and keep my reputation especially here in Ohio, and by most accounts I’ve done a solid job of decently building a good name. Before I made the decision to wear the T-shirt, I understood I was putting that reputation in jeopardy to some of those people who wouldn’t necessarily agree with my perspective. I understood there was going to be backlash, and that scared me, honestly. But deep down I felt like it was the right thing to do. If I was to run away from what I felt in my soul was the right thing to do, that would make me a coward, and I can’t live with that. God wouldn’t be able to put me where I am today, as far as I’ve come in life, if I was a coward.
“As you well know, and it’s well documented, I have a 2-year-old little boy. The same 2-year-old little boy that everyone said was cute when I jokingly threw him out of the house earlier this year. That little boy is my entire world. And the No. 1 reason for me wearing the T-shirt was the thought of what happened to Tamir Rice happening to my little Austin scares the living hell out of me. And my heart was broken for the parents of Tamir and John Crawford knowing they had to live that nightmare of a reality.
“So, like I said, I made the conscious decision to wear the T-shirt. I felt like my heart was in the right place. I’m at peace with it and those that disagree with me, this is America, everyone has the right to their first amendment rights. Those who support me, I appreciate your support. But at the same time, support the causes and the people and the injustices that you feel strongly about. Stand up for them. Speak up for them. No matter what it is because that’s what America’s about and that’s what this country was founded on.”
At Sunday’s Cleveland Browns football game, Browns wide receiver Andrew Hawkins made headlines by wearing a T-shirt in pre-game warmups that read “Justice for Tamir Rice and John Crawford III.”
Twelve year old Rice was shot and killed by Cleveland police last month playing with a toy rifle; 22 year old Crawford was shot by police at a Wal-Mart while holding an air rifle.
Now, Cleveland Police Union President Jeff Follmer has demanded the Cleveland Browns apologize for the T-shirt’s appearance.
From Talking Points Memo:
“It’s pretty pathetic when athletes think they know the law,” the statement read, as quoted by WEWS. “They should stick to what they know best on the field. The Cleveland Police protect and serve the Browns stadium and the Browns organization owes us an apology.”
The Browns later issued a statement saying that the organization respects both the work of the Cleveland police department and their own players’ right to protest.
“We have great respect for the Cleveland Police Department and the work that they do to protect and serve our city,” the statement read, as quoted by the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. “We also respect our players’ rights to project their support and bring awareness to issues that are important to them if done so in a responsible manner.”
The opening ceremony of Gay Games 9 was held last night in Cleveland at the Q Arena.
The team from San Francisco led the athletes into the arena, but the Russian team saw special support when announced due to the recent anti-gay legislation and rhetoric in the country.
Over 9,000 participants and 20,000 spectators will enjoy 35 athletic competitions in the Cleveland/Akron area over the next week.
During the ceremonies, a greeting sent from President Obama was played welcoming the athletes and spectators. Obama referenced the struggles of Russian gays in his greeting:
“I know some of you have come from places where it requires courage, even defiance, to come out – some times at great personal risk. You should know that the United States stands with you and for your human rights – just as our athletes stand with you on the field at these Games.
“After all, the very idea of America is that no matter who you are, what you look like, where you come from, or who you love – you can make it if you try. That’s who we are and that’s who we should continually strive to be.”
Coward.
What a sniveling, piece of crap coward. Holds three women hostage for 10 years, but can’t handle the punishment for what he did.
Coward.
More info at MSNBC.