Tag: transgender athletes

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Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Hearings + More News

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson during her Supreme Court confirmation hearings
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson (screen capture via C-Span)
Some news items you might have missed: • The Advocate: During the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas called the high court’s marriage equality ruling an “edict” and an example of creating a right that doesn’t exist in the Constitution. Continue reading “Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson Hearings + More News”

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Indiana Governor Vetoes Anti-Transgender Sports Bill

The governor of Indiana vetoed an anti-transgender sports bill that would have banned trans girls from playing in school sports Gov. Eric Holcomb (R) of Indiana has vetoed an anti-transgender sports bill that would have banned trans girls from participating in school sports that align with their gender identity. Holcomb called the bill “vague” and possibly unconstitutional. Continue reading “Indiana Governor Vetoes Anti-Transgender Sports Bill”

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Support For LGBTQ Rights At All-Time High + More News

Support for LGBTQ rights has reached an all-time high of 79% according to a massive 50-state survey.
(image via Depositphotos)
Some news items you might have missed: • Religion News Service: A massive 50-state study shows Americans’ support for LGBTQ rights is higher than ever with 79% of Americans expressing support for LGBTQ protections. Continue reading “Support For LGBTQ Rights At All-Time High + More News”

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News Round-Up: June 23, 2021

Out Olympian Gus Kenworthy

Out Olympian Gus Kenworthy
Gus Kenworthy (image via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • OK Magazine: Out Olympian Gus Kenworthy (above) tells the gossip mag that the 2022 Winter Olympics will be his last after which he’ll turn his focus to acting and TV hosting gigs. • The Advocate: Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has vetoed a bill that would have banned transgender girls and women from competing in school sports designated for females calling it “a solution in search of a problem.” Edwards, a moderate Democrat, said in an online statement. “Even the author of the bill acknowledged throughout the legislative session that there wasn’t a single case where this was an issue.” • Boy Culture: Britney Spears had her day in court, wants her life back, and Matt Rettenmund has her full (explosive) statement to the court. This is a wild ride, folks. I’m not a Britney fan, but I think folks should give her her life back and let the chips fall where they may.
International pop star Britney Spears
International pop star Britney Spears (image via Instagram)
• Raw Story: Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation requiring students, faculty and staff at Florida’s public universities and colleges to register their political views with the state as a way to encourage “intellectual diversity.” • New York Times: Graydon Young, of Sarasota, Fla., admitted to conspiring to breach the U. S. Capitol building as part of a military-style “stack” made up of members of the Oath Keepers militia and disrupt the certification of the Electoral College vote. As part of his deal with the government, Mr. Young agreed to cooperate with prosecutors — the second member of the Oath Keepers to provide assistance to investigators. He faces an estimated 63 to 78 months in prison. • Mediaite: Former NRA president David Keene accepted an invitation to address what he thought was going to be its graduating class of 2021. Instead, the 3,044 chairs in the audience were left completely unoccupied. And not because it was a dress rehearsal as Keene was told, but to represent all of the should-have-been 2021 high school graduates who were killed by gun violence, “The Lost Class.”

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News Round-Up: June 2, 2021

Anthony Varrecchia (image via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Artist and fitness professional Anthony Varrecchia (above) does the honors in heading up this Hump Day round-up all the way from Key West where he’s enjoying the mood at Island House. Follow him on Instagram here. #woof • HuffPost: On the first day of Pride Month 2021, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed a bill barring transgender females from playing on public school teams intended for student athletes born as girls, plunging the state into the national culture war over transgender rights. • Kenneth-in-the-212: Our veteran NYC-based blogger puts the spotlight on this oh-so-adorbs veterinarian in his ‘Morning Wood’ feature. https://www.instagram.com/p/CNaW43HhWnX/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link • Yahoo News: Democrat Melanie Stansbury defeated her Republican opponent Mark Moores in the special election to represent New Mexico’s 1st congressional district, a House seat vacated when Deb Haaland was confirmed as President Biden’s Interior secretary. • Politico: The firm that owns the National Enquirer has agreed to pay $187,500 to the Federal Election Commission to settle complaints that it unlawfully aided Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in 2016 by suppressing the story of an actress who said she had a sexual relationship with Trump. • The Daily Beast: Donald Trump’s blog – “From the Desk of Donald J. Trump” – was met with a collective shrug from the public, and is being shut down after just 29 days. Senior Trump aide Jason Miller says the blog has been scuttled and “will not be returning.”

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Montana Gov. Signs 2 Anti-LGBTQ Bills Into Law

Highway sign which reads, "Greetings from Montana"

Highway sign which reads, "Greetings from Montana" Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) has signed not one but two anti-LGBTQ bills into law this week – Senate Bill 99 and House Bill 112. Senate Bill 99 calls for “a parent, guardian, or other person who is responsible for the care of a child” to be allowed to “refuse to allow the child to attend… a course of instruction, a class period, an assembly, an organized school function, or instruction provided by the district… regarding human sexuality instruction.” If any instruction is scheduled having to do with “human sexuality” – or even just sexually transmitted diseases – at least 48 hours notice must be given to parents. “Human sexuality education” is defined in the bill as anything related to “sexual orientation, gender identity, and abstinence.” House Bill 112 calls for “public school athletic teams to be designated based on biological sex.” Additionally, cisgender athletes will be able to seek damages from schools that allow transgender students to compete as their gender identity because of the “direct or indirect” harm that would be caused for the cisgender student. State Rep. John D. Fuller (R) introduced the bill in January. He told Montana Public Radio he “felt compelled to introduce the legislation because he’s coached women’s soccer and he thinks transgender women have a physical advantage if they compete in sports consistent with their gender identity. That is unfair to females and women’s sports — period.” Montana is now the 7th state to prohibit trans youth from participating in sports to some degree. Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, South Dakota, Tennessee, and West Virginia have adopted similar laws that shut the door on transgender girls playing sports as their gender identity.  

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News Round-Up: August 3, 2020

Sgt. Keith Wildhaber (image via Wildhaber)
Some news items you might have missed: • St. Louis Today: Openly gay St. Louis County police lieutenant Keith Wildhaber (above), who in February settled a workplace discrimination lawsuit against the police department for $10.25 million, said Friday that he is stepping down from command of its Diversity and Inclusion unit. In a Facebook post he wrote, “The dog whispers of a gay, white guy being unable to lead Diversity and Inclusion were loud and clear. Systemic racism is alive and well.” • Cosmopolitan: James Corden, currently the host of The Late Late Show, might be in talks to replace Ellen DeGeneres on her daytime talk show. The possible shake-up comes shortly after toxic work environment claims were made against Ellen’s longtime show. • Vimeo: Snowflake, a new film that depicts the fear of a nation when a dictatorial politician is suddenly thrust into the White House, will begin streaming on Vimeo on August 4. While most of the characters in the film are gay, Snowflake shows how their other identities – age, race, and their economic status – shape their individual views. Check out the trailer below.

• The Advocate: Tennis legend Martina Navratilova, who’s faced criticism for anti-transgender comments over the past year, signed a letter supporting Idaho’s law barring trans females from competing in women’s and girls’ interscholastic sports. The NCAA, which has already announced its opposition to the law, is considering potentially moving the March Madness men’s basketball tournament from Boise. • Deadline: Pose star Angelica Ross has inked a development & production deal with Pigeon, the production company behind OWN’s Iyanla: Fix My Life. The transgender actress and activist will work with Pigeon to develop and co-produce scripted and non-scripted content. • AFP Fact Check: Donald Trump went on a voter fraud Twitter rant after the Nevada legislature approved mail-in-voting for all registered voters. But AFP’s fact-checking showed actual voter fraud is minuscule to non-existent.

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Idaho Governor Signs Two Anti-Transgender Bills Into Law

Idaho Gov. Brad Little
Idaho Gov. Brad Little (image via public domain)

After allowing two recently passed bills to sit on his desk for more than a week, Idaho Governor Brad Little chose to sign two anti-transgender bills into law on the eve of International Transgender Day of Visibility.

The laws take particular aim at transgender youth. House Bill 509 prohibits transgender people from changing the gender listed on their birth certificate. The legislation is clearly a direct rebuttal to a federal court’s decision to overturn Idaho’s previous ban on trans people amending their birth certificates.

In 2018, U.S. Magistrate Judge Candy Dale ruled a prohibition on updating birth certificates by Idaho’s Department of Health and Welfare was discriminatory because some citizens – like adoptive parents – were allowed to amend birth certificates while trans people were not. The court ruled that the ban could cause “irreparable injury and harm” to trans people.

Idaho Rep. Julianne Young (R) proposed a new ban against updating birth certificates claiming they are “historical” documents. House Bill 500 bans transgender student-athletes from participating in sports. This makes Idaho the first state in the country to pass legislation targeting transgender student-athletes.

Local news station KTVB reports the anti-LGBTQ group Family Policy Alliance of Idaho hailed the bills’ passage saying  that the so-called “Fairness in Women’s Sports Act” protects athletic opportunities for girls “by ensuring biological males don’t play in girls’ high school and college sports.”

The Idaho attorney general’s office has already told the press that it estimates it will cost $1 million to defend the law in court.

The new law also allows for female student-athletes gender to be “challenged” and forces the athlete to submit to medical exams to prove their gender.

“This bill asks doctors to perform procedures way outside of the standards of care,” pediatrician Jessica Duvall told Forbes. “Moreover, even if the tests were performed against medical society norms, more often than not they do not yield clear, easily interpreted results.”

The Human Rights Campaign issued a statement denouncing both laws said that both laws.

“We are living in an unprecedented global health crisis, with confirmed cases of COVID-19 increasing on a daily basis in Idaho, across the United States, and around the world, but Governor Brad Little and the Idaho legislature have decided to prioritize the demonization of transgender people,” said HRC President Alphonso David in a statement.

“This is unacceptable, and a gross misuse of taxpayer funds and trust. Idaho is leading the way in anti-transgender discrimination, and at a time when life is hard enough for everyone, Idaho’s elected leaders will be remembered for working to make their transgender residents’ lives even harder.”

Alex Schmider, GLAAD’s Associate Director of Transgender Representation, denounced the legislation as well writing, “Tonight, on the eve of Transgender Day of Visibility and while the United States is overwhelmed with a massive public health crisis, Idaho Governor Brad Little passed legislation targeting some of the most vulnerable members of the LGBTQ community — transgender children.

“Although medical experts, sport governing bodies, and Idaho’s major employers have spoken out against these two bills, Governor Little has instead sided with discrimination,” Schmider continued. “Now, more than ever, transgender people need to be supported, not subjected to state-sponsored discrimination and suffering.”

“Our country is facing an unprecedented health crisis, and Gov. Little and members of the Idaho Legislature have prioritized attacking transgender student-athletes with this discriminatory and unnecessary new law,” said Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, deputy executive director for the National Center for Transgender Equality.

“State leaders should focus on protecting public health and safety, not on attacking vulnerable youth who want to play on a team with their peers. With so much suffering right now, Idaho is making sure trans kids suffer more.”