{U} Lipstick Lesbian Quilted Tapestry
Unorthodox {Store Catalog} posted a photo:
A fun quilted tapestry to hang on the walls!
100% Mesh
Lesbian Flag ~
Can buy here: marketplace.secondlife.com/p/U-Lipstick-Lesbian-Quilted-T…
or here: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Kingdoms/54/199/3001
It’s official! Adam Rippon and his 100% real booty are headed to the Winter Olympics
Well, it’s official! The United States is sending its first-ever openly gay male athlete to the Winter Olympics.
Nile Rodgers Celebrated David Bowie’s Birthday with a Stunning Unreleased Demo of ‘Let’s Dance’ – LISTEN
Producer Nile Rodgers celebrated the late David Bowie’s 71st birthday on Monday with an unreleased demo of his classic 1983 hit “Let’s Dance” and what a gift it is.
Writes Rolling Stone: “Compared to the bombast of the final version, the demo presents “Let’s Dance” in its bare bones form, with Bowie’s singing thrust to the song’s forefront.”
Said Rodgers: “I’ve been blessed with a wonderful career but my creative partnership with David Bowie ranks very, very, very high on the list of my most important and rewarding collaborations. This demo gives you, the fans, a bird’s eye view of the very start of it! I woke up on my first morning in Montreux with David peering over me. He had an acoustic guitar in his hands and exclaimed, ‘Nile, darling, I think this is a HIT!’”
The post Nile Rodgers Celebrated David Bowie’s Birthday with a Stunning Unreleased Demo of ‘Let’s Dance’ – LISTEN appeared first on Towleroad.
Mixed Race And ‘Other’: A Crisis Of Colour
It’s a funny thing being brown. It’s a word that isn’t completely accepted as a descriptor of an individual’s colour. If I shouted “I’M A STRONG, BROWN, INDEPENDENT WOMAN!”; it certainly doesn’t feel convincing. Saying ‘I’m brown’ in the past has often received some laughs. Even I find it a bit comical, because I’m also not ready to take ‘brown’ as seriously as I would white or black, or give it the narrative and story it deserves.
“This is what it’s like to be brown…” doesn’t feel like t
he start of a compelling tale about race. Why? Well, for me, pre-today’s society where we can self-define and own what we are, it had always really been three things growing up; white, black and mixed race. If you grew up mixed race, you often felt colourless. You felt colourless, while also being taught to be flexible to colour, both when it helped you fit in, and when dictated by others.
“You’re basically white Roxy”
“Roxy, as a black woman…”
But simultaneously, if someone asked “Is Roxy black?”, I know people would respond with “No, she’s mixed race”. And like that my colour is taken away, because ‘No she’s brown’ was not a valid response. And that’s the thing about being brown and mixed race, people tell you what you are, while everyone else gets to just be what they are, no questions asked.
After years of confusion, today I’m more accepting that brown is the most accurate way to describe my colour. But after growing in confidence to say it, it can also feel like society can swing towards telling me I’m black. It now feels like it’s acceptable to say I’m black because I’m a ‘person of colour’. We see society labelling people as black when it suits our goal of becoming a more inclusive society. Meghan Markle, Barack Obama. Neither black, both making headlines as ‘our first black…’, both mixed race. Or are they brown? Starting to empathise with the dilemma?
As well as facing an ethnicity crisis, I am in a colour crisis. Take forms, for instance. Here’s what they look like:
White British | Black British
*multiple other options*
Mixed Race – Black African/White | Mixed Race – Black Caribbean/White
Then me…
Mixed Race – Other (any other background)
Note, mixed race is also rarely followed by ‘British’. Forms throw me, a weird combination of colour, ethnicity and nationality, and then there I am, meeting none; an ‘other’.
If we were to add me up, what am I? I only have a quarter of white in me; does that make me black by majority? Am I what I present externally or what I am made up of internally? How brown do you have to be before you’re black? I’ve seen lighter skinned black people the same colour as me, but they’re black because both their parents are black. That’s not the case for me, so I’m mixed race, an ‘other’.
I want a colour, and in the same way ‘mixed race’ holds so much ambiguity, not having a colour does too. I have to connect with others on the ‘mixed race experience’, while many get to connect on their black or white identity. It is rare that brown people sit down and talk about being brown people. Being expected to connect on being ‘mixed race’ can also be hard, because it’s very unlikely I will ever meet a fellow half Mauritian, quarter Iraqi, quarter English person to connect with, as say a Nigerian person may connect with a Nigerian person.
White was not previously seen as a colour or race because white people deemed themselves the norm, the default, therefore black people were ‘coloured’. But now white identity gets more prominence in discussion, partly through fear of loss, partly through acceptance of wrongs. As the far right try to ‘reclaim’ Britishness and fight for white rights, and the left start owning up to their white privilege; both are further up the agenda in conversations society wants to have (the second being ironic), and we recognise white as a colour and identity. ‘Brown’ remains allusive and uncertain, I remain confused.
I don’t believe all black and white people connect because they have the same experience, that’s not true, every experience is individual, like mine. But there is common ground to be shared, and part of that comes from being under the banner of a colour, that colour being recognised, and that colour influential in how others see you.
The problem is, brown mixed race people’s time is spent shifting between colours in response to how others want us. When white mixed race people can still join the identity of white, who am I connecting with? As a brown person, I don’t feel like I meet either end. But here’s the thing, people are mixing. Mixed race people are the FASTEST growing ethnic group in the UK. At some point, we will all be mixed race, that will span across colours, and ‘mixed race’ may be even more unclear than it is now.
So as much as I love talking about my mixed race experience, given society is not yet colour-blind, I think I’d quite like to be seen as brown too, if that’s okay? Is it? Someone tell me, let’s face it, you always have.
(View more of my blogs on mixed race identity here)
www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/mixed-race-and-other-a-crisis-of-colour_uk_5a53eebee4b0cd114bdb35ca
Is Peter Thiel gunning to become the even more right-wing version of Roger Ailes?
Thiel is apparently looking to launch a new media company, one that promises to give Fox News and Breitbart a run for their money.
Potential WH Press Secretary Gayle King Isn’t Hushing the Oprah 2020 Talk: WATCH
Oprah 2020? CBS This Morning co-host Gayle King reacted on Tuesday morning to talk of her best friend’s potential run for president..
Said King: “I absolutely don’t think her position has changed. I do think she’s intrigued by the idea. I also know that after years of watching the Oprah Show, you always have the right to change your mind, but that’s certainly not something she’s considering right now.”
“.@Oprah is intrigued by the idea” but not considering a presidential run right now – More from @GayleKing on @CBSThisMorning pic.twitter.com/RZYFwPtyGf
— Norah O’Donnell
(@NorahODonnell) January 9, 2018
Oprah is actively considering a run for president in 2020, according to two close friends who spoke with CNN reporter Brian Stelter.
Following her rousing and powerful speech at last night’s Golden Globes, #Oprah2020 began trending on Twitter, stoking rumors that the speech was a stepping stone to a potential run.
The post Potential WH Press Secretary Gayle King Isn’t Hushing the Oprah 2020 Talk: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.
Potential WH Press Secretary Gayle King Isn’t Hushing the Oprah 2020 Talk: WATCH
Ausgerechnet bei der Nationalhymne: Trump hat peinlichen Aussetzer
Als Trump das Mercedes-Benz Stadiion in Atlanta zum Finale des US-College-Football betritt, rumort es. Eine Mischung aus Jubel und Buh-Rufen schallt durch die mit 77.000 Zuschauern gefüllte Arena.
Das Endspiel des US-College-Football ist das zweitwichtigste Ereignis im American Football neben dem Super-Bowl.
Als Trump dann auf dem Spielfeld steht, um die Nationalhymne zu singen, passiert es: Plötzlich setzt er aus. Während einer Zeile des “Star-Spangled Banner” bewegen sich seine Lippen nicht.
Hat er den Text vergessen? Das zumindest vermuten zahlreiche Twitter-User und überschütten den Präsidenten mit Spott und Häme.
Uhhh….the President of the United States pretty obviously doesn’t know the National Anthem. Oh my god. #NationalChampionshippic.twitter.com/5L5BNajgbs
— Kendally Brown (@kendallybrown) January 9, 2018
Der Zeitpunkt für Trumps Aussetzer ist denkbar ungünstig.
Seit Tagen wird in Washington über kaum etwas anderes diskutiert als Trumps mentalen Zustand.
Ist der Präsident psychisch nicht in der Lage, das Land zu führen, könnte ihn das sein Amt kosten. Dann nämlich greift der vierte Absatz des 25. Zusatzes der US-Verfassung. Der Vize-Präsident könnte ihn zusammen mit einer Mehrheit des Kabinetts absetzen.
Mehr zum Thema: Das muss passieren, damit Trump wegen Unfähigkeit sein Amt verliert
Immer wieder warnen Experten eindringlich vor Trumps gefährlicher psychischer Verfassung. Die Psychiaterin Bandy X. Lee von der Universität Yale und 100 weitere Mediziner appellierten zuletzt an den Kongress, Trumps Ausbrüche auf Twitter ernst zu nehmen und ihn für geistig unzurechnungsfähig zu erklären. Lee führt deswegen sogar Gespräche mit US-Abgeordneten.
In einem Interview mit dem US-Magazin “Vox” stellt die Yale-Professorin vor wenigen Tagen sogar eine dramatische Verschlechterung von Trumps Zustand fest. “Er verliert den Bezug zur Realität”, glaubt Lee.
Kein Wunder, dass zahlreiche Amerikaner den Aussetzer bei der Hymne als Zeichen für Trumps sich verschlechternden Geisteszustand sehen. Aber vielleicht hatte er tatsächlich einfach den Text vergessen.
Men Enjoy 5 Hours More Leisure Time Than Women Each Week – Here’s Why
If you’re a woman who feels exhausted by the end of the day, it could be down to the amount of unpaid work you’re completing.
New statistics from ONS Digital reveal men in the UK enjoy nearly five hours extra leisure time per week compared to women.
In 2015, the average man took 43 hours of leisure time per week, whereas the average woman took around 38 hours.
While men are busy enjoying themselves, the data suggests women are losing those five hours because we’re picking up the brunt of “unpaid work”, such as household chores and childcare.
The survey revealed both men and women are experiencing less leisure time than they were when a similar survey was conducted in 2000, but the gulf between the two genders is getting wider.
The survey looked at how men and women’s time is divided in four categories: work, unpaid work, leisure and other.
For the purposes of the survey, ONS defined “unpaid work” as “anything households perform for themselves or other households as opposed to pay market services for”. This could include childcare, adult care for another relative, volunteering, cooking, cleaning, DIY, gardening, transporting themselves or others, or ironing and washing clothes.
Activities listed as “other” in the table below include sleep, personal care or unclassified activity.
The latest survey does not include an exact breakdown of activities revealing what “unpaid work” women are completing.
But a previous ONS survey suggests childcare may be a major culprit, with statistics indicating a much higher proportion of women with dependent children work part-time, whereas a lower proportion of men with dependent children do the same
Siobhan Freegard, founder of parenting websites ChannelMum.com and Netmums, said there are three key reasons behind the fact women are still spending more time on childcare than men.
“Firstly, despite the move towards shared parental leave, women do the majority of the childcare in the early years. However this shouldn’t necessarily be judged negatively,” she told HuffPost UK.
“In many cases mum maybe breastfeeding or simply prioritises her baby over work or leisure time, and that choice should be respected.
“Secondly, the lack of suitable, flexible full-time work means more mums than dads go part time at work, with the bulk of the childcare then falling to them.
“And thirdly, women still bear both the mental and physical load on chores at home, from baby jobs to school admin. Some studies even suggest mums spend up to three hours a day just on child-related admin.”
Freegard said she’s heard “many conflicting arguments” as to why women pick up the most jobs around childcare, from “women being more capable at multitasking than men” to “men not being socialised to do it”.
“The fact it is still continuing means a woman’s work is never done, even in 2018,” she said.
The gloomy reality is if women worked out how much money they could earn by being paid for tasks currently classed as “unpaid work”, we’d all be a lot better off.
The below tool created by ONS allows you to estimate how much you could be paid for doing these tasks (if you could only find someone to pay you), based on data on 2017 earnings.
EMBED
As well as completing practical household tasks such as the washing, women are stereotypically the ones responsible for jobs such as remembering family birthdays.
Sociologists have long noted women often also designate ourselves as the person to “keep the peace” and ensure happiness within a family – something that’s referred to as “emotional labour” or “emotional load” – meaning we feel unjust guilt when we “nag” a partner to do their fair share of chores.
Dr Lisa Huebner, a sociologist of gender at West Chester University of Pennsylvania, has previously spoken about the topic and how it takes up women’s time and energy. She said emotional load stems from the stereotypical ways we’re taught to see men and women’s roles.
“In general, we gender emotions in our society by continuing to reinforce the false idea that women are always, naturally and biologically able to feel, express, and manage our emotions better than men,” she told Harpers Bazaar.
“This is not to say that some individuals do not manage emotion better than others as part of their own individual personality, but I would argue that we still have no firm evidence that this ability is biologically determined by sex.
“At the same time (and I would argue because it is not a natural difference) we find all kinds of ways in society to ensure that girls and women are responsible for emotions and, then, men get a pass.”
The good news is Rachael Lloyd, relationship expert at eharmony, believes it is possible to redress the balance within your relationship is you’re finding unequal leisure time “demoralising”.
She said the best way to “avoid resentment building up is to have a tactful conversation” on the topic.
“Try to go in calmly, even if you do feel at boiling point,” she told HuffPost UK.
“Explain that because of your daily commitments it would be great if they could pitch in more a bit more on things that benefit you both as a couple. Give specific examples.
“Make sure you hear them out. There could be some unforeseen factors that have been holding them back, such as a lack of confidence in planning days out or perhaps cooking the evening meal.”
#AM_Equality Tipsheet: January 9, 2018
SCOTUS TURNS AWAY CHALLENGE TO NATION’S MOST ANTI-LGBTQ LAW: Mississippi’s H.B. 1523 was signed into law in 2016, but was blocked by a federal district court shortly before its effective date. That decision was overturned by a conservative three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Yesterday, the Supreme Court of the United States declined to hear the case. Under this law, almost any individual or organization could justify discrimination against LGBTQ people, single mothers, unwed couples and others. More from Reuters and NPR.
To be clear, challenges to MS’s license-to-discriminate law will continue. The Constitution requires equal treatment under the law and that’s what every single LGBTQ person deserves. t.co/xKodH0MxvK
— Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) January 8, 2018
“IT’S TIME” — BIPARTISAN BILL IN NEW HAMPSHIRE WOULD ADD GENDER IDENTITY TO NONDISCRIM PROTECTIONS: In a piece titled, It’s Time to Prohibit Gender Identity Discrimination, the Seacoast Online editorial board urged lawmakers to “open their hearts and minds and listen to transgender people when they talk about their lives,” adding: “As the bill makes its way through the Legislature we urge a civil debate that is fact-based, compassionate and free from inflammatory stereotypes and exaggerations.” The state currently protects people from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Read the full piece from Seacoast Online.
BACK FROM THE DEAD — TRUMP RENOMINATES ANTI-LGBTQ GOV. BROWNBACK: Last year, HRC sent a letter to senators on the Foreign Relations Committee urging them to oppose Trump’s nomination of staunch anti-LGBTQ politician Sam Brownback for the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom. “Given Governor Brownback’s anti-LGBTQ record, it is deeply worrying that he could use this position to promote the harmful idea that individuals holding certain religious views should somehow be permitted be discriminate against LGBTQ people or other minorities,” said HRC Government Affairs Director David Stacy about his original nomination. “This is particularly concerning because LGBTQ people often face persecution in the same countries where religious minorities face persecution.’” More from Advocate.
TUESDAY TWEET — INDIA’S SUPREME COURT COULD END BAN ON SAME-SEX ACTS: In 2013, the Supreme Court overturned a decision declaring the notorious Section 377 unconstitutional, reinstating the discriminatory anti-LGBTQ law. Last year, the Supreme Court of India ruled that LGBTQ people have “real rights founded on sound constitutional doctrine,” and those rights “dwell in privacy and dignity.” The eloquent decision could signal the beginning of the end to the colonial-era law that bans same-sex acts, making India one of 72 countries around the world with such anti-LGBTQ laws. More from The Associated Press.
It’s long past time the world’s largest democracy get rid of an archaic law criminalizing #LGBTQ people. #India‘s top court must uphold the dignity & basic human rights of LGBTQ people. ️ t.co/C9Co9oxpBr
— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) January 8, 2018
HRC MOURNS CHRISTA LEIGH STEELE-KNUDSLIEN, FIRST TRANS WOMAN KNOWN TO BE MURDERED IN 2018: A local news outlet reports that she was found dead in her home on Friday night in North Adams, Massachusetts. According to reports, Leigh Steele-Knudslien’s husband, Mark, turned himself in Friday night, admitting to killing his wife. He pled not guilty during his arraignment yesterday and is being held without bail. Transgender advocate Monica Roberts on her TransGriot blog writes that Steele-Knudslien organized and produced the Miss Trans New England and other pageants, and was loved and known by many in both the local and national trans community. More from HRC.
.@HRC mourns the tragic loss of Christa Leigh Steele-Knudslien, the first known case of deadly violence against the transgender community in 2018. t.co/tocoTMcYXf
— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) January 8, 2018
MORNING MUST READ — “UTAH NEEDS TO RECLAIM POSITION AS A SAFE HAVEN AGAINST HATE CRIME”: The state’s hate crimes law only applies to misdemeanors and does not name protected groups. Lawmakers hope to replace this insufficient measure with one that does more to protect Utahns. More from The Salt Lake Tribune.
ANDREW MCDONALD TO BECOME FIRST NATION’S FIRST OPENLY GAY CHIEF JUSTICE: Justice McDonald, a former state legislator, was chosen by Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy to lead the state’s high court, and is expected to be confirmed by the state legislature. More from The Wall Street Journal.
301 DAYS UNTIL ELECTION DAY 2018: Kim Davis, the notorious Kentucky county clerk who was jailed for contempt of court after refusing to comply with a federal judge’s order to issue marriage licenses in accordance with the law, has officially filed for re-election. She will square off against four candidates, including David Ermold, whose heated exchange with Davis after she denied him and his partner a marriage license went viral. More from WKYT.
TRANS MAN WHO DREAMT OF MILITARY CAREER FINALLY ABLE TO ENLIST: After months of waiting, Nicolas Talbott can continue pursuing his five-year dream to join the military. He tells Advocate, “Anybody who thinks transgender people are not as capable of serving in the military as anyone else has not looked at the research out there.” More from Advocate.
NEW EVIDENCE IN PULSE NIGHTCLUB SHOOTING — SHOOTER’S WIFE KNEW HIS PLANS: A 12-page statement released by the FBI shows that the wife of the man who took 49 innocent lives in the massacre in Orlando indicates she was aware of his plans months before the deadly rampage. More from USA Today.
RYAN MURPHY SHARES POWERFUL AND PAINFUL STORY OF COMING OUT; TALKS ABOUT HISTORY-MAKING NEW SHOW: Murphy discusses the physical abuse he was subjected to after coming out to his father, and talks about how the deep emotions he experienced when he called transgender actors and told them they were being cast in his groundbreaking new series, Pose. The series features the largest transgender cast ever in a scripted series. More from Deadline.
‘Pose’ An Intensely Personal Project For Ryan Murphy, He Tells TV Critics At TCA t.co/6ZytYMOAVZ pic.twitter.com/LpgpgdmyyH
— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) January 6, 2018
NONE OF THE NATION’S 100 LARGEST CHURCHES AFFIRM LGBTQ PEOPLE: A study by Church Clarity found that all of the megachurches fail to have explicit policies affirming the LGBTQ community. More from South Florida Gay News.
HRC MOURNS BLACK LGBTQ ADVOCATE JACKIE ANDERSON: Anderson, 75, was a prominent Black lesbian advocate and professor at Olive-Harvey College in Chicago. More from Windy City Media Group.
DESPITE POSITIVE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT RULING, TAIWAN REJECTING SAME-SEX MARRIAGES UNTIL LAW IS CHANGED: In May 2017, Taiwan’s Constitutional Court ruled in favor of marriage equality, paving the way for it to be the first in Asia to achieve such a milestone. However, at least three same-sex couples have had their marriage appeals denied by Taipei courts that have ruled the nation’s law must be formally rewritten — which is supposed to happen in the next 16 months, according to the Constitutional Court’s ruling.” The latest petition to be rejected had been filed by HRC Global Innovator Jennifer Lu and her partner. More from Taiwan News.
GAY MUSLIM FLEES CHECHNYA FOLLOWING DEATH THREATS: In a powerful piece for NPR, Joanna Kakissis (@joannakakissis) tells the story of how Abdul Kadr’s family came to kill him because he was gay — and of his escape to the Netherlands with the help of his wife. In Chechnya, men suspected of being gay or bisexual have been detained, tortured and even killed by their own government. Hear the heartbreaking story at NPR.
READING RAINBOW
Pink News reviews a new report on the lives of LGBTQ people in Ghana;
Have news? Send us your news and tips at [email protected]. Click here to subscribe to #AM_Equality and follow @HRC for all the latest news. Thanks for reading!
www.hrc.org/blog/am-equality-tipsheet-january-9-2018?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed
A New Miami
The city is evolving into a more inclusive scene, and it’s booming with diversity.
