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PupCamo

PupCamo's Journal
PupCamo's Journal
March 24, 2019

Alabama's Antigay Senate Unanimously OKs Bill to End Marriage Licenses

https://www.advocate.com/politics/2019/3/22/middle-finger-gays-alabama-pushes-bill-end-marriage-licenses

Even though major homophobe Roy Moore is off the state Supreme Court, same-sex marriage remains controversial in Alabama, to the point that lawmakers are trying to eliminate marriage licenses altogether.

Under a bill approved 26-0 by the Alabama Senate Thursday, couples who want to marry would obtain and fill out a form at their county courthouse, but it would not be called a marriage license, the Associated Press reports. Probate judges, the county officials who have traditionally granted licenses, would simply record the form rather than issue a license.

The bill, which now goes to the state’s House of Representatives, is an accommodation to conservative probate judges, some of whom have ceased issuing marriage licenses to any couples in order to avoid approving them for same-sex couples.

Republican Sen. Greg Albritton, the measure’s chief sponsor, has put it forth in several sessions since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 marriage equality ruling. The Senate has passed it previously, but it has always died in the House. Albritton expressed optimism that the House will pass it this year. He said it will get the state out of people’s private lives and assure that same-sex couples won’t face discrimination. Some House members have wondered if the elimination of marriage licenses would create problems for couples applying for federal benefits, but Albritton has said it would not.
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Democrats voted for this bill as well?
March 23, 2019

Trump smirks as Brazil's far right president says they are united against LGBTQ people

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2019/03/trump-smirks-brazils-far-right-president-says-united-lgbtq-people/?utm_source=LGBTQ+Nation+Subscribers&utm_campaign=b75a1b4ebe-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_03_22_04_58&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c4eab596bd-b75a1b4ebe-429855713

President Jair Bolsonaro said that the U.S. and Brazil are united in their efforts to undermine and erase LGBTQ people while Donald Trump stood beside him.

Bolsonaro and Trump delivered joint statements at the White House yesterday to kick off the Brazilian president’s visit to the U.S.

At the end of his statement, Bolsonaro said, “In conclusion, may I say that Brazil and the United States stand side by side in their efforts to ensure liberties and respect to the traditional family lifestyles and respect to God, our creator, against the gender ideology and the politically correct attitudes and against fake news.”

“May I voice my admiration and recognition to president Donald Trump on this beautiful day where we seal the promising alliance between the two most promising and largest democracies in the Western hemisphere,” he added.

March 23, 2019

Houston drag queen story time organizers quit after death threats from Loving Christians

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2019/03/houston-drag-queen-story-time-organizers-quit-death-threats-loving-christians/?utm_source=LGBTQ+Nation+Subscribers&utm_campaign=b75a1b4ebe-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_03_22_04_58&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c4eab596bd-b75a1b4ebe-429855713

The organizers of Houston’s Drag Queen Story Time project are calling it quits after intimidation and death threats by conservative Christians and nonstop harassment by a religious right leader. Earlier this year, an armed man burst into a Houston library and was arrested after he refused to leave.

Directors Trent Lira and Devin Will wrote a piece for Houstonian that describes the hell they’ve been going through since a local news report spotlighted the children’s reading initiative and why they’ve decided to “step aside.”

“The segment coincided with a City Council meeting at which at-large member Michael Kubosh condemned our program,” the two wrote. “We got our first protesters that same month, July 2018. Texans Against Transgender Tyranny, they were called.”

“They were peaceful and civil. No one inside the Freed-Montrose Library knew there were protesters outside until a patron came in and told us. It continued like this through August and September. It disturbed us, but what could we say? They were standing outside and politely informing the public that there were drag queens in there reading to children. It was their right. It was not a threat.”
March 23, 2019

Roseanne Barr says she can't forgive Sara Gilbert for 'destroying my life' after racist tweet

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2019/03/roseanne-barr-says-cant-forgive-sara-gilbert-destroying-life-racist-tweet/?utm_source=LGBTQ+Nation+Subscribers&utm_campaign=b75a1b4ebe-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_03_22_04_58&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c4eab596bd-b75a1b4ebe-429855713

In a long and winding profile in the Washington Post, Roseanne Barr reflected on the fallout over her racist tweet about former White House advisor Valerie Jarrett – and the grudges she holds over it.

But one person in particular stands out – out actor Sara Gilbert can’t be forgiven according to Barr.

Shortly before ABC axed the reboot of Barr’s iconic sitcom, Roseanne, Gilbert joined the chorus of Americans condemning the comedienne for the tweet, saying it was “abhorrent and do not reflect the beliefs of our cast and crew or anyone associated with our show.”

“She destroyed the show and my life with that tweet,” Barr says. “She will never get enough until she consumes my liver with a fine Chianti.”

March 18, 2019

Dame Edna doubles down on anti-transgender comments

https://www.queerty.com/dame-edna-doubles-anti-transgender-comments-20190318

Barry Humphries–better known as his drag alter ego Dame Edna–has refused to apologize for comments he made about transgender people, even after a public backlash.

Humphries, who began performing as Dame Edna in the 1950s, claims comments he made in 2016 deriding transgender women were misinterpreted, though he did not offer further clarification. “Nothing has been more grotesquely interpreted,” Humphries told The Sunday Times Magazine. “Edna carefully said she thought that men who had themselves castrated did not become women, and that got taken the wrong way.”



The defense came in regards to a 2016 interview in which Humphries–in his Dame Edna persona–agreed with Australian writer Germane Greer that transgender women are merely castrated men. “I agree with Germaine,” Humphries said at the time. “You’re a mutilated man, that’s all. Self-mutilation, what’s all this carry on? Caitlyn Jenner—what a publicity-seeking ratbag.”

In a 2018 interview, he described transgenderism as “a fashion,” further elaborating “how many different kinds of lavatory can you have? And it’s pretty evil when it’s preached to children by crazy teachers.” He also commended Donald Trump for “stirring up politics.”
March 18, 2019

7 US service members identified as part of white nationalist group tied to 2017 Charlottesville rall

https://taskandpurpose.com/military-white-nationlist-groups-charlottesville

Seven U.S. service members have reportedly been identified as members of Identity Evropa, a white nationalist group founded by a Marine veteran and tied to the 2017 Charlottesville rally, according to leaked online chat logs examined by HuffPost.

The logs — which originated from the group chat app Discord and were leaked by the media collective Unicorn Riot —contain messages that, per HuffPost, "indicate that they hold deeply racist and anti-Semitic views and participate in Identity Evropa propaganda campaigns, posting stickers and flyers in cities and on college campuses."

The service members identified by HuffPost include a soldier, two Marines, an airman, a member of the Texas National Guard, and two Army ROTC cadets; each branch of the U.S. armed forces confirmed their respective service.

Identity Evropa, founded by Marine corps veteran Nathan Damigo, was one of several white nationalist groups involved in the violent clashes at the the 2007 'Unite The Right' rally protesting the removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville in 2017.
March 11, 2019

Former Gillibrand aide resigned in protest over handling of sex harassment claims

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/11/gillibrand-sexual-harassment-1214831

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), one of the most outspoken advocates of the #MeToo movement who has made fighting sexual misconduct a centerpiece of her presidential campaign, spent last summer pressing legislators to update Congress’ “broken” system of handling sexual harassment.

At the same time, a mid-20s female aide to Gillibrand resigned in protest over the handling of her sexual harassment complaint by Gillibrand‘s office, and criticized the senator for failing to abide by her own public standards.

In July, the female staffer alleged one of Gillibrand’s closest aides — who was a decade her senior and married — repeatedly made unwelcome advances after the senator had told him he would be promoted to a supervisory role over her. She also said the male aide regularly made crude, misogynistic remarks in the office about his female colleagues and potential female hires.

Less than three weeks after reporting the alleged harassment and subsequently claiming that the man retaliated against her for doing so, the woman told chief of staff Jess Fassler that she was resigning because of the office’s handling of the matter. She did not have another job lined up.
March 11, 2019

Trump's budget would steer $20M to Jack Nicklaus-backed hospital project

Source: Politico

The White House's proposed budget includes funding for a small children's health program sought by one of President Donald Trump's golfing buddies: Jack Nicklaus.

Under the administration's fiscal 2020 funding plan released Monday, HHS would steer $20 million toward a mobile children's hospital project at Miami's Nicklaus Children's Hospital, named for the legendary golfer.

Nicklaus had lobbied Trump on the golf course in Florida, and he met with HHS Secretary Alex Azar and then-OMB Director Mick Mulvaney in Washington, D.C., to request funds, say two individuals with knowledge. Trump personally directed HHS to earmark the funds to help Nicklaus develop mobile children's hospitals, one individual said.

While HHS has supported the use of mobile hospitals after disasters, like devastating hurricanes that have hit the Gulf Coast and the Caribbean, health officials haven't previously seen the need for specialized mobile hospitals for children.

Read more: https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/11/trump-jack-nicklaus-1259949

March 10, 2019

Trump Budget to Include $100M for Ivanka's Women's Fund

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/national-international/Trump-Budget-to-Include-100M-for-Ivankas-Womens-Fund-506873251.html?_osource=SocialFlowFB_BAYBrand

President Donald Trump's 2020 budget proposal will include $100 million for a global women's fund spearheaded by his daughter Ivanka Trump.

She said the budget, expected to be released Monday, will include the funding for the Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative. The administration last month launched the government-wide project, which she leads.

In a statement to The Associated Press, Ivanka Trump noted that Friday was International Women's Day and stressed the initiative's goal to help 50 million women in the developing world get ahead economically over the next six years.

March 8, 2019

Maryland judge rescinds block against transgender military ban

Source: CNN

A federal judge in Maryland cleared the way Thursday for the Pentagon to put in place a Trump administration policy banning most transgender individuals from serving in the military, a move advocates said left only one temporary block in place against the ban.

The ultimate fate of the transgender ban is still playing out in court, although Thursday's decision saw the removal of a nationwide block that had prevented the policy from going into place on a temporary basis. The American Civil Liberties Union, which is fighting the ban, said in a statement following the Maryland ruling that "one additional block on the ban still exists from a different case."

In January, the Supreme Court enabled the policy to go into effect while legal challenges proceeded in lower courts, but US District Judge George Russell had not lifted his court's injunction on the ban, preventing the Pentagon from moving ahead.

That changed on Thursday, when Russell agreed with the Justice Department that in light of the Supreme Court's ruling, the nationwide injunction should no longer stand.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/07/politics/military-transgender-ban/index.html



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