Tag: gay

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In response to WWE’s Darren Young coming out

John Cena shirtless, Darren Young shirtless
John Cena (L) Darren Young (R)

The WWE has issued a statement to GLAAD regarding Darren Young coming out: “WWE is proud of Darren Young for being open about his sexuality, and we will continue to support him as a WWE Superstar. Today, in fact, Darren will be participating in one of our Be A Star anti-bullying rallies in Los Angeles to teach children how to create positive environments for everyone regardless of age, race, religion or sexual orientation.”

WWE superstar John Cena applauds:  “Good for him. That’s fantastic. I know Darren personally. Darren’s a great guy. That’s a very bold move for him. And congratulations for him for actually finally doing it. It’s all about being professional, and Darren Young is a consummate professional. For us, it’s entertainment, and if you’re entertaining you shouldn’t be judged by race, creed, color or sexuality … as long as you’re entertaining.”

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Pentagon may grant gay soldiers ten day leave in order to travel to marry spouses

According to the Associated Press, the Pentagon is weighing the idea granting up to ten days leave to gay soldiers who need to travel to other states in order to legally marry:

According to a U.S. official, the memo is under legal review by the Justice Department, and the Pentagon will not be able to take any action until that review is finished. “Although we have bases and installations in all 50 states, not all state laws are equal when it comes to same-sex marriage,” a defense official said. “That is why we are looking at providing extra leave for same-sex couples who want to get married to travel to a state where same-sex marriages are legal.” The officials were not authorized to discuss the memo publicly, so spoke on condition of anonymity.

According to the AP, on-base housing and health care benefits may be offered to the legal spouses of gay soldiers by the end of August.

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New York Times Op-Doc: An Attack on Equality

New York is regarded as a gay-friendly city in a state that has legalized gay marriage, but this Op-Doc video shows that it can still be dangerous for a same-sex couple to walk down the street holding hands.

On May 5, 2013, a young couple was attacked outside Madison Square Garden in broad daylight. Nick Porto and Kevin Atkins were walking hand in hand when a group of several men, clad in Knicks jerseys, called them “faggots” and pushed them to the ground, beating them to the point of a torn ligament and a broken nose. In this video, Mr. Porto and Mr. Atkins tell their story.

Read more at NYTimes.com

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Students rally around fired gay teacher in Glendora, California

Ken Bencomo (R)

This makes my heart swell a bit 🙂

After the wedding of a popular teacher was made public, the private school he taught at fired him. Now present and former students are rallying to his defense and demanding he be reinstated.

More than 45,000 people have signed a petition launched by Ken Bencomo’s students, demanding that he be allowed to return to his job this fall. Bencomo has taught English at St. Lucy’s Priory High School in Glendora, Calif., for 17 years. On July 1, a local newspaper ran a front page article about marriage equality, featuring a photo of Bencomo and his husband.

Despite an outpouring of support by alumni, faculty, and current students, Bencomo swiftly was told by school administrators that his marriage violated the Catholic church’s teachings, so he had to be fired.

A press conference is planned for 9am tomorrow at the school to deliver the 45K signatures.

Brittany Littleton, an alum of the school and former student of Bencomo, had this to say about her reasons for coordinating the petition: “As a proud alum of St. Lucy’s, I am hurt and saddened by this blatant discrimination against Mr. B. No one should be fired for marrying the person they love. Along with current and former St. Lucy’s students, I look forward to taking this message, along with 45,000 signatures, directly to my alma mater. It’s the Christian thing to do.”

(via Advocate)

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Pope Francis on gays – “Who am I to judge?”

Pope Francis today refused to condemn gay people during a conversation with reporters on his return flight from Brazil.

From Associated Press:

Pope Francis reached out to gays on Monday, saying he wouldn’t judge priests for their sexual orientation in a remarkably open and wide-ranging news conference as he returned from his first foreign trip.

“If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” Francis asked.

While stressing Catholic social teaching that calls for homosexuals to be treated with dignity and not marginalized, Francis said it was something else entirely to conspire to use private information for blackmail or to exert pressure.

Francis was responding to reports that a trusted aide was involved in an alleged gay tryst a decade ago. He said he investigated the allegations according to canon law and found nothing to back them up. But he took journalists to task for reporting on the matter, saying the allegations concerned matters of sin, not crimes like sexually abusing children.

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LGBT Rainbow flag celebrates 35 years as iconic symbol

image via JoeMyGod

JoeMyGod shares the news that today is the “birthday” of the rainbow flag being an iconic symbol for the LGBT community.

From Joe:

“It was 35 years ago today that Gilbert Baker’s rainbow flag made its debut at San Francisco Pride.

“Since then it has become the ubiquitous global symbol of LGBT pride, solidarity, and freedom.

“I’m proud to call him a friend.”

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The Fortune Teller – 50 years of gay in 5 minutes

The Fortune Teller is comprised of over 50 years of imagery and footage. The 5-minute clip took six months to film and assemble, and is made up of 100 carefully selected clips.

The Fortune Teller is a film by gay artist/activist Leo Herrera, chronicling milestones and icons of the modern gay man.

The story is told through the trance of The Fortune Teller (played by Stanley Frank) and created using archival and modern footage.

The film is a documentary, a time capsule, an homage to psychedelic films of the 1960′s and the modern art of the YouTube Montage film;  a kaleidoscopic five-minute journey through more than 50 years of gay history.

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Disowned at 18 for being gay, singer wows America’s Got Talent

Jonathan Allen was kicked out of his house on his 18th birthday for being gay.

Unemployed, he decided to pursue his dream of singing by going on Americas Got Talent.

Then this happened…

Judge Howie Mandel: “Your own family disowned you, but with your talent, this show has become your family, and we’d like to say ‘welcome home’. We love you. We accept you. And we’re so proud that you came here.”

Judge Howard Stern: “I don’t know if your parents are watching tonight but I would like to say what a wonderful son you have.”

Grab a tissue…

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When did you choose to be straight?

This walking video interview was shared years ago, but is making the rounds again now due to Facebook and Twitter.

Always a good opportunity to pose the question about whether gay folks “choose” to be gay. Ask a straight person when did they “choose” to be straight and the conversation quickly reframes itself.

Take a look if you’ve never seen this. Always thought-provoking 🙂

Happy Saturday!