Politics, pop culture and entertainment news of interest to the LGBTQ community
A former Georgia prosecutor has been indicted on charges of obstructing law enforcement and violating her oath of office in the case of Ahmaud Arbery, who was confronted and killed while jogging through a Brunswick neighborhood in 2020. Continue reading “Ex-Prosecutor Indicted For ‘Helping Shield’ Suspects In Ahmaud Arbery Case”
Protests have spread across the globe following the brutal murder of a young gay man in Spain at the hands of an anti-gay mob on July 3.
Via The Guardian:
Samuel Luiz, a 24-year-old nursing assistant, was out with friends in the Galician city of A Coruña in the early hours of Saturday when an argument started outside a nightclub.
His friends told El Mundo that Luiz had stepped out of the club to make a video call when two passersby accused him of trying to film them on his phone. Luiz explained he was talking to a friend by video, but he was allegedly attacked by one of the passersby and left with a badly bruised face.
Five minutes later, the assailant allegedly returned with 12 others who beat Luiz unconscious. He was taken to hospital, where he died later on Saturday morning.
On Saturday 24 year old Samuel Luiz Muniz, was murdered in the Spanish city La Coruna, after being attacked in the street at 3am by a mob of 13 men- it is alleged they brutally beat him whilst they shouted “Fucking F*ggot”💔#JusticiaPorSamuel 🏳️🌈pic.twitter.com/J5u16GuWDa
— Aamer Anwar🎗✊🏽#BlackLivesMatter (@AamerAnwar) July 6, 2021
Luiz’s friend, Vanessa, who he was video messaging with, was a virtual witness to the assault. “All we could hear were blows,” she told the media.
This evening, Spain’s Policía Nacional announced three people between the ages of 20 and 25 had been arrested as “the alleged perpetrators of the violence assault that ended Samuel Luiz’s life.” The police statement went on to say more arrests could follow.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez tweeted his condolences to Luiz’s family calling the assault “a savage and ruthless act.”
More from Reuters:
People took to the streets of Spain’s biggest cities on Monday evening to express their anger at the death of a man in a suspected homophobic attack at the weekend.
Crowds filled a central Madrid square and activists marched down a major street in Barcelona, chanting slogans and waving placards and rainbow-coloured flags.
Interior Ministry data shows 278 hate crimes related to sexual orientation or gender identity were reported in Spain in 2019, an 8.6% increase on the previous year. The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights warns only a fraction of hate crimes are reported to the police.
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 22.5 years in prison after being found guilty of second degree murder, third degree murder and manslaughter.
From Mother Jones:
In Minnesota, the maximum sentence for unintentional second-degree murder — Chauvin’s most serious crime — is 40 years, but the recommended sentence for people with no prior criminal record is 12.5 years. Judge Peter Cahill said on Friday that he added 10 years to the presumptive sentence “based on your abuse of a position of trust and authority, and also the particular cruelty shown to George Floyd.”
With good behavior, Chauvin, 45, could be paroled after serving two-thirds of his sentence, or about 15 years.
Prosecutors had asked for a 30 year sentence, and Chauvin’s attorney asked for probation and time served.
It’s worth remembering that Chauvin tortured Floyd to death, in public, in front of children. People are sentenced to life in prison for far less.
Here’s the sentencing by the judge as well as the statement Chauvin made today:
BREAKING: Judge sentences Derek Chauvin to 22.5 years in prison for murder of George Floyd. https://t.co/VvJpsjyrAN pic.twitter.com/1rw3sn6jqS
— NBC News (@NBCNews) June 25, 2021
WATCH: In a brief statement, Derek Chauvin offers “condolences to the Floyd family” during sentencing hearing. https://t.co/RdYLvfum24 pic.twitter.com/xVj1SO1UyA
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) June 25, 2021
CBS Sunday Morning remembers the Tulsa Massacre:
One hundred years ago, a White mob in Tulsa, Oklahoma, killed 300 Black people and reduced the thriving Black community of Greenwood — also known as “Black Wall Street” — to ashes.
New York Times columnist Charles M. Blow talks about one of the most notorious massacres in American history and those who witnessed it.
When white people wonder why there is anger in the Black community via the Black Lives Matter movement, perhaps it’s because they never learned important chapters in Black history like the Tulsa Massacre…?
Today, there are Republican lawmakers who oppose the teaching of Black American history calling a focus on slavery and the contributions of Black Americans in history “divisive.”
Meanwhile, I’m reminded of Emmy/Tony winner Billy Porter’s ‘Message to America’ last June calling for change regarding how Black Americans are treated today.
Some news items you might have missed:
• OUT: Police in Brazil announced the arrests of three suspects in the brutal murder of gay activist teacher, Professor Lindolfo Kosmaski. The body of the 25-year-old was found bullet-ridden in a burned car on the side of a highway in the municipality of São João do Triunfo on April 30.
• CNN: Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed a controversial bathroom bill into law Friday that will deny transgender students access to the bathroom and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity. Lee also signed a transgender sports bill into law in March that requires students to prove their sex at birth in order to play middle and high school sports.
• Instinct Magazine: For the inaugural season of Drag Race España, the Pit Crew has been supersized with twelve brand new members. That’s Pit Crew member Guillermo Flores up top. #woof
• BosGuy: The longtime Boston-based blogger reminds us in his weekly ‘Men In Kilts’ feature that wool kilts can be itchy. His ‘Monday Morning Mancandy‘ is worth a peek as well.
• Huffpost: Universal Pictures is postponing the international distribution of Promising Young Woman amid outrage that male actors were hired to dub Laverne Cox’s voice in European editions of the movie.
• Mediaite: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) claimed this week that a Democrat-backed bill would “automatically register” millions of illegal immigrants to vote. CNN fact checker Daniel Dale wasn’t having it, bluntly responding to a video clip of Cruz by saying, “None of what you just heard is correct.” Here’s the fact check:
CNN fact checker Daniel Dale rips apart Ted Cruz’s lies about automatic voter registration. pic.twitter.com/K1ZOT6IUcp
— PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) May 17, 2021
Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer has been convicted of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the death of George Floyd.
Chauvin was captured on video last May kneeling on the neck of Floyd during the course of an arrest until he lost consciousness and died.
From the New York Times:
After deliberating for about 10 hours over two days following an emotional trial that lasted three weeks, the jury found Mr. Chauvin, who is white, guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter for the killing of Mr. Floyd, a Black man, on a street corner last year on Memorial Day.
Mr. Chauvin faces up to 40 years in prison when he is sentenced in the coming weeks but is likely to receive far less time. The presumptive sentence for second-degree murder is 12.5 years, according to Minnesota’s sentencing guidelines, although the state has asked for a higher sentence.
Derrick Johnson, CEO and president of the NAACP, issued this statement:
“While justice landed Derek Chauvin behind bars for killing George Floyd, no amount of justice will bring Gianna’s father back. The same way a reasonable police officer would never suffocate an unarmed man to death, a reasonable justice system would recognize its roots in white supremacy and end qualified immunity. Police are here to protect, not lynch. We will not rest until all in our community have the right to breathe.”
#Justice
BREAKING: Derek Chauvin found guilty on all three counts in the death of George Floyd. https://t.co/751SUaenzx pic.twitter.com/SPxpJJq4F9
— ABC News (@ABC) April 20, 2021
President Biden and VP Harris call the Floyd family after the GUILTY verdict! Thank you @POTUS & @VP for your support! We hope that we can count on you for the police reform we NEED in America! ✊🏾 pic.twitter.com/cg4V2D5tlI
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) April 20, 2021
Today, a jury did the right thing. But true justice requires much more. Michelle and I send our prayers to the Floyd family, and we stand with all those who are committed to guaranteeing every American the full measure of justice that George and so many others have been denied. pic.twitter.com/mihZQHqACV
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) April 20, 2021
Guilty. The Hennepin County jury’s #verdict is a historic move for accountability in the #DerekChauvinTrial for the murder of George Floyd.
No verdict can correct the injustice done to George Floyd, his loved ones & their community. And so our fight must continue. (1/5)
— Rashad Robinson (@rashadrobinson) April 20, 2021
Former Philadelphia Police Commissioner and former DC Police Chief Charles Ramsey says of the effects of the Chauvin ruling on police: “This doesn’t hurt them. It supports them.”
— Brianna Keilar (@brikeilarcnn) April 20, 2021
Derek Chauvin almost was not even charged with 2nd-degree unintentional murder, the most serious of the 3 charges of which he was found guilty today — and it only took a jury of his peers about 10 hours to decide it was a charge of which he was guilty.
— Matthew Rettenmund (@mattrett) April 20, 2021
almost like there’s a difference between a murderer going free and not.
— hasanabi (@hasanthehun) April 20, 2021
Rest in power George Floyd. pic.twitter.com/OcqcKHnUGa
— Johanna Fuentes (@jfuentes) April 20, 2021
The jury in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with manslaughter and murder charges for the death of George Floyd, has reached a verdict in less than a day.
The verdict will be read at 4:30 pm ET.
From NBC News:
The panel of seven women and five men began deliberating Monday after three weeks of witness testimony.
Chauvin is charged with second- and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The third-degree murder charge had initially been dismissed, but it was reinstated after an appeals court ruling in an unrelated case established new grounds for it days before jury selection started.
Second-degree murder carries a maximum sentence of 40 years. Third-degree murder carries a maximum sentence of 25 years. Second-degree manslaughter is punishable by up to 10 years.
Chauvin, who is white, knelt on Floyd’s neck for several minutes as Floyd, who was Black, was handcuffed and lying on the ground.
During the trial, prosecutors called 38 witnesses. The defense called seven witnesses, two of whom were experts.
In this episode of The Randy Report podcast:
• Country music star TJ Osborne comes out as gay
• Pete Buttigieg becomes first openly gay White House Cabinet member approved by the Senate
• President Biden issues memorandum promoting/protecting LGBTQ rights abroad
• Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi says passing The Equality Act is a “priority”
• A white Florida man shoots and kills his Black lover but only gets one year in prison
• Out singer/songwriter John Duff drops his latest pop bop, “Do It”
All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report
You can subscribe/listen to The Randy Report on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud and wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
If you enjoy catching up on LGBTQ news in a quick podcast, please consider sharing with your friends or on social media 🙂
Folks are outraged over the one-year prison sentence given to a white Florida man who shot and killed his Black male lover.
Gardner Kent Fraser, 32, was charged with – and pleaded guilty to – tampering with evidence in the investigation of the 2018 shooting (and killing) of 31-year-old Dominic Jerome “DJ” Broadus Jr.
But Fraser was never charged for the actual killing of Broadus. Fraser told investigators he shot Broadus in self-defense, and under Florida’s ‘stand your ground law,’ prosecutors are tasked with proving the accused wasn’t acting in self-defense.
A spokesman for the 4th Judicial Circuit issued a statement regarding the charges filed which read, in part, “The investigation has not generated evidence to disprove Fraser’s claim of self-defense.”
“The evidence in this case, Fraser’s unwavering claims of self-defense, and Florida law do not provide support for homicide charges,” added the spokesman. “We are ethically prohibited from instituting criminal charges that we cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”
Gardner Fraser being led into a van to go to the Baker County Jail. Fraser will serve one year in County Jail for tampering with evidence connected to the shooting death of #DJBroadus, a man police say he had an intimate relationship with. @ActionNewsJax pic.twitter.com/Ho01uJlJA1
— Bridgette Matter (@bridgetteANjax) January 25, 2021
Dominic Broadus Sr, the father of the victim, said Fraser “fatally shot my son in the back of the head twice” to “hide his feminine, bisexual nature.”
He added Fraser attempted to “destroy any evidence of their relationship by deleting all text from his phone and destroying/hiding my son’s phone, then calling three people before reporting the shooting to the proper authorities.”
After shooting Broadus, Fraser was asked if he knew the victim. “Ahh, I believe I do” was his reply.
Police say Fraser got rid of Broadus’s phone in an effort to hide communications between the two men. Even without Broadus’s phone, police were able to determine via forensic analysis of Fraser’s phone that the two men had been involved in an intimate relationship.
Although Fraser had deleted text messages from his own phone, investigators were able to recover 115 phone calls and 35 text messages between the men from Fraser’s phone. According to reports, many of the messages and images were “sexual in nature.”
Because Fraser is the son of a retired Baker County police deputy, the case was turned over to the 4th Circuit State Attorney Melissa Nelson in an effort to avoid the appearance of conflict of interest.
But many locals say they believe prejudice and racial bias still came into play in the case.
Anita “Baker” McGoogin, who co-organized protests in support of the Broadus family, told News4Jax, “It’s brought light on to what everyone already knows: The prejudice is here. The racism, that’s here. The favoritism, that’s here.”
Additionally, The Root has reported that Fraser’s family has “deep ties to the Ku Klux Klan.”
At his sentencing, Fraser was adjudicated as guilty, and sentenced to one year in county jail to be followed by 4 years supervised probation with community service.
Judge begins saying he wants to be crystal clear that this sentence is only for what Fraser is charged with Tampering with evidence. Fraser is adjudicated guilty, and sentenced him to 4 year supervised probation, community service, and 1 year in county jail. @ActionNewsJax pic.twitter.com/E7FM9GDW3U
— Bridgette Matter (@bridgetteANjax) January 25, 2021
Some news items you might have missed:
• Outsports: Major League Baseball ended its regular season on Sunday after a COVID-shortened 60 games and for the first time since the 2016 season, there were no players involved in any recorded, on-field anti-gay controversies. Granted, we still have the playoffs to go, but the only notable incident involved Cincinnati Reds announcer Thom Brennaman.
• NY Daily News: A Bronx man is accused of hacking to death with a machete a man he met on Grindr — and his roommate walked in on the bloody aftermath. Juan Alonso, 50, was charged Monday with murder, manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon. Cops are still trying to identify his victim.
• Insider: Two New Jersey police officers pleaded guilty last week to smashing windows and slashing tires on cars owned by a man who had complained about them. As a part of the plea agreement, neither men will be able to work public service in the state.
• Politico: A new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll found that just 20 percent of voters said that they believed the winner of the presidential election will be called on election night, while 66 percent said they expect it to happen sometime later, 19 percent believe it will be the next day, and 26 percent believe it will be between two and seven days after the polls close.
• The Hill: A new New York Times/Siena College poll shows Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in the vital battleground state of Pennsylvania by 9 points (49-40). The RealClearPolitics average of polls shows Biden with a 5.3 percentage point lead in the Keystone State.
• Netflix: Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, an organization near and dear to my heart, invites you to “Grab a drink (or two) with the spectacular cast of Netflix’s The Boys in the Band during #SipInWithTheBoys!” The livestream at 8 pm Eastern on October 2 benefits Broadway Cares and The Actors Fund.