Homophobe Attacks Two Gay Military Academy Grads, Gets His A$$ Kicked

Larry (left) and Daniel (right)

A homophobe in New York has learned the hard way why you shouldn’t pick a physical fight with someone who is bigger and stronger.

Daniel Lennox-Choate and his husband, Larry Lennox-Choate, were at a bodega in SoHo over the weekend when a man approached. First he started shouting antigay slurs at them. Then he threw a punch at Daniel.

Unbeknownst to this jerk, both Daniel and Larry, who were married in 2013, graduated from West Point Military Academy. In addition to that, Daniel served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Related: Study Finds Straight Men Still Think Gay Men Aren’t Masculine

“He left covered in his own blood with his tail between his legs after I handled the situation and tossed him in the street like the coward loser he is,” Larry wrote on Facebook

“We refuse to be victims and are thankful we can defend ourselves, but are saddened by the fact that idiots like this guy might not pick two guys who went through Plebe Boxing next time,” he continued.

Police say that no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.

The incident happened just days after three homophobes stormed into a West Hollywood Starbucks and left covered in coffee sweet iced tea, thrown on them by none other than Leslie Jordan.

Related: Leslie Jordan Explains Starbucks Altercation: “It Was Sweet Iced Tea, Not Coffee!”

h/t: New York Daily News

Graham Gremore

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Man Banned From Food Bank Because He Supports Marriage Equality

A man in Winnipeg, Canada has been banned from a church’s food bank because he would not sign off on the church’s view that marriage is between one man and one woman.

Richard Friesen went to volunteer at the Winnipeg Harvest food bank at the Bethlehem Aboriginal church and discovered a clause in the church’s volunteer form that requires volunteers to “respect the relationship of only a man and a woman in marriage.” After raising questions about the clause, he says he was banned from volunteering at and using the food bank.

Friesen told APTN News:

“One particular thing that struck me as very very odd, especially with today’s world that we live in was the ‘must respect the relationship of only a man and a woman in marriage’ [clause]. To me that’s a very outdated way of thinking.

The church has since changed its volunteer form to omit the clause in question, but Friesen’s ban has not been lifted:

“I cannot go there and I cannot get food based simply on the fact that I had questions about a lifestyle agreement that they were then forced to change.”

Friesen’s father said they had contacted the Human Rights Commission and that what the church was doing “is not legal”:

“That can’t be. Like I say, the Church has since changed its application form, but in the mean time, they are still discriminating against my son.”

[h/t The New Civil Rights Movement]

The post Man Banned From Food Bank Because He Supports Marriage Equality appeared first on Towleroad.

Sean Mandell

Man Banned From Food Bank Because He Supports Marriage Equality

Americans for Equal Rights Is Shutting Down

The American Foundation for Equal Rights, the lead group that fought to overturn California’s Prop 8, has announced that it’s closing down following the marriage equality victory at the Supreme Court.

read more

Bil Browning

www.advocate.com/marriage-equality/2015/08/04/americans-equal-rights-shutting-down

I Am Betrothed to My John Deere Lawn Mower
Rep. Steve King (R – IA) has championed the right of men to marry their lawn mowers. King recently stated that the Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage “says anybody can marry anybody — and eventually it will be in any combination. I had a strong, Christian lawyer tell me yesterday that, under this decision that he has read, what it brings about is: It only requires one human being in this relationship — that you could marry your lawn mower with this decision. I think he’s right.”

My secret lover, John Deere, and I are extremely grateful that King has allowed man/mower unions to step out from the shadows. It is with enormous pride that I post the following announcement:

Domenick Aloysius Scudera, M.F.A., and John Deere Lawn Tractor Model # X540 have announced their engagement following a long summer romance. Scudera, originally from Massapequa, NY, and Deere, manufactured in Horicon, Wisconsin, plan a late October wedding after the busy lawn maintenance season has ended. Scudera, 39, is a college professor in Pennsylvania. Deere, 3, recently moved to the area to mow lawns. This is the first marriage for both.

The pair met in the late spring when Scudera needed his grass cut. “At first, we worked together in a business sense. It was strictly about lawn care,” the human groom said, “But the attraction was undeniable. After a month or two of riding that mower, I was hooked. Mounting that 23.5 horsepower engine each week was overwhelmingly romantic. His fully welded chassis and automatic transmission with a differential lock was a dream come true. John’s got a 54 inch deck. His performance is incredible.”

Scudera proposed to his handsome tractor in July. “We were mowing around the sycamore tree in the backyard like we always do. But then I stopped the engine and pretended to kneel down to check the blade under the deck. But I was actually kneeling down to propose!” In lieu of an engagement ring, Scudera surprised Deere with a new deck belt that is engineered to withstand 2400 pounds of tension.

Family members have had difficulty with the announcement. “It ain’t natural,” Scudera’s cousin, Guido, commented. “Traditional marriage is between one human and one human. God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Tractor.”

The mower’s family could not comment because they are machines and do not have vocal cords.

The pair has had trouble finding bakers and florists who will accommodate their wedding needs. “My religion strictly forbids marriages between man and machine,” stated the owner of a local bakery who wishes to remain anonymous. “If we allow this sort of thing, what’s next? Will men want to marry their washing machines and their refrigerators? Where does it stop? Men and appliances cannot have children, so they will never be married in the eyes of the Lord.”

Despite the negative reactions, Scudera and Deere will forge ahead with their wedding plans. Scudera is hopeful: “It only takes one human to make a marriage, right? Some strong, Christian lawyer somewhere interpreted the Court’s decision that way. Our future is bright. My dear Johnny Deere really knows how to trim my blades, if you know what I mean.”

Scudera and Deere are registered at Home Depot, Ace Hardware, Tractor Supply Co., and Bed Bath & Beyond.

To honor the mower’s family, the couple’s wedding colors will be green and yellow.

The above announcement is ridiculous for a number of reasons:

• I am already married. To a man. A human being.
• I have no desire to marry a lawn mower.
• The Supreme Court ruling on marriage equality does not grant the right for a man to marry a lawn mower.
• No human being wants to marry a lawn mower. Rep. King’s claim that men can marry mowers is absolutely preposterous, incendiary, and insulting.
• My middle name is not Aloysius.
• I am not 39 years old.

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

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House buyers’ most in-demand Tube stop is… outside London

The Tube is London’s lifeline, connecting the sprawling North West to the green South East, from Amersham to Morden and Lewisham.

A study by online estate agent eMoov.co.uk has found the hottest and coldest Underground Stations to live close to, based on data from major property portals, with a surprising result.

The hottest stop on the Underground network is Watford, home to Geri Halliwell and only accessible through the Metropolitan line, with demand for properties at 78% – and it’s not even in (Greater) London, but in Hertfordshire.

Demand – defined as the percentage of properties currently sold – along the Underground lines is steadily growing: the last six months saw an increase of 13% across the 280 stations making up the network, but in some locations demand is exploding.

Tube strike madness: nearly 100 million customers pass through Oxford Circus each day – but demand for flats is declining.

While the Central line is the most popular to live on – demand saw a 14% rise and is at its highest ever – the top three least popular stations are right in the middle of it: Bond Street, Oxford Circus and Marble Arch.

‘Our research shows that the East London property market is on fire at the moment,’ Russell Quirk, founder and CEO eMoov.co.uk, said.

‘From city brokers, trendy hipsters to commuting parents, the East offers up a variety of property for every type of homeowner.’

East London stations clocked the highest rise, with demand around East Ham Station – sitting just on the border between Zone 3 and 4 – rising by 26%; it’s followed by Woodford, in Zone 4 on the Central Line, and Zone 6’s Upminster Bridge, which rose by 25% and 23% respectively.

The post House buyers’ most in-demand Tube stop is… outside London appeared first on Gay Star News.

Stefanie Gerdes

www.gaystarnews.com/article/house-buyers-most-in-demand-tube-stop-is-outside-london/

Greg Louganis Documentary to Premiere on HBO

Tonight, “Back on Board: Greg Louganis,” a documentary following the life of openly gay and HIV-positive Olympian Greg Louganis, premiers on HBO.
HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/greg-louganis-documentary-to-premiere-on-hbo?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Alabama Lawmakers Advance Bill to End Marriage Licenses Statewide

An Alabama state senate committee approved a bill on Monday that would get the state’s probate judges out of the marriage license business.

Last week, we reported that 13 Alabama counties were still refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

The AP reports:

The Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund Committee on Monday approved the bill to do away with state-issued marriage licenses. Instead, spouses would file a signed marriage contract at probate offices. […]

Sen. Greg Albritton, the bill’s sponsor, says the bill could be a solution to lingering disputes over gay marriage.

Lawmakers are in special session to deal with a budget shortfall. Bills outside the governor’s call for a special session have a slimmer chance at passing because they require a two-thirds vote.

Watch a news report below:

The post Alabama Lawmakers Advance Bill to End Marriage Licenses Statewide appeared first on Towleroad.

Sean Mandell

Alabama Lawmakers Advance Bill to End Marriage Licenses Statewide

LGBTI rights language stripped from UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals

The sustainable development goals set for United Nations members to the year 2030 will not contain any reference to the rights of LGBTI people and will maintain the status quo on abortion, it has been revealed.

Several developed nations, including the United Kingdom and Brazil, had wanted to have language in the agreement which could have been interpreted to include protecting the rights of transgender persons and sexual minorities but these were stripped from the final text that member states will approve.

Brazilian Ambassador Guilherme de Aguiar Patriota had reportedly pushed for the agreement to contain ‘more progressive language’ around human rights, including the rights of ‘LGBTI [people], whether or not these groups are fully stated.’

References to ‘gender’ in the document were also replaced with the more narrow term ‘sex’ to ensure there was no implied protections for transgender people or sexual minorities – and references to ‘social groupings’ as a protected category were also removed.

The document instead commits member nations to ‘empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status,’ by 2030 and to ‘ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including by eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices and promoting appropriate legislation, policies and action,’ without reference to sexuality.

Ambassador Usman Sarki of Nigeria reportedly lead the charge to have the agreement ‘cleaned’ of any language that might imply a commitment to the rights of LGBTI people.

The Agenda for Sustainable Development replaces the UN’s 15-year-old Millennium Development Goals.

UN Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon hailed the agreement as ‘bold, ambitious and transformative sustainable development agenda for the next 15 years,’ while speaking at a press conference on Monday.

‘The outcome document is called “Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” and it is a road map to ending global poverty, building a life of dignity for all and … is also a clarion call to intensify efforts to heal our planet for the benefit of this and future generations.’

The post LGBTI rights language stripped from UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals appeared first on Gay Star News.

Andrew Potts

www.gaystarnews.com/article/lgbti-rights-language-stripped-from-uns-2030-sustainable-development-goals/

PHOTOS: Step Inside Olso’s Dark Underground Pit Of Music And Debauchery

The Villa is a dark, underground hideaway in the center of Oslo. Known for its world-class DJs and state of the art sound system, it’s a place where people of all genders and sexualities can come together, leave their inhibitions at the door, and dance the night away to the beats of both national and international DJs.

Scroll down for a peek at what goes on inside The Villa, and check out the full gallery over at GayCities…

Photo source: The Villa

Graham Gremore

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