Queerantine Parties: Ben Platt Dancing, Shangela Rapping, Indigo Girls

LGBTQ performers and allies are planning live events and posting entertaining distractions from the COVID-19 pandemic.

www.advocate.com/people/2020/3/17/queerantine-parties-ben-platt-dancing-shangela-rapping-indigo-girls

Pro golfer Scott Piercy’s homophobia cost him $2 million and heavy dose of public humiliation

Pro golfer Scott Piercy has been bleeding sponsors ever since he published a homophobic meme mocking Pete Buttigieg. Now, it’s being reported his actions have cost him a not-so-small fortune and will likely continue costing him even more in the future.

It all started earlier this month when the 41-year-old shared a meme featuring alt-right icon Pepe the Frog and a picture of Buttigieg along with the caption, “Peter pulls out early from behind.”

A backlash ensued, and Piercy, who has played professional golf with the PGA since 2008, issued a hasty non-apology, saying: “Whenever I post my intent is NEVER to offend. I want to apologize if any of my recents [sic] story posts have been offensive. I will do better!”

But that didn’t stop several of his biggest sponsors from immediately cutting ties with the four-time PGA Tour winner.

Titleist, FootJoy, and Scandinavian fashion brand J.Lindeberg all terminated their endorsement deals with Piercy. Meanwhile, the PGA Tour also issued a statement condemning his actions.

“We were made aware of Scott’s post and are disappointed in the lack of judgment used,” the organization said in a statement.

Now, it’s being reported Piercy lost a whopping $2 million in earnings because of the meme.

To add insult to all that injury, during the the first round of The 2020 Players Championship, he appeared wearing a blank shirt that was completely logo-less.

Golf.com reports: “Now, he’s looking the part of a man who’s been through the public ringer. Piercy played his practice round at the Players Wednesday in unusual garb for a PGA Tour golfer: brand-less.”

To make matters even more disappointing for Piercy, after the first round of the Players Championship, the PGA Tour announced the championship was being canceled because of coronavirus.

The moral of the story?

Don’t post homophobic memes.

Related: Pro golfer Scott Piercy bleeding sponsors after taking homophobic swing at Pete Buttigieg

www.queerty.com/pro-golfer-scott-piercys-homophobia-cost-2-million-heavy-dose-public-humiliation-20200317?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

45 Days, Duncan Hunter, Amazon, Marriott, Ben Platt, Masks, Tom Brady, Kentucky Derby, Sam Smith: HOT LINKS

45 DAYS. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says expert projections show the coronavirus outbreaking peaking in 45 days: “Speaking to members of the press, Cuomo said that health experts had predicted that the state would need to devote as many as 55,000-110,000 hospital beds to the crisis, including tens of thousands in intensive care units.”

SENTENCED. GOP Rep. Duncan Hunter gets 11 months for campaign finance violations.

AMAZON. Hiring 100,000 workers to deal with coronavirus delivery surge: “The online retailer said it will also temporarily raise pay by $2 an hour through the end of April for hourly employees. That includes workers at its warehouses, delivery centers and Whole Foods grocery stores — all of whom make at least $15 an hour. Employees in the United Kingdom and other European countries will get a similar raise.”

MARRIOTT. Tens of thousands of layoffs coming: “As travel restrictions and social distancing efforts around the world become more widespread, we are experiencing significant drops in demand at properties globally with an uncertain duration,” Marriott said in a statement. “We are adjusting global operations accordingly which has meant either reduction in hours or a temporary leave for many of our associates at our properties.”

RACE LATER. Kentucky Derby postponed…

MILLENNIAL ASSHOLES. Hilary Duff goes off on those who go out during the coronavirus crisis.

SIBLING BATTLE OF THE DAY. The brothers Cuomo.

ROBERT MICHAEL PHELPS. 62-year-old Connecticut man arrested for threatening to murder Adam Schiff: “A federal criminal complaint by the US Attorney’s office for Connecticut alleges that the man filled out a form on Schiff’s website for a meeting request on November, 12, 2019, saying he wanted to come and see the congressman, ‘So I can spit in your face and I want to kill you with my bare hands and smash your sick little round fat lying face in.’”

JOE AND AMY? Are there better choices?

SECRET SERVICE PROTECTION. Joe Biden has it again. “A protective detail began its assignment with the former vice president and Democratic front-runner this week, multiple law enforcement officials told NBC News, even as Biden is expected to remain off the campaign trail amid the coronavirus crisis.”

VIRTUAL DANCE PARTY. Ben Platt, Kathryn Gallagher, and Noah Galvin are hosting on social media for their fans who are stuck inside.

TIKTOK. Chinese video-sharing app instructed moderators to suppress posts “created by users deemed too ugly, poor, or disabled for the platform.“

MASKS. How telling people they don’t need masks for coronavirus backfired: “…of course masks work — maybe not perfectly and not all to the same degree, but they provide some protection. Their use has always been advised as part of the standard response to being around infected people, especially for people who may be vulnerable. World Health Organization officials wear masks during their news briefings. That was the reason I had bought a few in early January — I had been conducting research in Hong Kong, which has a lot of contact with mainland China, and expected to go back. I had studied and taught about the sociology of pandemics and knew from the SARS experience in 2003 that health officials in many high-risk Asian countries had advised wearing masks.It is of course true that masks don’t work perfectly, that they don’t replace hand-washing and social distancing, and that they work better if they fit properly. And of course, surgical masks (the disposable type that surgeons wear) don’t filter out small viral particles the way medical-grade respirator masks rated N95 and above do. However, even surgical masks protect a bit more than not wearing masks at all.”

WHEN WE WERE YOUNG. Older gays look back at their past careers.

UNITED AIRLINES CHIEF. COVID-19 impact worse than 9/11: “We unequivocally support prudent steps like these to keep the American people safe. But, these actions have also created a fast-moving, financial crisis unlike anything the U.S. airline industry has faced before. In fact, the financial impact of this crisis on our industry is much worse than the stark downturn that we saw in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.”

TOM HANKS AND RITA WILSON. Out of the hospital. “They’re still self-quarantined obviously, but they’re feeling a lot better so that’s a relief.”

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A post shared by 𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗧 𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞𝗦 (@chethanx) on Mar 16, 2020 at 5:02pm PDT

TOM BRADY. He’s leaving the New England Patriots.

ACOUSTIC TRACK OF THE DAY. Sam Smith “To Die For”.

TRAILER OF THE DAY. Upload.

TWO FOR TUESDAY. Tomás & Guilherme

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I’m so grateful that the universe had allowed me to exist at the same time as you . . . . . . . . . #gayworld #gaycouple #husbandandhusband #instagay #gay #gaycouplegoals #love #loveislove #lgbt #gaywedding #gaypic #cutegaycouples #gayboy #gaylife #gaypride #gayhot #gaylove

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45 Days, Duncan Hunter, Amazon, Marriott, Ben Platt, Masks, Tom Brady, Kentucky Derby, Sam Smith: HOT LINKS

We’re the Ones We’ve Been Waiting For: At the Crossroads of COVID-19 and HIV

COVID-19, sometimes known as coronavirus, has taken America by storm. With more than 2,000 reported cases and 70 deaths in the U.S., the American public is in a state of turmoil. Our fears and concerns have only been exacerbated by a lack of leadership from the Trump-Pence administration. Instead of being a leader to the American people, President Trump downplayed the threat of COVID-19. In early January, during a White House briefing, President Trump said, “We have it totally under control” and “We have a very small number of people in the country, right now, with it. Many of them are getting better. Some are fully recovered already. So we’re in very good shape.” 

As HIV activist Mark King points out, despite the early delay, what happened with the early days of HIV and what’s happening here are light years apart. It took years for President Reagan to even utter the word AIDS. Hundreds of thousands of people died.

But that doesn’t mean people living with HIV and HIV advocates aren’t viewing COVID-19 through a unique lens. 

When we think of Americans with compromised immune systems, we must consider people living with HIV (PLWH). While there is no specific data yet, in an unofficial statement from Dr. Jonathan Mermin, Director of the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention (NCHHSTP) at the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, he states, “it would be prudent for persons with HIV to follow CDC recommendations for older persons and people with underlying health conditions.” In addition to the standard guidelines, having extra HIV antiviral medications and remaining up to date on vaccinations (influenza and pneumonia) are key.

It’s also more important than ever to stick to your treatment schedule and do your best to keep stress from impacting your mental and physical health. I’ve spoken to many HIV community leaders and frontline workers who are afraid of potential agency closures and the impact it will have on the community and their staff, especially staff who are paid hourly and unable to deliver services remotely. Some agencies have begun to explore unemployment benefit options and are working with their staff to make sure they know when and how to apply. 

Kirk Myers, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Abounding Prosperity in Dallas, Texas, had to cancel large testing events in an effort to minimize potential exposure to COVID-19. “We’ll be providing services as long as it is safe to do so and within CDC guidelines. We have also implemented more frequent disinfection of our fixed and mobile facilities,” Myers said. “We have made reasonable accommodations to support our staff impacted by school closures. And, we have implemented temperature and symptom screening for all staff upon arrival for work.”

Closures are unfortunate and will have lasting effects on the HIV workforce, but in many cases, it is the only way to prevent COVID-19 exposure. However, some agencies are ahead of the curve. Dr. Demarc Hiskson, Executive Director of Us Helping Us, implemented a telework model effective March 17. According to Dr. Hickson, “Us Helping Us frontline staff will communicate with all of our clients to discuss and offer tips as to how they can remain safe and healthy during this current environment. We have canceled all community outreach and testing activities to reduce the exposure to staff. However, we will provide HIV/STD testing by appointment only.”

Regardless of one’s HIV status, we all play a part in ensuring that we remain healthy. The common COVID-19 symptoms include fever, dry cough and shortness of breath. 

For more information on the COVID-19, please visit one of the following websites:

• CDC COVID-19 (Coronavirus)
• COVID-19 Global Tracker 
• National Institutes of Health 

We know that this is a time of great uncertainty and difficulty. We will weather this crisis as we have weathered crises before — by taking care of one another, by supporting each other and by ensuring we are doing all that we can to protect and empower the most vulnerable.

www.hrc.org/blog/were-the-ones-weve-been-waiting-for-at-the-crossroads-of-the-covid-19-and-h?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Tell Idaho Governor Brad Little to veto House Bill 500, which aims to harm transgender student athletes

www.glaad.org/blog/tell-idaho-governor-brad-little-veto-house-bill-500