Human Rights Campaign Endorses Pro-Equality Leaders Across California

Today, the Human Rights Campaign announced the endorsement of numerous pro-equality leaders for reelection across California.

Last year, the U.S. House passed the Equality Act, historic and crucial federal legislation that would finally guarantee explicit, permanent protections for LGBTQ people under our nation’s existing civil rights laws. But rather than giving LGBTQ people a fair shot, Sen. McConnell has blocked the bill from coming up for a vote. Reelecting a pro-equality House will be absolutely crucial to not only pass the Equality Act, but ensure access to quality, affordable health care is protected, common sense gun safety legislation can be considered and voting rights can be advanced.

“LGBTQ people are facing severe economic consequences from the ongoing pandemic, working with fewer protections and dealing with disproportionate consequences compared to non-LGBTQ workers,” said Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign. “Now more than ever, we must work to ensure every American, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, has the opportunity to operate from a level playing field. These pro-equality leaders will be absolutely crucial to passing the Equality Act next year and the Human Rights Campaign will work around the clock to ensure their reelection.”

Candidates endorsed include:

• Rep. Jared Huffman (CA-2)
• Rep. John Garamendi (CA-3)
• Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-5)
• Rep. Doris Matsui (CA-6)
• Rep. Ami Bera (CA-7)
• Rep. Jerry McNerney (CA-9)
• Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11)
• Rep. Barbara Lee (CA-13)
• Rep. Jackie Speier (CA-14)
• Rep. Eric Swalwell (CA-15)
• Rep. Jim Costa (CA-16)
• Rep. Ro Khanna (CA-17)
• Rep. Anna Eshoo (CA-18)
• Rep. Zoe Lofgren (CA-19)
• Rep. Jimmy Panetta (CA-20)
• Rep. Salud Carbajal (CA-24)
• Rep. Julia Brownley (CA-26)
• Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27)
• Rep. Adam Schiff (CA-28)
• Rep. Tony Cárdenas (CA-29)
• Rep. Brad Sherman (CA-30)
• Rep. Pete Aguilar (CA-31)
• Rep. Grace Napolitano (CA-32)
• Rep. Ted Lieu (CA-33)
• Rep. Jimmy Gomez (CA-34)
• Rep. Norma Torres (CA-35)
• Rep. Raul Ruiz (CA-36)
• Rep. Karen Bass (CA-37)
• Rep. Linda Sánchez (CA-38)
• Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40)
• Rep. Maxine Waters (CA-43)
• Rep. Nanette Barragán (CA-44)
• Rep. Lou Correa (CA-46)
• Rep. Alan Lowenthal (CA-47)
• Rep. Juan Vargas (CA-51)
• Rep. Scott Peters (CA-52)

Previously in 2020, HRC announced the endorsements of these Californians:

• Rep. Josh Harder (CA-10)
• Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA-12)
• Rep. TJ Cox (CA-21)
• Christy Smith (CA-25)
• Rep. Gil Cisneros (CA-39)
• Rep. Mark Takano (CA-41)
• Rep. Katie Porter (CA-45)
• Rep. Harley Rouda (CA-48)
• Rep. Mike Levin (CA-49)
• Georgette Gomez (CA-53)

In the 2018 midterms, HRC helped register more than 32,000 voters and recruited more than 4,200 volunteers, who worked over 8,500 shifts and clocked more than 30,000 volunteer hours. In the critical final four days of the campaign, HRC staff and volunteers in get-out-the-vote efforts alone knocked on more than 80,000 doors, and held 36,400 conversations with voters at their doors and by phone on behalf of our endorsed candidates. HRC’s unprecedented grassroots mobilization worked to recruit volunteers, mobilize constituents, register voters and grow the organization’s grassroots army in an all-out effort to pull the emergency brake on the hateful anti-LGBTQ agenda of the Trump-Pence administration and elect a Congress that would hold them accountable. In 2020, our engagement and mobilization efforts will only deepen.  HRC will have at least 45 full-time staff in seven priority states and an additional 20 staff focused on a second tier of states and districts.

www.hrc.org/blog/human-rights-campaign-endorses-pro-equality-leaders-across-ca?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

#GLAADInstitute hosts workshop for COVID-19 advocates

www.glaad.org/blog/glaadinstitute-hosts-workshop-covid-19-advocates

WATCH: Michael Henry on the great gay hookup drought of 2020

YouTube comic Michael Henry is not letting the COVID-19 pandemic stop him from producing high-quality content. He’s using it for inspiration and to bring a few laughs to these strange and testing times.

His latest video, entitled ‘Quarantine D’, explores the fact some gay men are still hunting for dick, at a time when many others are choosing to abstain and not hook-up.

Los Angeles-based Henry is trying to enjoy his big 12” sub-sandwich in a park when he’s disturbed by a rustling in the nearby bushes. It turns out to be someone only referred to as “Bottom No. 2” (played by Calvin Seabrooks) of the notorious “gay bottom mafia.”

He reveals he’s looking for a hookup, leading Henry to chastise him for breaking quarantine rules and to remind him how a bunch of gay men in New York City recently faced fierce online criticism for a party they hosted in a small apartment.

Related: Twitter is freaking out over this NYC circuit party in the COVID-19 epicenter

But Bottom No. 2 says he’s desperate: “I don’t think my innards have ever been this dry. I’m so dried out it feels like sandpaper rubbing against sandpaper.”

“I’m sorry,” shoots back Henry, “but your hole is not an essential service!”

Bottom No. 2 then goes on to reveal that many of his fellow bottoms have now become tops, so desperate were they to get their hands on another man.

Henry concludes by reminding his friend why so many of us are self-isolating and why we must do out best until the crisis passes – even if it’s making many of us feel acutely lonely. He helpfully suggests his friend go home and “sit on something” to help dampen his desires!

Related: Coronavirus and sex: What gay guys need to know before hooking up

www.queerty.com/watch-michael-henry-great-gay-hookup-drought-2020-20200527?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

Sean Hannity Rebukes ‘Lake of the Ozarks’ Partiers for Not Wearing Masks: WATCH

FOX News host Sean Hannity reprimanded young partiers filmed at the Lake of the Ozarks over the weekend for not wearing masks.

Said Hannity: “Look, I understand these are young people. Experts keep saying over and over they are at a much lower risk, but if they do get this and again there is no mask wearing here that I see. Not much at all. I see no social distancing. But if they get the virus and then are in contact with older and more vulnerable Americans, that could be a disaster for others. That’s why in the short period of time, it’s only temporary, if you can’t social distance, please wear the mask. Do it for your mom, your dad, your grandma, your grandpa. My humble advice. You don’t have to listen to me, I’m not a doctor.”

“But we also need to use some common sense,” he added. “You need to be cautious, take precautions because we don’t want it to spread to vulnerable people. We’ve seen what happens when we do.”

Hannity’s rebuke is notable given that a recent study linked FOX News consumption and non-compliance of social distancing guidelines: “The researchers looked at geospatial data derived from anonymized cell phone data and cable channel position by ZIP code around the country. They found that a 1% increase in Fox News viewership in a zip code reduced social distancing by 8.9%.”

St. Louis County Executive Sam Page issued a travel advisory on Monday after videos of massive crowds partying at Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri went viral on social media.

ICYMI: 147 People Potentially Exposed to COVID-19 After Two Hairstylists Work While Symptomatic

“The St. Louis County Department of Health is urging everyone who was there this weekend and ignored social distancing guidelines to self-quarantine for two weeks or until they have been tested and the result comes back negative,” KMOV4 reported.

Said Page in the release: “This reckless behavior endangers countless people and risks setting us back substantially from the progress we have made in slowing the spread of COVID-19. I encourage everyone to follow the Department of Public Health advisory to determine a safe path forward in the workplace.

St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson denounced what she saw in the videos: “Now, these folks will be coming home to St. Louis and counties all over Missouri and the Midwest, raising concerns about the potential of more positive cases, hospitalizations, and tragically, deaths. It’s just deeply disturbing.”

The post Sean Hannity Rebukes ‘Lake of the Ozarks’ Partiers for Not Wearing Masks: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad Gay News.

Sean Hannity Rebukes ‘Lake of the Ozarks’ Partiers for Not Wearing Masks: WATCH

#AM_Equality: May 27, 2020

WE MUST DEMAND JUSTICE FOR GEORGE FLOYD: More from HRC.

CHRISTIAN COOPER DESERVES BETTER — THE RACISM HE EXPERIENCED SPOTLIGHTS AN ONGOING MISTREATMENT OF MEN OF COLOR IN THIS COUNTRY: More from The Advocate and HRC.

HRC ENDORSES GOV. STEVE BULLOCK FOR U.S. SENATE: “We need a champion like Steve Bullock in the United States Senate to help ensure every person in our country is free to live their lives free from discrimination based on who they are or who they love,” said HRC President Alphonso David (@AlphonsoDavid). “From the Equality Act to preserving and improving affordable health care, we need Steve Bullock’s leadership in the Senate.” More from HRC.

WHAT WE’RE READING WEDNESDAY — VICE SPOTLIGHTS THE DISPROPORTIONATE IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON THE BLACK LGBTQ COMMUNITY: A recent report from the Human Rights Campaign notes that LGBTQ people of color are more likely than their white counterparts to have become unemployed, with 22% of LGBTQ people being laid off compared to 14% of white LGBTQ people and 13% of the general population. More from Vice.

LGBTQ YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH DURING COVID-19: HRC has seen how LGBTQ youth are especially at risk of struggling with mental health given stressors such as unsupportive families, hostile school conditions, bullying from peers and a lack of adequate resources. To be clear — mental health disparities for LGBTQ youth have nothing to do with being LGBTQ and everything to do with how society treats the community. More from The New York Times.

• This Mental Health Awareness Month and beyond, HRC has been providing resources for LGBTQ youth and the LGBTQ community to help people find support and to better weather the challenges they are facing.

HRC CALLS ON THE U.S. SENATE TO OPPOSE THE NOMINATION OF CORY WILSON: “Cory Wilson is yet another extreme, right wing judge being advanced by the Trump-Pence administration,” said HRC President Alphonso David. “Wilson has made a career of attacking the most vulnerable Mississipians — from supporting a discriminatory law that allows businesses to refuse services to LGBTQ people to opposing the Affordable Care Act.  The Senate Judiciary Committee should not advance the nomination of Cory Wilson.” More from HRC.

LGBTQ HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS COULD BE AFFECTED BY SUPREME COURT DECISION ON TITLE VII: “Like all health care providers, LGBTQ people are standing up to personal and professional challenges in this pandemic. They are risking their lives and lives of their loved ones so patients get care they need and deserve,” said Hector Vargas, executive director of GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ Equality. “It’s unacceptable that they are providing care today and face potential dismissal tomorrow.” More from USA Today.

• The Supreme Court’s decision could effectively decide whether to solidify or take away non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people under federal civil rights laws — which prohibit sex discrimination in contexts ranging from employment to housing, healthcare and education.

COVID-19 CAUSES DELAY IN DECISION ON PROPOSAL TO SPLIT UNITED METHODIST CHURCH BASED ON INCLUSION OF LGBTQ COMMUNITY: More from Religious News Service.

IN THE STATES

NEW PROGRAM IN MARYLAND WILL HELP TRANSGENDER PEOPLE LEGALLY CHANGE THEIR NAME: More from LGBTQ Nation.

GET CULTURED – Entertainment, arts and sports news!

WATCH THE TRAILER FOR THE UPCOMING DOCUMENTARY ‘WELCOME TO CHECHNYA’: More from Indiewire.

GLOBAL EQUALITY NEWS

NEW STUDY SHOWS MORE THAN HALF OF LGBTQ EUROPEANS ARE NOT OUT: More from NBC.

A YEAR AFTER TAIWAN LEGALIZED SAME-SEX MARRIAGES, LGBTQ PEOPLE STILL FACE RESTRICTIONS: Taiwan’s law currently allows LGBTQ people to only marry partners from a country where same-sex marriage is also legal. More from Openly.

READING RAINBOW – Bookmark now to read on your lunch break!

them highlights #PridePledge campaign asking corporations to fund LGBTQ+ COVID-19 relief instead of Pride festivals

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!

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