Tag: homophobia

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Rand Paul Attacks Ex-CDC Vaccine Chief For Gay ‘Lifestyle’

Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) attacked now-former CDC vaccine chief Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, who resigned last week in protest of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., saying he had “no business being in government” due to the “lifestyle” he led. Continue reading “Rand Paul Attacks Ex-CDC Vaccine Chief For Gay ‘Lifestyle’”

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Essay: ‘What The 49ers Taught Me About Football And Queerness’

Brian C. Bell has penned a personal essay about their love for the 49ers and football, but always felt the sport taught them they should exist on its edges. And then the 49ers taught Brian otherwise. Continue reading “Essay: ‘What The 49ers Taught Me About Football And Queerness’”

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Colton Haynes Details Homophobia Experienced In His Early Hollywood Years

Colton Haynes shares the homophobia and exploitation he experienced during his early Hollywood years in essay for Vulture.

Colton Haynes shares vivid details about the homophobia and exploitation he experienced during his early years in Hollywood in an essay written in the first person for Vulture. Continue reading “Colton Haynes Details Homophobia Experienced In His Early Hollywood Years”

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Podcast: Pride Month 2021, Bakery Hit By Homophobia, The Latest From Eli Lieb

The Randy Report podcast

The Randy Report podcast delivers the week's top stories in a quick, convenient podcast - 'the 60 Minutes of gay news - only shorter' In this week’s headlines: • For the first time in five years, the LGBTQ community not only received full-throated support from the man in the Oval Office, but President Joe Biden, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris all issued video greetings to LGBTQ Americans for Pride Month • Congress votes to make Pulse Nightclub a national memorial • Gay men in the UK will have an easier time donating blood • A bakery in Texas experienced hideous homophobia for saying ‘Happy Pride’ and then the internet stepped in • Eli Lieb drops the perfect anthem for Pride Month ‘Boys Who Like Boys’ All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report

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Japan’s Ruling Party Accused Of Violating Olympic Charter Over LGBTQ Rights

Logo for the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo

Logo for the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo The ruling conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in Japan’s Parliament is opposing a bill that would protect the rights of LGBTQ athletes at the upcoming Olympic Games saying that “LGBT goes against the preservation of the human race.” From The Guardian:

Japan’s ruling party has been accused of violating the Olympic charter after it failed to approve a bill to protect the rights of the LGBT community, during discussions marred by homophobic outbursts from conservative MPs.

Closed meetings held this month to discuss a bill, proposed by opposition parties, stating that discrimination against LGBT people “must not be tolerated” ended without agreement after some Liberal Democratic party (LDP) MPs said the rights of sexual minorities had “gone too far.”

A decision on a rival LDP proposal that calls on the government to “promote understanding” of LGBT people was postponed, according to Japanese media accounts of the meetings.

A few weeks ago, an adviser to the LDP’s committee to study sexual orientation and gender identity gave a speech titled, “The LGBT issue is getting out of control.” Following the lack of an approved bill, human rights advocates say Japan deserves a “gold medal for homophobia.” Japan is the only G7 nation that does not fully recognize same-sex partnerships or marriages.

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Michael Cimino Received Homophobic Messages Over ‘Love, Victor’

Michael Cimino in 'Love, Victor'

Michael Cimino in 'Love, Victor'
Michael Cimino in ‘Love, Victor’ (promo photo)
Michael Cimino, star of the Hulu series Love, Victor, says he’s been on the receiving end of homophobic messages since taking on the role of a gay-questioning high school student. In a video chat with Attitude Magazine, Cimino (who identifies as straight) was asked about viewers who might struggle to separate actors from their characters and whether he’d experienced any homophobia since the launch of the series. Cimino acknowledged he had.

“To be honest, I actually have gotten homophobic messages. What’s the craziest part is, it’s like sometimes, it’s from people I know, which is even crazier.

“I think it just kind of shows where the world’s at, and possibly how much this show is actually needed. I feel like it starts a conversation, and I think that’s the most important thing. Especially in a time like the world is right now, we need more conversations started.”

Michael Cimino (screen capture via Attitude)
Asked how he responded to the homophobic remarks, the 21-year-old explained he took the moment as an opportunity to educate.

“As far as when it was people I know, I would either kind of lean into it, and be like, ‘OK, and what?’ or I would try to enlighten them as much as I possibly could.”

“To be honest, there are so many undertones of understated homophobia in the world. And a lot of people have these little microaggressions that they don’t realize are actually homophobic. And when they do stuff like that, they’re sending homophobic messages.”

“I feel like the best thing to do is try to educate them or realize that they’re ignorant and you can’t really say anything that’s going to help them, unfortunately.”

While Cimino got some pushback from playing the role of “Victor,” a lot of the world celebrated the series. When Love, Victor debuted last June, it became the streaming platform’s number one drama and was quickly renewed for a second season. Love, Victor premieres in the UK on February 23 on the Disney+ platform Star.

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Billy Porter’s Message To America On Racism, Homophobia & Change

Billy Porter has a ‘Message to America’
Tony/Grammy/Emmy Award-winner Billy Porter took to Instagram this week to share his candid, and sometimes blistering, “Message to America.” Porter,  who doesn’t demure from expressing his opinions, begins by calling out white Americans who continue to deny systemic racism in the United States. The Pose star then shifts his attention to the African-American community noting the violence committed by black men against LGBTQ people, especially transgender women of color. “My basic human rights have been up for legislation every single day that I have had breath in my body from all sides,” says Porter.  “And by that, I mean that the black community’s relationship with the LGBTQ+ community is appalling at best and eerily similar to that of white supremacists versus black folk.” “Hear me, black people, and hear me well – I’m calling you out right here and right now,” he continued. “You cannot expect our demands of equality to be met with any real legislative policy and change when y’all turn around and inflict the same kind of hate and oppression on us. The tragic reality here is that black trans, as well as gender non-conforming, women and men are being killed in the United States by cis black men to such a degree that it is nearly the worst emergency for trans women on the planet.” “The murders of black trans women by black men since 2016 have helped drive the most violent period for LGBTQ+ people on record,” he added. “Just this past week, during the riots, during the peaceful protests, Iyonna Dior was brutally beaten by a gang of black men while trying to peacefully protests for our rights.” “LGBTQ+ black folks are black people, too! Our lives matter, too! So this is my response to those of y’all who don’t understand that: F*ck you! And, yes, I am cussing. It’s time for cussing.” Speaking to “all my homophobic and transphobic brothers and sisters,” Porter was clear and direct in his message: “Get your f*cking houses in order.” Porter’s remarks refer to a transwoman, Iyonna Dior, who was beaten by a group of more than 20 men by a group of onlookers. She managed to escape, though not before sustaining heavy bruising and swelling. The actor also addressed the upcoming presidential election in no uncertain terms: “We have two clear choices in November: vote this motherf*cker and all his cronies out of office, reset, and begin the American experiment again at zero, or not.” “In November, this election is the most important that we’ve ever seen in our lifetime. Democracy is on the ballot. White supremacy is on the ballot. Homophobia, women’s rights, trans rights, Muslim rights, all human rights all on the ballot this November, and I ask you America: will we be better than this? I guess we’ll know the answer come November.” “It’s time for change, and this time, change for good,” said Porter in closing. “Vote, vote, vote, vote,” he says, his passionate voice rising with emotion. “God bless you all, and God bless the United States of America.”

 

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✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿 #blacklivesmatter #blacktranslivesmatter

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Learning To Check In, Call Out Our Own Subtle Racism

Psychotherapist Matthew Dempsey (screen capture)
  With so much turmoil in the nation right now, many people are asking “How can I help? How can I be part of the solution?” But the social terrain can be scary. Even folks who consider themselves ‘good guys’  – on the side of equal rights and justice – question are they ‘doing it right?’ On Tuesday this week, one trend was to take part in ‘Blackout Tuesday’ in order to show you stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. But some folks got backlash here and there with comments saying, “Don’t do it like that – resist like THIS.” Even with the best of intentions, folks who want to support the movement are confused. As a Flashback Friday post, we wanted to share this video from psychotherapist Matthew Dempsey. Back in 2015, he shared how an awkward moment in his own life helped him learn to ‘check himself’ even when he knew in his head he was an ally. “Growing up gay and feeling like an outlier for most of my life easily lends itself to greater empathy for others who’ve felt the same,” wrote Dempsey when he first shared the video in 2015. “My experience also lends itself to the illusion that I couldn’t possibly continue discriminating against others, including people of color. Watch my latest video on how I own racism in an effort to heal.” “As a gay man, I have this real value set in wanting to eradicate discrimination across the board,” says Dempsey in the video. “The only way that I know that I can really do that most effectively is by being able to check in with myself and seeing what’s going on here first.” As an example, Dempsey shares how many gay men grow up exposed to homophobic beliefs and how they can become a part of our subconscious. Those thoughts can color how we see ourselves and the LGBTQ community as a whole. But when we’re aware that it’s there, we can call it out. Being raised in a society where racist beliefs do exist, we are exposed to them whether we want to be or not. Dempsey says when we check in with ourselves about even the most subtle aspects of racism, then we can call it out and own it. Dempsey references the 2015 film Stonewall which created a fictional white male character as a principal in the storytelling when history knows the Stonewall protests were led by the trans community and gay people of color. As many pointed out at the time, that was subtle racism in overshadowing the historical figures with a white, gay man. He also mentions the issue of fetishizing the idea of having sex with ‘dominate’ black men, another form of racism. Before we get to the video clip, we know today is not five years ago. And life at this moment in time is sensitive in regard to each and every word people utter when speaking about race relations. In sharing this, I ask that you watch the video in its entirety to get to Dempsey’s point. I reached out to Dempsey to see if he had any followup to his 2015 commentary. He sent this update:

“This message I put out there 5 years ago is a perfect example of how acknowledging White privilege is inherently imperfect and wrought with blind spots for us to call out and change. The most cringe-worthy moment as I rewatch now is when I suggest it’s OK to have racial preferences for dating and sex because clearly, that’s some racist bullshit tbh. I know better. Now I can do better. And this is how I stand for BIPOC and Black Lives Matter.”

One more thing: please do not have a knee-jerk reaction to the title of Dempsey’s video. The title makes a point, so watch the video to get to ‘the point.’

#BlackLivesMatter