Free Republic

Several members of Columbia University’s 2019 championship fencing team wanted to hand deliver a letter to President Trump Friday, accusing his administration of having “perpetuated a culture that conditions women and minority gender identities to be silent.” Elise Gout and three of her teammates planned to hand the letter to the president during a White House visit for athletes and coaches from 22 collegiate national championship teams. Gout said that the letter argued that the Trump administration has “perpetuated a culture that conditions women and minority gender identities to be silent — to sacrifice the space they have every right to take...

says the $10,000 he was mandated to pay after the criminal case against him was closed should prevent the city of Chicago from seeking reimbursement for the police investigation following his claim, back in January 2019, that he was a victim of a racist and homophobic attack. Attorneys for the former "Empire" actor filed a response Tuesday to Chicago’s lawsuit in federal court. They also filed a counterclaim against the city, saying Smollett was the victim of a malicious prosecution that caused humiliation and extreme distress. JUSSIE SMOLLETT SLAMS COMPARISON TO 12-YEAR-OLD GIRL WHO LIED ABOUT CLASSMATES CUTTING HER DREADLOCKS In January,...

About 100 students at an Oregon high school walked out of classes last week in support of the LGBTQ community after they said a series of events made students feel unsafe, including the presence of a Chick-fil-A food truck at home football games. The West Linn High School students, organized by the school’s Gender and Sexuality Alliance, walked out of school Friday to protest what they say is rising anti-LGBTQ sentiment on campus. GSA President Susie Walters, who organized the protest, told a local NBC affiliate that LGBTQ students have increasingly been the target of harassment and bullying at the school. Two recent incidents sparked the protest, including...

Singer Ellie Goulding is threatening to back out of a performance at the Dallas Cowboys’ Thanksgiving game halftime show over fan complaints about the Salvation Army. The Grammy-nominated artist was set to perform at the game between the Cowboys and the Buffalo Bills during the halftime show, which will kick off the organization’s annual Red Kettle Campaign.The backlash came after Goulding took to Instagram on Tuesday to share an image of herself helping out at a Salvation Army location in New York City, which prompted some followers to criticize her for backing an organization they believe is not supportive of...

A married gay couple are taking legal action against a Trump administration policy that has hindered their baby daughter’s fight for US citizenship. Roee and Adiel Kiviti, who are both US citizens, ran into trouble with the State Department after welcoming baby Kessem via a surrogate in Canada earlier this year. The couple are both listed on Kessem’s Canadian birth certificate, but the State Department treats the children of same-sex couples as “born out of wedlock,” only recognising her link to biological father Adiel. The out-of-wedlock status has hindered the application for the birthright citizenship that she would be entitled...

+972, a site that misses no opportunity to bash Israel, posted a report about a protest organized by the “queer palestinian community” (hat tip: Uri). Oren Ziv/Activestills.org The queer Palestinian community organized an unprecedented protest in Haifa on Thursday, as approximately 200 demonstrators arrived at the German Colony, a central area in the city, to protest violence targeting the LGBT community. The protest was organized in response to the stabbing of a transgender teen from Tamra, a Palestinian city in northern Israel, outside a shelter for LGBT youth in Tel Aviv last week. The protest was planned by a group...

“I felt like I had been punched in the stomach. I was just gasping for air.” That’s how Nancy Rost recalls the moments after her husband, Tom, walked through the door of their home six years ago this month. In his hand, Tom held a letter from a longtime employee. On his face, the easy confidence Nancy had seen from Tom every day since they met each other as children was missing, replaced by a palpable sense of anxiety. Immediately, Tom and Nancy knew that the contents of the letter had the potential to devastate R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral...

U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) co-captain Megan Rapinoe ripped into the “send her back” chant that erupted at President Donald Trump’s recent campaign rally, calling it “disgusting and despicable.” “I think we’re one step away from just saying a racial slur on national television, from the president of the United States,” Rapinoe said in an interview with the Charlotte Observer published Saturday. The chant about Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) was “sad and disgusting and despicable,” said the athlete, who protested the national anthem during the World Cup. Rapinoe previously made headlines for saying she would not visit the “fucking White...

British politician David Smith from Middlesborough who pushed for gender-neutral bathrooms in the community was charged with nine counts of sexually touching a child. Last month Smith pushed for gender-neutral bathrooms in the the Middlesbrough Council buildings. Smith said his interest in the gender-neutral bathrooms stemmed from interactions with “transgender and non-binary people” Smith argues he is innocent and vows to fight the nine charges Lifesite News reported: An English town councillor who hopes to make government-owned facilities gender-neutral has been charged with nine counts of sexually touching a child. David Smith, 30, represents Coulby Newham, a suburb of Middlesbrough,...

A Florida Democrat who ended her run for a seat in the state's House of Representatives late last month admitted to authorities that her claim of being a medical doctor who treated Pulse nightclub shooting victims in Orlando wasn't true, according to a charging affidavit released this week. “I lied,” Elizabeth McCarthy told state investigators, Florida Politics reported. "It is a false statement." During her candidacy, McCarthy, 50, told people she was a doctor at Orlando Regional Medical Center and treated 32 victims of the 2016 massacre. I lied. It is a false statement."  — Elizabeth McCarthy, former Florida state House candidate “I personally removed 77 bullets from...

Izakaya Sushi Ran, the Castro's gastropub answer to the popular Sausalito restaurant Sushi Ran, has closed. Originally called Nomica when it opened in 2016, it changed names last fall and served izakaya-style small plates, mains, sushi rolls and cocktails. A message on the restaurant's website says the following: "Dear friends, Ya'll, we made a mistake! While rocks r a common prt of anti-homeless architecture, this particular rock is NOT. It's a Japanese garden. Izakaya Sushi is a valued member of the commnity & is supportive of its homeless neighbors. We apologize & offer deep appreciation to the staff https://twitter.com/TheCoalitionSF/status/1141401379094724608 …

You may perhaps have heard about the preteen drag performer who goes by the name “Desmond Is Amazing.” Desmond Napoles is an online sensation who’s appeared on “Good Morning America” and has become a cause célèbre among the LGBT community. In January, a bit of a cultural scuffle happened that may have gone under the radar. Desmond, who is managed by his parents, appeared in December, at the age of 11, at the 3 Dollar Bill, a New York City establishment that is either a “gay bar” (the description used by The American Conservative’s Rod Dreher) or “a queer, multifunctional...

A survey produced by the Harris Poll in partnership with Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) finds young Americans’ comfort with LGBTQ individuals has plunged from 63 percent in 2016 to 45 percent in 2018. According to the Accelerating Acceptance report, Americans aged 18-34 who say they are comfortable interacting with LGBTQ people dropped from 63 percent in 2016 to 53 percent in 2017, and then to 45 percent in 2018. The survey results are published as lesbian, gay, and transgender activists celebrate Pride month. “At the same time, the Trump administration continues to attack the LGBTQ community through...

MajorSocially Acceptable Movement Corporations Bravely Come Out In Support Of Incredibly Popular, Socially Acceptable Movement U.S.—For Pride Month, hundreds of corporations are being applauded for bravely coming out in support of an incredibly popular, socially acceptable, entirely mainstream movement: the LGBTQ+ community. It obviously takes a lot of courage for a big corporation to fly a rainbow-colored flag, sell rainbow merchandise, or temporarily change their logo to pride colors. So these massive companies are really going out on a limb here, supporting a movement that you're literally ostracized for not supporting. "I'm so glad to see that YouTube is using...

Sweet Cakes by Melissa refused service to a lesbian couple Avakian lost his bid to Oregon Secretary of State to a Republican (CNN) — Could it be the year of the underdog? The presidential election wasn't the only contest to see an upset. Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian, who came to national attention for heftily fining a local bakery that refused to make a wedding cake for a lesbian couple, lost. Avakian, a champion of the LGBTQ community, was running for Secretary of State. As labor commissioner since 2008, Avakian often made news for his tough calls against businesses discriminating...

Ok – this is pretty messed up. A second-grade boy asked if he could use the teacher’s restroom, as he was having stomach issues and was nervous to use the boy’s room at risk of being mocked. His teacher figured this CLEARLY meant he was transgender and took it upon herself to give that kid lessons on gender identity during his recess period. I kid you not. According to Fox 40: Parents in Woodburn said their 8-year-old son was held back from recess multiple times for one-on-one conversations about his gender identity – and they had no idea. The mother...

All they had to do was make average tasting cookies at competitive prices. Instead, Chips Ahoy decided it’d be a good idea to do this. What in the… I’m not even sure what this is supposed to mean. Even if someone believes being a drag queen makes a man suddenly become a woman, they don’t become suddenly become a mother in the process. That’s kind of separate aspect of feminism that you can’t just appropriate. Also, aren’t drag queens a different thing than transgenders, i.e. they don’t claim to be the opposite sex? None of this makes any sense. There’s...

A human sexuality course at the University of North Texas asks enrolled students to observe “sexual interactions” in young children. The class also included a presentation titled “Sexual Pleasure and Response in Infants.”

Man, they are really ticked about that Kavanaugh vote. After Susan Collins voted to affirm the latest justice to join the Supreme Court, Democrats vowed to make her re-election campaign a nightmare. Maybe they are actually just planning to have her die of laughter? Sensing the lack of a Democratic candidate willing to challenge Sen. Susan Collins (R., Maine), a “queer feminist mermaid” named Bre Kidman—politically mobilized by the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation fight—has filed to enter the race. Here’s how her bio describes her. On Facebook, Kidman is described as a “criminal defense attorney by day and radical fat queer/performance artist/model/musician/activist most...

He Is ‘Innocent, Honest, and Above All Filled with Integrity’ At this point, everyone knows Jussie Smollett staged his own hate crime attack for publicity purposes. It still amazes me that he can stand here with a straight face and tell us he was attacked. There’s an overwhelming amount of evidence against him. It’s like he thinks we’re all stupid or something. That brings me to this. Some of his former co-stars on “Empire” are demanding Fox to rehire him, even though he’s a bloody liar who will only draw bad publicity for the show. Via DeadLine: “Together, as a...