Known as one of the more progressive states in the midwest (one of the very few midwestern states that allow same sex marriage), Iowa is beginning to tarnish that image, or rather one local high school. Media attention is increasing after high school principal is denying students production on The Laramie Project, that is based on the life and senseless murder of Matthew Sheppard because the subject matter is too adult. Here’s more:
The Heartland Connection reports that Ottumwa High School Principal Mark Hanson nixed the show from being performed by the school’s drama club because he felt it was “too adult,” though he noted it “does preach a great message.”
Hanson’s decision was supported by Superintendent Davis Eidahl, who said he wanted “the focus of our Ottumwa High School productions to be for the entire family.” [………]
Officials for The Matthew Shepard Project responded to the controversy on their Facebook page, saying they were “disappointed” by the school’s decision:
“The story of what happened to Matthew and the impact on Laramie offers a meaningful opportunity to engage both the student population and the community in a conversation about hate and the violence it breeds.Teenagers -– whether they be in Iowa, New York City, or any other part of the country –- are living this ‘adult content’ every day in their schools, communities and homes. Students of all ages deal with the issues of bullying, hatred and bias on a daily basis.”
Why is this play not appropriate for high schoolers? This makes one wonder what would be considered “too adult” by these school administrators. Would they have no problems doing the world renown Shakespeare tragedy of Romeo & Juliet that centers on murder, suicide, destructive codependent personalities, drug use, child abuse, oversexualization of minors, delusions of grandeur, mob like mentality…I could go on but you get the point.
It’s always disheartening (and irksome) when educators use such blanket language that also servers as utter hypocrisy. The silver lining that these students will be able to produce the play off campus does not pacify not being able to do the play because of the vague reasoning behind the controversy. This play isn’t too adult for you. It’s too gay for these school administrators and this banning is an insult to not only those that have been working on producing this heartfelt, informative play and those that have dealt with or may still be dealing with bullying.
This is a family story, just not the type of family these school administrators are so loosely trying to justify. Families need to see what happens when ignorance and hate are allowed to grow into something horrible. How bullying is not acceptable in any form. We need to be brave enough and honest enough to show the world as it truly is so that we can learn from it. And after all the recent news of Trayvon Martin and others that have their lives shortened in this country only for it o be swept under the rug is more proof that the lesson of love and acceptance is something we can learn at any age.
Like many people looking to advance equality I too was frustrated with the events of Illinois’ leaders not having enough votes to pass a resolution allowing same sex couples to marry. I’ve expressed before how it felt that the members of the House seemed to be tiptoeing around the situation instead of making a huge commotion of it. At one point it appeared that no one was making any efforts to advance the bill. But that’s not fair because we don’t always hear what goes on behind the scenes and with the reaction of State Rep Harris when he addressed the floor, I feel that even with the outcome he put all the effort he had into making this amendment happen. I can’t fault a man with that much passion and heart for a worthy cause.
But all the same I wish the democratic leaders would have taken a more blunt, in your face approach to this bill. Seems like the more vocal people are, no matter how valid or invalid their position, are heard and given a greater platform to express their views.
As always when something goes awry we look to those that are in some part responsible for our failure. Our failure. All of us. More on that later. But back to my point, the first people that were addressed for being responsible for the bill’s failure was the Black Caucus, who are believed to have been targeted by the guilt machine known as the religious right that were no doubt telling them if gays marry it will be the downfall of society and will lead to bestiality and destruction of families. You know the usual.
I understood the frustration people felt after the announcement that the bill didn’t have enough votes but the way I witnessed people, specifically gay men go after the Black Caucus angered me as well. Because it went from talking about equal rights to name calling. Racial epithets abound in situations like this. The N-Word was used freely and was justified because the Black Caucus was seen as the blame for all the inequity we face as an LGBT community. And there’s a complete disregard, even dismissal of the people that actually created the law in the first place. It becomes about people focusing on only one facet of the complete equation.
Then I find myself in this place. A place where again, like two parents having an ill-timed inappropriate all-out fight in front of their children; I’m made to feel as though I have to pick a side between my race and sexuality. Both are a part of me that I love. Both are aspects to who I am that I had to accept not everyone else would love. That some would openly hate, ridicule, even threaten, but I still choose to love. But they’re glaring at me and wanting me to say who’s right and who’s wrong and I’m sick of it.
I can’t tell you how many times that both communities have made me feel this way and that I have to stand on only one side. Riding the fence is seen as an act of open betrayal against them both and you want to have the best of both world. Well, who doesn’t? Being on this fence means I can point out what I feel each of them is doing wrong. Because that’s what happens when an argument begins with these two groups. Respect turns into animosity and name calling.
I know I’m not the only one that feels this way that are from these two groups. Know I’m not the only one that is made to feel like one is preventing the other from being happy. Because we don’t really talk about the issues in depth other than making a sweeping generalization of a problem that we are ALL are contributing to and also responsible in rectifying. I’ve written about why and where I believe it come from but sometimes it’s hard to describe the feeling other than comparing it to two angry parents fighting with each other.
It’s an odd position to be placed in as a gay African American because I see where both sides stop listening and start accusing. Where two groups that probably share the most commonality of any other groups in our society seem to be at odds. An uneasy association between them that each fails to realize.
Some may say that I’m making this about race or playing this mythical (and completely unreal) race card. But remember this, that for some people, even to this day in 2013, just as it may almost always be about your sexuality, it also is almost always about race. There are still places in our country where you cannot be alone as an African American at night. Targeted because of your skin. It’s insulting to think that some believe that all the varying, intricate degrees of racism that still exist in this country is made up.
It’s not just race that this community seems to have a problem in communicating with. Gender issues are just as prevalent. We complain about when gay men use the terms masc or no femmes or straight acting but we don’t do a real examination this behavior is so prevalent. But how can we complain when our leaders only represent one spectrum of our rainbow. If we ourselves show how diversified this community is, then some of the ideals we don’t like can be addresses more. How are other members going to see where we’re going wrong with assimilating to heteronormative practices when our leaders are comprised of the very thing we admonish. This sameness does not speak to everyone in this community. We don’t try to see the correlation of it being about having unresolved issues and how we can change it. We just complain and then sadly, accept.
Our leaders are almost carbon copies of each other. Not in personality or method. But on the level of appearing the same. Caucasian men with no differentiation. It’s sad that I feel like I have to say it and even sadder that I feel that by saying it some people reading this will make me bringing it up about exclusion or singling these leaders out rather than seeing it as me wanting to be inclusive. By pointing out what I see is problematic is in hopes that it will encourage these leaders to seek out different perspectives within this community than what they are accustomed.
Because it shouldn’t take me more than 10 seconds to think of a Lesbian LGBT leader. Or a transgendered LGBT leader. Bisexual LGBT leader. African American LGBT leader. Hispanic or Disabled or Asian LGBT leader. We need to bring a more diverse yet unified group of people into the forefront because if we are going to reach people like the Black Caucus they need to see there are people like them in this community too. So we need to be more aware that not everyone’s reality is the same as ours in this community because sometimes even we forget that.
As for some the African American community leaders that seem stagnate and unmoving to see how not standing up for LGBT rights is hypocrisy: We have literally been spit on, literally been dragged through the mud, literally beaten to death and called animals and it is time that you stop looking towards the heavens (and your pockets) from these religious zealots that have completely contorted and misconstrued God’s Word for answers that are already right here looking at you. Do you have the right to be angry when someone says “gay is the new black”? yes you do because black has not finished being black. We still face so much prejudice in this country. But we have to be willing to see some of the commonality of this between racial struggle and claiming of sexual orientation.
I have always felt that a part of some African American leaders’ hesitation on advancing the civil rights of the LGBT community is fear of association. Because with as much advancement that we have seen in relation to equality when it comes to race, those memories of blatant discrimination is still fresh. We can remember those first moments of knowing that you will always be made aware of your race and by supporting another group would only disrupt the very delicate membrane of rights it took centuries for us to establish. It’s fear. Understandably fear, but still not good enough reason to oppose the human rights of another.
Many of us have family members alive to tell us stories of our people being treated like dogs while having hoses and dogs used against them. To times where we were told we have no souls and therefore no way to get into heaven. That we aren’t even fully human, just 3/5th. If we are remembering our ancestry and the past we have to remember how prejudice in any way against another human being is not the love the messiah would show to others. We see parallels of the same in the LGBT community almost weekly of being beaten, harassed, even killed and that should incite something within all of us. That oppression falls and equality always prevails. And just like those gay leaders, remember to be aware that not every oppressed group’s reality is the same as yours.
This is not how you reach people. You don’t add validity to your argument when show prejudice and discrimination. And this isn’t the first time that this happened. With how much we know about discrimination we sometimes forget how that also applies to our own behavior as well. The problem is that each group feels like they understand each other but they truly don’t and simply talk at each other rather than to each other. My words are harsh and cold but my intent will always be love. Always, always love. But this is how I feel.
It angers me, frustrates me, even brings me to tears when I think of how there is so much angst between these two groups that are at times unwilling to see each other’s similarities. And just like the child that eventually becomes an adult and tells their parents they can no longer place them in the middle of their argument, you will not make me choose between them. You will not make me choose a side and call the other wrong when it is BOTH of you that are at fault. You will not make me claim one side of my full, actualized identity while ignoring the other. You will not make me feel guilty for embracing and loving you both. So when both sides are truly ready to listen, that is when things will change. For the better.
And as always I promise to love you both while pointing out what you’re doing wrong because while I’m a part of you both I am my own entity that because of this blend of nature can see where you went wrong. Reconciling being of two natures should not be made harder by the very thing that created it.Sometimes the way each of these communities conduct themselves make people like me who belong to both of them feel like they have to choose and we have to be aware of when we do and stop it. Because we are all better than that.
Today, after months of deliberations and criticism from both sides of the debate, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) has come up with a compromise when it comes to allowing LGBT members into their leadership organization. The deal essentially states that gay scout members are allowed into their organization. But there’s a catch to this deal. The ban on LGBT volunteers and leaders are still very much active, with no signs of being lifted. Some call this a partial victory for the LGBT movement, while I believe that it is anything but a win for us.
This is one of the few times that I’m going to be very candid about my opinion by saying that I am completely disgusted at what this decision today implies. Instead of showing these scouts the importance of leadership and teamwork, they’re being shown how to continually condemn different people with different beliefs as this deal is demonizing to the LGBT community. Seriously what does it say when they are saying that no LGBT volunteers or employees are allowed. What’s their reasoning behind that? Do they think that we prey on young victims and brainwash them into being compact carrying queens? Because if they don’t want us to be mentors to scouts then that means that they believe by nature that we are a manipulative group of people set out to recruit unsuspecting victims. They are essentially implying that we are pedophiles and I am livid at the snide, covert accusation that this decision implies.
This also means that LGBT parents like Jennifer Tyrell can’t even participate with her son in any of the “community” and “family” activities because they don’t believe we are capable or deserving to have the same “rights” as them. How can we trust that they won’t tell him that who his mother is, an out and proud lesbian, that she is wrong for being gay? If they are so indulgent on the notion of honesty, I wish they’d have the courage to say it instead of this vapid attempt to pacify us and the leaders of this community. How do we know that this isn’t some move to ensure whatever manipulative, reparative therapy-like measures will be woven into earning merit badges and by not allowing LGBT volunteers or leaders means they can implement whatever brainwashing techniques to “fix” our children’s beliefs? It’s all hypothetical questions but if they’re still openly excluding us, how can we be assured that ulterior motives are not at play?
Would our children even be allowed to be openly gay in the BSA? Would they condemn the gay scout for any “improper” behavior that they see as “not up to code” when that really means is that anything that they see as feminine or gay. I shake my head at how they would deal with transgendered scout members, a group that has not been mentioned at all by the LGBT activists that are calling this deal a victory. Will they be able to treat a female to male transgendered scout with support and be welcoming or tell them that they’re wrong? Will they allow male to female transgendered scouts to remain in the organization or will they let these scouts be mocked and bullied by other scouts? If they have some implied belief that we’ll grow out of being gay, then they probably will do the same to this group.
And what of the gay scout members in this organization. To me, this implies that the BSA believes that we’ll somehow grow out of being gay. That being gay is just a phase that their Christian Bible Thumping values will somehow lead us out of our “sinful” thinking”. What will they tell to the scout members that come out? Will it be someone nurturing and kind that will sit with the child and help them process this information or will they tell them how they still believe homosexuality is wrong? There are too many questions that no one seems to be asking the Boy Scouts of America.
What happens to the gay scouts who have been with the organization for years as a child and they turn 18? Are they stripped of any titles they spent years on thrown out? Can they no longer progress forward and become an Eagle Scout? What is the point if they can’t even progress any further in the organization? That’s the only conclusion we can come to if they have a cutoff as adults.
All this deal has done at best is present us with more questions than a sign of compromise and change. This may all seem like an outlandish assumption of how they will deal with gay scout members but honestly how do we know we can trust them. So no, this is not a time of celebration for LGBT activists and equal rights advocates. I do not in any way shape or form believe this is a step in the right direction or a show of real progress. This deal is just a more covert, disguised form of prejudice and homophobia. Quite the opposite actually. This is a slap in the face. This is not some change of heart or evolution into seeing that we are people and deserve equal rights. The Boy Scouts of America are STILL condemning who and what we are and to believe anything to the contrary is flat out wrong.
This deal is so reminiscent of the Jim Crow laws, Grandfather Clauses and the 3/5 Compromise of our nation’s history where my African American ancestors were not seen as human. They were denied their rights as citizens and were seen as animals that did not deserve the same treatment that everyone else received because we didn’t fit into the nice, neat little package of“normal good folk“. This deal is saying the same thing, that we are not good enough and cannot be trusted around their children while they can placate any lie and fallacy in ideology onto our children. This deal openly mocks us.
We should be frustrated and upset, because if they don’t trust us, how can we trust them with our children? How can we trust that they will treat instances of bullying fairly when they don’t even believe we have a right to be who we are. Those are the questions we should be asking them right now. It’s about how can we trust them, not the other way around. As a community, we have nothing to prove to these bigots. There’s no way in hell I would ever allow a child of mine in such a demented, callous mindset as the BSA. I do not trust them. And neither should you.
In more bigoted news it appears that a dedicated educator and principal has been dismissed from his administrative position at a Oregon elementary school because he’s openly gay. Here’s more:
Many parents believe an Oregon-based elementary school’s principal of 10 years will not be returning next year because he’s gay.
As KATU is reporting, district officials have decided not to renew North Gresham Elementary School Principal Tom Klansnic’s contract, even though Klansnic has been a part of the district for nearly a decade.
Klansnic reportedly divorced his wife about three years ago, shortly before coming out as gay to friends and family. His attorney Judy Snyder told KOIN Local 6 that his relationship with school supervisors changed dramatically after the disclosure.
“He’s been a very successful principal and he’s continued to be a very successful principal even under close scrutiny of the last two years,” Snyder told the news station. “He’s had a great deal of difficulty getting specifics as to what he has failed to do to meet performance expectations.”
She added that her client may sue the school district for discrimination and retaliation.
Interestingly, The Oregonian reports that North Gresham Elementary School students are currently in the midst of a weeklong program called “Stand Up Together,” which is aimed at combating bullying.
Klansnic’s case follows that of Mike Moroski, an assistant principal who was allegedly fired from an Ohio Catholic school after he penned a personal blog in support of same-sex marriage on his website.
How ironic that the school that’s allegedly discriminating against Klansnic is having an equality program. Does he have a case based off the administration’s inability to provide satiable evidence of Klansnic’s insufficient performance? People have been sued for a lot less, and if these reports only began to come in after he came out, hemay have a solid case.
If anything this should be showing how vital and important that we as a community step up the dismal efforts made to make ENDA (Employee Non Discrimination Act) a reality. Equal rights don’t just at marriage equality and it baffles me that more efforts are not being made to legislatures to prevent things of this nature happening. You can still be fired for being gay in 29 states currently with no discernible reprimand. So instead of fancy dinners that recognize people known for their garish anti-gay slurs we should be advocating job safety, right GLAAD?
IN “this is so stupid” news a self proclaimed author and “actor” Nicholas Brown found it pertinent to divulge the trials and tribultion of a straight actor playing a gay role. In the oh so (NOT) riveting Why Do I Still Feel Uncomfortable Playing a Gay Man on TV?, Brown questions the thougtht processes that he goes through to portray a gay man, accurately or otherwise. Overall in a very vague sentiment of history, stereotypes, and prejudices, Brown recalls how gay roles are very trying, even though he has a plethora of friends and family who are gay:
I am not gay. I have no shortage of gay friends. My uncle is gay. I’ve marched in a gay pride parade. More than half of the roommates I have lived with are gay. I support marriage equality.
So it comes as a shock to me when I realize that, actually, if I am honest with myself, I’m not comfortable with kissing another man on camera. I really don’t want to book this part.
I don’t want people to think I’m gay. And I’m even more uncomfortable because that isn’t a thought that I want to have.
Acting is a curious profession. The Oscars tend to award actors who transfigure themselves. Think of Charlize Theron in Monster or Phillip Seymour Hoffman in Capote. And most actors actively want to stretch outside of themselves. That is, after all, why we tried to make a career out of pretending. But people tend to assume things about you after they have seen you onstage. The character and the person are conflated.
Still, I wouldn’t turn down a commercial that required me to pretend to slap a child, or one where I played a Nazi. And—assuming the ad wasn’t advocating child abuse or Nazism—I don’t think I would feel odd about the audition.
Alright enough is enough. The rest of the article reads as some power point to justify Brown’s “bold” declaration. And since Brown is so forthcoming, I’ll return the favor. Your article is insulting and I am so sick of these vain pretentious actors like you Brown being praised and recognized for playing gay characters. And here you go thinking that they’re “brave” and then complaining about how uncomfortable you felt during the process of doing YOUR JOB? Please shut the hell up.
Every time you go out and say something so inanely stupid further perpetuates this inaccurate stereotype that being gay is a chore. That being gay is some big effort that requires a lot of effort.And on some subconscious level, you talking about being “uncomfortable” implies to the reader that gay is a choice. Because you imply that you can play an abuser or murderer with ease, but something that involves a nonviolent kiss with a guy gives you concern and you have to make a conscious effort to participate (instead of just not going for gay roles, which would actually make sense).
You choosing a r0le is a choice. Me responding to your ignorant article is a choice. Being gay is not a choice. Even when discussing the matter of the discrepancies of gay actors being denied playing straight characters and giving justifications isn’t about you wanting to expand your talent. It’s about money and your wallet. Since you’re taking this existential journey why not go all the way and be honest about it. I think what you were trying to do was discuss it as a process like any normal job preparation but instead tried to justify why you and others feel that way. Well let me tell you, you missed the mark.
You’re probably wondering in astonishment why I am being so confrontational about your statements, failing to see my issue is. Well, for the most part, we spend on average about the first two decades or more of our lives finally accepting our sexuality. Some of us still repress it because there is still a need to fit into society rather than accepting and completely owning that we are sexual beings.. Not that being being gay is difficult but because life is difficult. Acceptance is difficult. Society is difficult. Out culture that slowly moves towards equality and on a consciously accepts on a moralistic level to demonize gay makes our lives difficult. Misconceptions and ignorance is the catalyst to all of this and Brown, you’re serving up a hefty pile of it in your article.
In all fairness, Brown does try to repair some of his verbal damage by issuing an apology, and it is suggestive, albeit not clear, on wanting to change that part of himself as he recognizes this flaw in himself:
I, at least, am sorry. You don’t have to believe in a Judeo-Christian god to find something redeeming in confession. I am sorry that I balked at the idea of pretending to be gay. I am sorry that my uncle went home alone all those years. I am sorry for the whole ugly human history of slights and hate crimes and exclusion.
It seems important to acknowledge the depth and power of our biases, particularly at a time of year when many of us try to devote ourselves to being better people. There is something vicious in each of us. Depressing though that may seem, focusing on our flaws is a first necessary part of wanting to be better. The hope that we can be better, it seems to me, deserves great celebration.
Even in your apology, you congratulate yourself but offer no substance to it like how you would work to understand why this uncomfortable stance exists within you. That would be an actual benefit but again, your vague reasoning is so aloof from substance.
And your weak, strained opinion on how hard it is for you to portray a gay character further represses us. We get enough of this shit from NOM and FRC but I sometimes wonder if people like you are the ones that do the most damage. People that claim accpetance, seeminly nonintrusive and welcoming, spreading ignorance and a pompous air of accomplishment. We already have vapid nihilists like Bret Easton Ellis for that Brown so we doon’t need you adding to the collective pool of derisive ignorance. You or any other actor making the same stupid statements are not brave for making this declaration. You’re assholes.
What happens when you have a ban on cross dressing on your cruise ship then have an event featuring drag queens? Drama is what happens. Apparently the people of the Carnival Glory cruise ship failed to see how this was going to be an issue.
See, they decided to invite contestants from RuPaul’s Drag Race for an event called Drag Stars at Sea to have a star studded performance on this voyage through the seas. But then they issued a letter to these drag stars to not dress in drag in undesignated parts of the ship so it wouldn’t upset the people on ship. Here’s an excerpt of that email:
“Carnival attracts a number of families with children and for this reason; we strive to present a family friendly atmosphere. It is important to us that all guests are comfortable with every aspect of the cruise. Although we realize this group consists solely of adults, we nonetheless expect all guests to recognize that minors are onboard and, refrain from engaging in inappropriate conduct in public areas. … Guests are not allowed to dress in drag for the performances or in public areas at any time during the cruise. We’re sorry to say that any guest who violates our policies and/or whose behavior affects the comfort and enjoyment of other guests, will be disembarked at their own expense and no refund will be given.”
What does this cruise ship think drag queens are? They shouldn’t have to hide who they are. That’s the impression that this email leaves when they treat it as something that needs to be hidden from the rest of the passengers on the ship. As a result, there was a lot of public outcry from potential passengers on this cruise set to take place next week. So then the president of Carnival, Gerry Cahill, issued this statement:
“Within the last 24 hours, we became aware of a miscommunication between Carnival Cruise Lines and AlandChuck.travel, who have booked a large special interest group on the upcoming Carnival Glorycruise departing December 2, 2012.
The group, ‘Drag Stars at Sea,’ includes several performances by stars from Logo TV as part of a series of private events onboard. When the group was presented to us we were advised that only the performers would be dressed in drag during the private events. However, we are now aware that this was not clearly communicated to members of the group and therefore anyone who wishes to dress in drag may do so. Please keep in mind that our safety and security procedures require guests to present government-issued ID, and to be recognizably that person.
At Carnival, we are proud to carry more than 4.5 million guests every year and we welcome them all aboard. We do not practice any form of discrimination against the LGBT or any other community. We sincerely apologize for the miscommunication and for any unintended offense we have caused.”
Okay, so now they say you have to match the identity of you identification for security purposes. It seems kind of sketchy to me, like this was an afterthought on the part of Carnival. I mean it is valid when you’re in the waters of other countries to have proper ID that matches you in any case, but this isn’t what the original email said. The original message talks about “family” and being “comfortable”. What do you think?
If like me, and you enjoy role playing games (RPG) like Skyrim, Mass Effect 3, and others that provide a rich full life experience into expansive worlds, then you want those games that allow you to create your own character, you often want that character to reflect you. Having the options to customize the experiences by customize the character’s attributes like height, eye color, are natural. Shouldn’t sexual orientation be a factor as well? I mean if a marriage option is included in the main story arc or the result of a side quest or just to make the experience richer, there should be a way to do so.
Now some games have made progress in this. Both Skyrim and Mass Effect 3 allow you to do this and there are rumors that the new Dragon Age game will also share this feature. And despite this refreshing evolution, there are still some game manufacturers and creators that feel that marriage equality is still “too controversial”.
And unfortunately, one of my favorite game franchises still feels marriage equality is controversial. Final Fantasy by Square Enix, a game franchise that expands decades long that has provided thousands of hours of rich full characters and story plots will soon be releasing the next chapter in their gaming experience. “Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn.” recently had a Q and A in which they frankly said that in their new game that will now have a marriage feautre will only have opposite sex “traditional” marriage:
As for same-sex marriage, this is an extremely controversial topic that has been under discussion in the MMO world for the past few years. First we would like to start out with opposite-sex marriage, and then consider the feedback from our players in order to make a careful decision. I can’t say whether or not it will be possible at this point in time. I’d like to keep dialog open with our players as we deliberate the matter.
Of course my question is, why not just include same sex marriage in the game to begin with? It isn’t a requirement of the game and just something you can do if you choose to do so. So why not just already have that available for the LGBT gamers like me that regularly buy these games along with their overly priced downloadable content (DLC). What about our experience?
If the option exists t\for a character to marry, then that should reflect all gamers not just the majority demographic. At best this is lazy and shoddy of them to leave it out and at worst showing a prejudice bias towards LGBT gamers. And to those hecklers in the gaming world saying we’re asking for too much, you’re wrong. All we want is to have the same experience in our characters as you and this takes nothing from you. Square Enix, your bias is showing.
As the war for equality continues to be fought in the food industry, The gay couple that was refused a wedding cake from Materpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood Colorado protested the bitter bigots bakery (see what I did there? it’s Monday, okay?) Charlie Craig and Dave Mullins held a peaceful protest Saturday outside the bakery in response to them refusing to make a wedding reception cake. Held up signs saying Buttercream Not Bigotry Love it. Serioously someone put this on a shirt and take my money.
Mullins commented on the rallying support worldwide that have shown support and says,”It’s incredible to have people we barely know stand up for us and hug us and be proud of us,” “It’s one thing to read people’s messages online and see what they’re writing on the Internet, but it’s another thing to see them stand up not for just you but for gay rights in general. We hope we can change the way Masterpiece treats people like us.”
The owner of the bakery Jack Phillips feels his religious position “comes from my belief in the teachings of the Bible; it’s not civil rights or Constitutional liberties we’re dealing with,” Whatever dude. How the hell are you bringing politics into your product?
Phillips has stated previously and rather ignorantly that the bakery is willing to make birthday and graduation cakes for gay people. H|This isn’t the first time customers has had issues with the bakery. They have a istory of projecting their Insecurities beliefs onto customers.
Phillips also ignorantly states,“When I do a first birthday cake, I imagine the baby in the high chair and the family gathering around and smiling, and I feel like I’m a part of that because I contributed to it. But with gay weddings, I refuse to be a part of that.” And don’t gay couples do the EXACT same thing with their children? Create loving memories with their family? How unbelievably hypocritical.
i cannot believe that future generations will look back on thee fight for equal rights and see that baked sweets and chicken were catalysts.
Anyway, with their wedding happening in September, the couple realized by the recent events that they needed to be more proactive in the fight for equality. We wish the happy couple all the best on their upcoming nuptials.
Two weeks ago a young man, Paul Zilber, was visiting his partner after a suicide attempt and was accompanied by his partner’s grandparents at the Saint Barnabas Behavioral Center. Unfortunately, the visit to the behavioral center in Toms River, New Jersey dissolved into an act of discrimination towards a gay couple. Paul explainswhen the nurse’s behavior changed quickly when discovering he and his partner are gay. The nurse said. ‘Oh your partner in crime?’ I said, ‘No, I’m his boyfriend, thank you.’ She then sighed and said ‘Oh… .’ She rolled her eyes, and gave me a thumbs up and walked away.” How rude of her.
What’s even more disurbing is when Paul went to give his partner a hug, the staff responded rudely and told him that wasn’t protocol, evven though his partner’s grandparents had just given the newly admitted patient a hug. Paul then asked “why it was okay for everyone else to give hugs and kisses but it was not okay for me?”
You don’t know how much this angers me that a mental health staff conducted themselves in such an unprofessional manner. The first rule of any health profession is to DO NO HARM and the situation was obviously causing the patient more distress. Whatever their own stance this entire situation the Saint Barnabas staff should have NEVER happened in front of the patient.
The experience became even more difficult as Paul sought after answers of his partner’s condition. Paul stated ”I was very upset, and every time I would call a nurse would say, ‘I’m sorry, we have an order that we cannot speak to you, and that he cannot speak to you.’” Fortunately, Paul was told he could come back and visit his partner BUT under this stipulation that Paul ”promises to be appropriate.” Paul’s partner became distressed feeling his treatment was being affected because of his sexuality and his grandparents had him released the following day.
This is more than problematic for several reasons. President Obama issued a mandate in 2010 stipulating that visitation rights be extended to same sex couples. Also the patient himself along with family members had no problems with Paul being there in support. If you see or hear of issues like this be as vocal as possible because no staff working in the mental health field should ever conduct themselves this way.
Don’t ever allow this type of behavior for you are any of your loved ones and speak with the facilities administration. If they are funded federally, they are more than likely held to fair treatment of same sex couples. A petition has been started in show of support. You can sign the petition with over 19000 signatures here.
