Anti-LGBT Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis Unknowingly Issued a Marriage License to a Trans Man: VIDEO

In the multitude of court filings during her anti-gay crusade, Rowan County clerk Kim Davis liked to repeatedly bring up the “searing act of validation” that would “forever echo in her conscience” should she have to bear witness to any marriage that isn’t a 100% Bible-based man-women heterosexual union.

Well let the echoing begin because it turns out she inadvertently signed off on a marriage license to a transgender man and pansexual woman back in February.

The Courier-Journal reports:

Camryn Colen, who is transgender, and his wife Alexis, who identifies as pan sexual, said Davis’ office provided the license on Feb. 26 without asking to see Camryn’s birth certificate, which still identifies him as female. The couple married that night.

“She saw just a straight couple in love, and she should see everybody like that,” Camryn said. “She shouldn’t just see straight couples like that.”

In an interview with The Independent Camryn said he and his wife saw Davis there but didn’t exchange any words with her:

“I saw Kim Davis, but I didn’t talk to her. We went in there just as any other straight couple would,” said Camryn Colen, 30. “That night we had an official do a tiny, little testimony.”

In related news, people have begun showing up at the Rowan County Courthouse this morning to voice their support for (or frustration with) Davis:

Supporters for both sides starting to show up outside Rowan Co Courthouse pic.twitter.com/N6u5o9kzFQ

— Hillary Thornton (@HillaryWKYT) August 31, 2015

The stay on a federal judge’s order for Davis to issue marriage license to same-sex couples expires today. Davis has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for an extension on the stay so that she can appeal the ruling further.

The Rowan County Attorney’s Office meanwhile has filed a charge of official misconduct against clerk Kim Davis for her repeated refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples despite the federal order.

Watch Camryn Colen and Alexis talk about getting their marriage license in the video below:

The post Anti-LGBT Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis Unknowingly Issued a Marriage License to a Trans Man: VIDEO appeared first on Towleroad.

Kyler Geoffroy

Anti-LGBT Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis Unknowingly Issued a Marriage License to a Trans Man: VIDEO

Rugby Union star Sam Stanley ‘overwhelmed’ by support since coming out

Rugby union star Sam Stanley has spoke of the ‘overwhelming’ support he has received since coming out.

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, the rugby sevens player revealed that he initially came out to his teammates a few months back by sending a message over the social networking app WhatsApp.

He said: ‘I’ve wanted to do it for a while… I felt too stressed to do it one-by-one so I just took that step and broadcast that message on WhatsApp to people I wanted to know.

‘The boys took it very well. I couldn’t have asked for a better reaction, really.

‘I expected a huge negative, as any gay man will tell you. It was completely different to that. I guess I’m grateful for how the boys reacted and took it.’

Stanley has also spoke about how he felt it might be difficult to be a young gay player, despite following in the footsteps of former Welsh captain Gareth Thomas who came out in 2009.

He said: ‘As much as that inspired me I knew what he’d achieved in the game. I didn’t feel that I could be a youngster and come up through the ranks and achieve what I wanted to achieve if I’d come out at an early stage in my career… but it’s a completely different story.’

Stanley has also spoke about contemplating suicide in the past, and that he hopes he can inspire other LGBTI people.

He said: ‘I remember standing over a bridge and just contemplating whether or not to jump, but now looking back you don’t see anything else to this. You get so down about it you think if you came out you’d be outcasted anyway and hated for it, so why not let that whole feeing of loneliness and anger and hurt just disappear just like that, in the blink of an eye.

‘Looking back, it’s a ridiculous decision but I know at the same time there are people who do take that leap, and if that’s something I can stop and help people avoid, that’s a great feeling for me.’

Stanley has received a lot of support since coming out.

Coronation Street actor Antony Cotton said on Twitter: ‘Well done to @Stanley_13. Now it’s done, you can relax and continue as normal. No more to be said x’

Rugby League player Keegan Hirst, who came out in early August, tweeted: ‘Well done to @Stanley_13 hope all’s well! I’m sure you’ll have all the support you need from your team mates and everybody else.’

Irish television star Graham Norton added: ‘Congratulations! One day none of this will matter but until then I commend your courage and honesty. Live proud!’

The post Rugby Union star Sam Stanley ‘overwhelmed’ by support since coming out appeared first on Gay Star News.

Ashlee Kelly

www.gaystarnews.com/article/rugby-union-star-sam-stanley-overwhelmed-by-support-since-coming-out/

HRC Philadelphia Steering Committee Gathers in Support of Pennsylvania Fairness Act

Yesterday, members of the HRC Philadelphia Steering Committee joined local HRC volunteers and field staff from Pennsylvania Competes for an evening of phone banking.
HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/hrc-philly-steering-committee-gathers-in-support-of-pennsylvania-fairness-a?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Miley Cyrus and the Queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race Slay the VMAs With ‘Dooo It!’ – WATCH

Miley Cyrus closed out the MTV Video Music Awards last night with a dragtastic performance of her brand-new song “Dooo It!” accompanied by the queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race.

“People need to see every type of human being on that stage being celebrated, people that are outside of that box of what we’re told,” Cryus said in an interview with MTV of the performance. “[For] people that watch the show — it’s usually a lot of young people out there — you’re at your most impressionable and it’s where you learn when you’re young, what’s right and wrong, and how you treat other people.”

Related, Miley Cyrus: ‘I’m Pansexual’ 

“Dooo It!” is from Cyrus’s surprise new album Miley Cyrus and Her Dead Petz which was announced at the end of the VMAs. You can check out the full album here.

The post Miley Cyrus and the Queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race Slay the VMAs With ‘Dooo It!’ – WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

Kyler Geoffroy

Miley Cyrus and the Queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race Slay the VMAs With ‘Dooo It!’ – WATCH

Op-ed: How The Danish Girl Helped Me Discover Myself

The author of the book upon which the new film starring Eddie Redmayne is based reflects on how uncovering trans pioneer Lili Elbe’s story helped him define his own art.

read more

David Ebershoff

www.advocate.com/commentary/2015/08/31/op-ed-how-danish-girl-helped-me-discover-myself

South Dakota lawmaker wants to pass law to inspect trans athletes genitals

A South Dakota lawmaker is hoping to pass legislation that could mean trans athletes could have their genitals inspected before they compete in high school sporting events.

Roger Hunt, a Republican, believes that birth certificates and looking at people’s genitals is the only way to be sure of someone’s gender. He also claims that gender is determined ‘at conception’.

Comparing his issues of gender with more progressive views in states such as California, Hunt said: ‘This is South Dakota. We haven’t adopted the East Coast culture. We haven’t adopted the West Coast culture. We maintain our own culture.’

Hunt’s proposed legislation is a response to a decision made by the South Dakota High School Activities Association last year, which allows trans students to participate as their real gender as opposed to what it states on their birth certificate.

The policy has proven to be unpopular with Republicans.

Speaking on the subject, Rep. Kris Langer said. ‘This definitely is a minority population we’re addressing… It’s such a small group to be legislating. No policy, or rescinding this, is the best.’

Since the new policy has been enacted, various lawmakers have tried to undermine it.

In February, South Dakota State Rep. Jim Bolin tried to introduce a bill that would make the policy void, saying: ‘[The association] decided to essentially question the validity of birth documents in the state of South Dakota.’

Despite several attempts, the policy has yet to be overturned as proposals have been voted down when the issue reached the senate.

The post South Dakota lawmaker wants to pass law to inspect trans athletes genitals appeared first on Gay Star News.

Ashlee Kelly

www.gaystarnews.com/article/south-dakota-lawmaker-wants-to-pass-law-to-inspect-trans-athletes-genitals/

Kentucky County Wants To Fire Kim Davis, Clerk Who Won’t Issue Marriage Licenses To Same-Sex Couples

The Rowan County Attorney requested that the state government charge Rowan County clerk Kim Davis with misconduct, a step that could help eventually oust her from her position, ThinkProgress reported Friday.

Her attorneys have asked the Supreme court for an emergency order that would protect her from being fired until her lawsuit against Gov. Steve Beshear (D) wraps up. With this lawsuit, Davis hopes to prove that Beshear’s order that she help facilitate same-sex weddings despite her religious beliefs violates her right to “religious freedom.”

Although Davis is employed by the people of Kentucky — and one of the duties of her job is the granting of marriage licenses — Davis argues that her civil rights protect her from being fired over nonperformance. Davis has suggested that the state should revise the requirements that force her to sign her name on all licenses; a request the lower-court judge has rejected.

Related: Christian Government Clerk Hijacks The Law, And It’s All Caught On Tape

ThinkProgress notes that since Davis is an elected official, it’s very difficult to fire her. The Attorney General’s request to file misdemeanor official misconduct charges against her would begin a long, tortuous process, and she could only be kicked out of her job if the state legislature votes to impeach her.

Jeremy Kinser

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/Q9LD4HxSaQo/kentucky-county-wants-to-fire-kim-davis-clerk-who-wont-issue-marriage-licenses-to-same-sex-couples-20150831

5 HIV-Positive Men Give Advice to Their Former Selves

Here are words of wisdom on surviving and thriving for those newly diagnosed with HIV.

read more

Tyler Curry

www.advocate.com/health/hiv-aids/2015/08/31/5-hiv-positive-men-give-advice-their-former-selves

Anti-gay Kentucky clerk once accidentally married trans man

The Kentucky county clerk at the center of a standoff with courts over issuing licenses to gay couple once accidentally granted one to a transgender man and pansexual woman.

Rowan County clerk Kim Davis has refused to issue any marriage licenses since the Supreme Court ruling on 26 June and disobeyed an order from the state governor to comply with the decision.

She has since been sued by four gay couples, who she said could drive to a neighboring county to obtain a license.

Davis, an elected official and Apostolic Christian, most recently filed an emergency appeal with a federal judge asking for ‘asylum for her conscience.’

But it has emerged that she once granted a marriage license to an LGBTI couple without even knowing it.

Transgender man and Iraq veteran Camryn Colen said she granted him and his pansexual wife Alexis a marriage license in February without asking to see his birth certificate, which still identifies him as female.

‘She saw just a straight couple in love, and she should see everybody like that,’ he told the Courier-Journal.

‘She shouldn’t just see straight couples like that.’

Camryn added: ‘Technically, they granted a same-sex couple a marriage license before it was even legal.’

The couple said wanted to speak out when Davis first started refusing licenses in June but were concerned about the safety of their 6-month-old daughter.

‘Stuff has just escalated and gotten ridiculous, and we decided that we were going to come forward with it,’ Alexis said.

The post Anti-gay Kentucky clerk once accidentally married trans man appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/australia-port-hedland-becomes-latest-council-to-recognize-gay-couples/

Miley Cyrus Closes VMAs With Performance Featuring RuPaul’s Drag Race Queens; Releases New Album

Miley Cyrus might not have brought much of a wardrobe to the MTV Video Music Awards, but she definitely delivered in other areas. Returning to the show that thrust her onto pop culture’s radar after her twerk-tastic performance with Robin Thicke two years ago, Cyrus came with guns blazing as she hosted last night’s awards ceremony. Her arsenal consisted of pasties, a backstage nip slip, plenty of f-bombs and a performance with some of the queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Introduced by the LGBT youth who were featured in Happy Hippie Foundation’s InstaPride campaign, Miley closed out the show with a performance of “Dooo It!” — an ode to her love of marijuana. As she chanted, “Yeah, I smoke pot. Yeah, I love peace. But, I don’t give a f*ck. I ain’t no hippie,” she was joined on stage by 30 drag queens, the majority of them from previous seasons of RuPaul’s Drag Race including Shangela, Alyssa Edwards, Laganja Estranja, Pearl, Willam and current reigning queen, Violet Chachki.

There was plenty of prancing and hair whipping to go around during the five-minute performance. Combine that with the brightly colored costumes and phallic-like rockets that shot out confetti from between Miley’s legs, and it was a performance that had all the pomp and pageantry you’d come to expect from a drag show.

Watch the video below. Can you spot your favorite RuPaul’s Drag Race queen in the clip?

“Dooo It!” is from Cyrus’s surprise new album, Miley Cyrus and Her Dead Petz, which the singer announced was available as a free download at the end of the show.

Condragulations, Miley. Shantay, you slay!

Jeremy Kinser

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/Z9AGO76rSUI/miley-cyrus-closes-vmas-with-performance-featuring-rupauls-drag-race-queens-releases-new-album-20150831