#AM_Equality Tipsheet: February 8, 2018

BREAKING — REUTERS DETAILS HRC PLAN TO MOBILIZE PRO-EQUALITY VOTERS IN 2018 ELECTION AND BEYOND: Correspondent Daniel Trotta (@danieljtrotta) reports on the Trump-Pence attacks on LGBTQ rights and how HRC is identifying and mobilizing Equality Voters across the U.S. “This is a voting bloc that has to be respected, and sought after, and feared,” said HRC President Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin). The millions of voters in HRC’s database, Trotta reports, “can be deployed to get out the vote for candidates who support LGBT rights.” He adds: “The database will enable HRC to target voters in any particular district, whether for or against a candidate or ballot initiative, or simply to mobilize people for a debate before a local school board.” HRC’s deep organizational commitment to the elections is part of its historic effort to pull the emergency brake on the Trump-Pence administration’s hate-fueled agenda. More from Reuters.

REALLY, MIKE PENCE? YOU’RE “FOR” LGBTQ PEOPLE LIKE OLYMPIAN ADAM RIPPON? Pence has made a career of attacking members of our community, from his dangerous License to Discriminate to his constant opposition to marriage equality.

FACT: As a member of Congress, Mike Pence supported a Constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and referred to gay couples as a signal of “societal collapse”

FACT: Mike Pence signed into law a disastrous License to Discriminate in Indiana. He was willing to tank his state’s economy if it meant allowing people to refuse services to LGBTQ people.

FACT:  Although he failed, Mike Pence tried to ram through anti-marriage equality legislation during his time in the House, and worked to block same-sex marriage as governor.

FACT: Pence supported diverting critical HIV & AIDS funding to pay for dangerous so-called “conversion therapy” measures.

FACT: Adam Rippon is right — Pence has fought against LGBTQ people and our well-being nearly every day of his career. He is not “for” us.

FACT CHECK: @VP Pence is not “for” any LGBTQ American. He has made a career of attacking members of our community, from his dangerous #LicenseToDiscriminate to his constant opposition to marriage equality. t.co/rBXFHveg7A

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) February 8, 2018

BERMUDA GOVERNOR SIGNS BILL REPEALING MARRIAGE EQUALITY: Under the guise of passing domestic partnership benefits, the new law strips loving same-sex Bermudan couples of the right to marry and jeopardizes Bermuda’s international reputation and economy. “Governor John Rankin and the Bermuda Parliament have shamefully made Bermuda the first national territory in the world to repeal marriage equality,” said Ty Cobb (@TyWesleyCobb), director of HRC Global. “Despite this deplorable action, the fight for marriage equality in Bermuda will continue until the day every Bermudian is afforded the right to marry the person they love.” More from HRC and The Associated Press.

THROWBACK THURSDAY: Tomorrow is Alice Walker’s 74th birthday. An advocate, activist, poet and novelist, Walker has spent her life giving voice to the richness of the emotions and experiences of the Black community, amplifying shared struggle through powerful writing, including her novel The Color Purple.

HRC RELEASES POWERFUL VIDEO FEATURING DREAMER: Mo is part of the immigrant youth-led United We Dream network working to change hearts and minds for the passage of a common-sense, bipartisan DREAM Act. There are 75,000 LGBTQ Dreamers in the United States. Among those who would be affected by DACA’s rollback are 36,000 LGBTQ recipients. Watch here.

“The United States is my home. I live here, my entire life is here.” ����
Text WITH DREAMERS to 30644 to stand with Mo, @UNITEDWEDREAM and other #LGBTQ #DREAMers at risk of deportation if Congress fails to act. pic.twitter.com/ViPJ6goIDL

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) February 7, 2018

NEW JERSEY JOINS AMICUS BRIEF OPPOSING TRUMP’S TRANSGENDER MILITARY BAN: More from Politico.

CALL YOUR STATE LAWMAKERS — State bills to keep on your radar!

• Today, the Virginia House General Laws Committee votes on two important LGBTQ housing and employment non-discrimination measures, which passed the Virginia Senate last month with strong bipartisan support. Said HRC National Field Director Marty Rouse: “HRC is working to mobilize our tens of thousands of members and supporters across the Commonwealth to speak out about the importance of these long overdue protections with strong bipartisan support.”

GLOBAL EQUALITY NEWS

HAITIAN LGBTQ ADVOCATES SAY DISCRIMINATION HAS WORSENED SINCE 2010 EARTHQUAKE: More from PRI.

TURKISH LGBTQ ADVOCATE HOLDS HUNGER STRIKE TO BRING ATTENTION TO GOVERNMENT’S DISCRIMINATION AGAINST LGBTQ INMATES: More from Turkey Purge.

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

Advocate highlights a powerful podcast sharing the story of Jen, a transgender woman; Domino reports that Trulia will allow renters and home buyers to determine which communities have LGBTQ-inclusive comprehensive protections; Billboard interviews openly bisexual Fifth Harmony member Lauren Jauregui about her message to struggling LGBTQ people; Voice of America reports that Kamilla Carvalho will be the first openly transgender woman to perform as a star dancer at Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival parade; Human Rights Watch previews potential developments in Latin American LGBTQ equality

www.hrc.org/blog/am-equality-tipsheet-february-8-2018?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Social Media Companies Must Step Up To The Plate And Help Us Tackle Mental Health Issues Online
Last month, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook spoke candidly about his unease at what he called the “overuse” of technology, adding that he didn’t want his young nephew to use social media networks.

It felt like a symbolic moment, as one of the titans of the technology world hinted at personal reservations about social media when it came to his own family.

As Health Secretary, I’ve been vocal over the past 12 months about the need for social media companies to step up to the plate and help us tackle the mental health issues that research suggests is associated with to excessive social media use.

And that’s not because I am a Neanderthal but because fundamentally I believe in technology – provided it is harnessed appropriately. The company I founded before going into politics was in technology – we produced a number of websites to help younger people choose the right university or college course. I’ve also been a passionate champion for how technology can improve our health system too, including mental health provision itself.

But I do worry about unintended consequences. I worry for my own children, and I worry that as a nation we are sleepwalking into a situation where a whole generation of young people are spending huge chunks of their childhood online rather than investing in the deep and enduring face-to-face relationships that help them grow up as well-rounded individuals.

When you have people like Sean Parker, Facebook’s founding president, effectively admitting that the social media industry’s business model is built on psychological addiction, I think it’s right to demand these firms to exercise greater restraint and responsibility in how they design, market and manage their services.

The latest Ofcom research suggest that half of children aged 11 and 12 now have a social media profile, despite many platforms’ minimum age being 13, and the average 12-15 year old spends over 20 hours every week online. These are two areas that could be addressed by technology providers stepping up and accepting responsibility.

That’s why in the autumn, I met with the leading technology providers, including Facebook, Snapchat, Apple and Google, and set them a simple challenge: work with us and help us find solutions to these issues facing young people.

It was a good, productive conversation and they agreed to come back in March with some hard proposals, which I look forward to seeing – but the clock is ticking, just as the public’s attitude towards the ethical conduct of social media firms is hardening.

Without question there is more that Government can do to improve support for children and young – and our Children and Young People’s Green Paper sets out a comprehensive set of measures, including the £5million I’ve announced today to extend mental health training in primary schools.

We particularly need to make sure there is greater availability of counselling services in our schools, better support for parents and faster access to specialist NHS therapies and treatments where necessary. At least 70,000 additional children and young people each year are expected to receive evidence-based treatment by 2020/21.

So here’s the opportunity: if the future of technology is so promising, why don’t Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and Google make sure they are the solution, not the problem?

That means tackling underage use with proper age verification; nudging people who are online too long; sharing data so we can tackle cyber-bullying and many other small measures that – taken together – will have a dramatic impact in making children safer online.

We read a lot of hot air on social media every day, but this time it is action not words we need.

Jeremy Hunt is the Secretary of State for Health and Conservative MP for South West Surrey

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/mental-health_uk_5a7c329ae4b08dfc93006dc8

MPs Attack ‘Shameful’ Boris Johnson For Choosing Not To Stop Bermuda Banning Same-Sex Marriage
Boris Johnson has been accused of acting in a “shameful” way after he decided to allow Bermuda to reverse the right of gay couples to marry.

Bermuda is a British overseas territory and the foreign secretary had the power to block the legislation.

However Foreign Office minister Harriet Baldwin told the Commons on Thursday that while the government was “disappointed” with Bermuda’s decision, Johnson had decided it “wouldn’t be appropriate” to intervene.

Baldwin said while Johnson could overrule Bermuda in “exceptional circumstances” – this test had not been met.

“It was his judgement that in engaging with British overseas territories we have to respect they are separate self-governing jurisdictions with their own democratically elected representatives that have the right self-government,” she added.

Helen Goodman, Labour’s shadow Foreign Office minister, said the decision “turns same-sex couples into second class citizens”.

“For that to happen anyone in the world would be shameful. For it to happen in a British territory, for the legislation signed by a British governor and permitted by a British foreign secretary makes us complicit in something which this House has repeatedly voted against,” she said.

Backbench MPs lined up to criticise Johnson for failing to act. Labour backbencher David Lammy said the government was on the “wrong side of human rights”.

“The first slaves we brought to Bermuda in 1620, oppressed, segregated, discriminated against,” he said.

“And that is why leaders like Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu and Barack Obama have not just fought for race rights, but they have fought for rights of lesbian, gay and bisexual people.

“This country has been one of the world  leaders on this subject – so if this is not the issue on which to refuse assent I don’t know which is.”

This is an absolute scandal. The FCO claims to stand for LGBT+ rights, yet in a territory THEY GOVERN they are waving through the repealing of same-sex marriage. This is a breach of human rights, and the Government should reverse their decision immediately. t.co/Hv84eK0jw6

February 8, 2018
Labour’s Chris Bryant told MPs that Russia would in future “laugh” at the British government whenever it criticised Moscow for its track record on LGBT rights.

Lloyd Russell-Moyle, the Labour MP for Brighton Kemptown, said the British government needed to “stand up” for minority rights in Bermuda.

And Lib Dem Jamie Stone said he was “stunned” that Johnson did not think protecting the rights of gay people in Bermuda was an “exceptional case” worthy of his intervention.

The decision represents the first reversal of a trend among Western countries of legalising same-sex marriage.

Under the Domestic Partnership Act 2017, already passed by Bermuda’s House of Assembly and Senate, any Bermudian will be allowed to form domestic partnerships which the government says will offer equal rights.

Walton Brown, Bermuda’s Minister of Home Affairs, whose ruling PLP party proposed the act, said on Wednesday he was pleased with the decision.

“The British government recognises that this is a local government decision,” Brown said, adding that the act struck a compromise by “restating that marriage must be between a male and a female while at the same time recognising and protecting the rights of same-sex couples.”

It follows a referendum in which a majority of voters opposed same-sex marriage.

International human rights groups say the new legislation contradicts Bermuda’s constitution, which guarantees freedom from discrimination.

Same-sex marriage was first legalized in Bermuda in May 2017 after the nation’s Supreme Court ruled in favor of a gay couple who sued for equal marriage rights. Winston Godwin, a Bermudian, and Greg DeRoche, a Canadian, filed the lawsuit after their marriage application was declined by Bermuda’s Registrar-General, Bernews said.

The Supreme Court ruling on marriage equality in May 2017 was celebrated by the small gay community, but it also outraged many on the socially conservative island, including church leaders, and thousands protested outside parliament.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/boris-johnson-complicit-in-shameful-bermuda-same-sex-marriage-ban_uk_5a7c31bae4b044b38219b23e

A Menopausal Moment? No, It’s Parkinson’s!

So, I’m in my 50s! I’ve gone through the menopause – so all those aches, pains, and names escaping me are just one of those things that happen.

Time after time there would be a joke made about forgetting a name! For me it wasn’t the name of a person, it was those ‘things’ I had been using for years. “I’m just having a menopausal moment,” I laughed.

I read articles written by others on how to overcome this annoying problem. That’s how I thought of it, only temporary, something that would rectify itself once those dratted hormones settled down. I bowed to those with far more experience and knowledge about memory problems than myself.

So I made myself link the word to an image in my mind, as you do. It was no use trying to conjure up a picture of the object itself because there it was in front of me! Teasing me with its presence. Laughing at my inability to recall its name. What did it do – this ‘thing’ that eluded me? Where was it kept? Then there was the other ‘one’. Now that had something to do with the cooker as well, but what is it called? Even now my mind is searching its recesses trying to recall the first letter. If I get that far the rest should follow. It’s flat and it can take lots of heat without burning. It is non stick. That’s it! Teflon sheet! I remember its name at last, but what a chore. I know the next time the same process will happen again and then there is no guarantee it will come as quickly. Some days it takes a hour or two before it will suddenly pop into my mind out of nowhere.

Then came that day last November; I found myself answering the door with a blank look on my face and no knowledge of the person standing in front of me. My brain was telling me something was wrong but I didn’t know what. This was not me! There was always something there previously that said, ‘Oh yes, you silly idiot I remember now!’ Not this time.

At the end of the month was my appointment with a neurologist. The doctor in our medical practice had noticed a tremor in my hand. “How long have you had it?” she asked. To be honest I couldn’t recall. It had been there a year or so probably. What did you think it was? “A side effect of having a cortisone injection,” I replied unconcerned. Knowing that the needle had been inserted close to a main nerve in my thumb, there had been the assumption on my part that he’d gone a bit too close. The look she gave me was exactly the same as the one from the neurologist when I gave her the very same answer: one of disbelief. The diagnosis didn’t take long… Parkinson’s Disease.

What link does that have to forgetfulness? Voraciously researching the internet about Parkinson’s, it comes under the heading of mild cognitive impairment. Thankfully it sounds much worse than it is (or at least I hope). These cognitive symptoms can be exaggerated by anxiety/stress or sleep problems that are caused by muscle pains at night. ‘It may be there is a problem with the passing of messages in the brain,’ the Parkinson’s UK internet site told me. That makes sense I told myself, as Dopamine is a neurotransmitter – transmitting signals in the brain. Obviously my transmitters are not all firing as they should be, a bit like an engine that’s coughing and spluttering when not enough fuel is getting to the necessary parts.

For most women it is just the side effects of the menopause. For the few like myself they were the unseen aspects of Parkinson’s. I am not a doctor. This is my own experience as someone newly diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/a-menopausal-moment-no-its-parkinsons_uk_5a7b475fe4b02532eea14e18

Revealed: Secret Universal Credit Reports ‘Barely Mention Claimants’
And the reports reveal how Universal Credit came close to “complete failure” in 2013, but has since recovered.

Labour MP Frank Field, who chairs the Work and Pensions Committee which analysed the reports, said: “In the eighth year of the programme, the department itself has yet to produce the full business case for its own mega reform.”

Top secret “Project Assessment Reviews” dated between 2012 and 2015 were handed to the committee alongside other more recent reports after a humiliating climbdown by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

Ministers made the “exceptional” move to hand over the files late last year after a bruising Commons backlash.

But in a damning assessment, MPs said on Thursday:

There remains “no evidence” that Universal Credit “makes work pay” for all types of claimants;
There’s “considerable uncertainty” about the reform’s costs and benefits;
And constant delays to the rollout appear to cancel out savings Universal Credit was meant to provide.
Field added: “The programme managers appear to expect us, the public, and the minister responsible to take it on faith that [Universal Credit] will deliver the much improved employment outcomes they claim for the vast range of people – disabled, single parents, carers, the self-employed – who will claim [it].

“They have produced no evidence to back up the key, central economic assumption of the biggest reform to our welfare system in 50 years.

“The reviews, which barely mention claimants, are also shot through with management gobbledegook.”

MPs blast Whitehall ‘gobbledegook’ MPs have criticised the use of “cryptic and cliched” project management speak in the top secret Universal Credit files. Examples of the so-called “gobbledegook” included: Describing meetings as “stand-ups”, “priority stand-ups”, a “scrum of scrums” and even a “Show and Tell”; Referring to elements of Universal Credit as “stories”, “epic level stories” and “story groups”; Explaining one team had “not fully matured its ability to accurately size incoming stories”; And describing the successful completion of a task as “ensuring the safe landing of delivery”. The committee of MPs said the files were “no loss to the canon of published prose”.
With the latest full assessment review dated 2015, the committee has called for greater transparency in future.

Universal Credit replaces six benefits with one single monthly payment and will gradually roll out to all those on welfare by 2022.

But it has been plagued by problems, including a perilous six week wait in payments, a surge in the use of loan sharks and food banks, and rip-off fees to call its helpline.

Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey defended Universal Credit in the Commons last week, saying: “Universal Credit has had a positive impact since its start, as shown through published research and analysis.

“Independent research shows us that people are ​spending more time looking for work, applying for more jobs and even doing jobs they would not have considered doing before.”

‘Not fit for purpose’

Responding to the committee’s findings, Debbie Abrahams, Labour’s shadow work and pensions secretary, said: “After years of Tory Universal Credit chaos, this report proves once again that Universal Credit is not fit for purpose.

“It is completely unacceptable that the Government has not provided any evidence to back up their repeated assertion that Universal Credit will help people into work, a key principle of the programme.

“As Universal Credit is being rolled out, people in and out of work are being pushed into rent arrears, debt and poverty with food bank use rising as a consequence. Yet the Government’s own review barely mention claimants.”

A spokesperson for the DWP said: “The Work and Pensions Select Committee has commended the department for running the Universal Credit programme ‘more professionally and efficiently with a collective sense of purpose’.

“The committee acknowledges that the historic issues raised in this report have now been addressed and ‘substantial achievements’ have been delivered since 2013.

“Universal Credit is the biggest modernisation of the welfare system in a generation and continues to be delivered in a safe and secure way.

“The Infrastructure and Projects Authority has independently supported our test and learn approach, the improvements we continue to make and the recent expansion of the programme.”

Meanwhile the battle for the reports to be fully published continues, with a tribunal set to decide whether the public should be able to access the files or not.

The government has argued that the internal documents were only ever meant to be seen by ministers and releasing them publicly could mean future reports are less useful.

And we reported how terminally ill Universal Credit claimants are routinely assigned “work coaches”, prompting condemnation from charities.

Ministers announced on Wednesday that the government will change the threshold at which households with Universal Credit claims will receive free school meals.

Labour said the plan could mean more than one million children go without a hot meal at school.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/universal-credit-reports_uk_5a7af966e4b07af4e81fbc73

A Cut SNL Skit Highlights the Needs of Goth Girls, Gay Boys

When a regular old doll won’t do, there’s “My Little Step Children.”

www.advocate.com/comedy/2018/2/07/cut-snl-skit-highlights-needs-goth-girls-gay-boys

Quincy Jones, Paris Snow, Steve Wynn, Wes Anderson, Katy Perry, Rex Tillerson, Mike Pence: HOT LINKS

DISGRACEFUL. Trump 2020 campaign ad attacks Democrats for not applauding dear leader.

NOT WYNNING. Steve Wynn steps down as CEO of casino company after harassment allegations: “In the last couple of weeks, I have found myself the focus of an avalanche of negative publicity. As I have reflected upon the environment this has created — one in which a rush to judgment takes precedence over everything else, including the facts — I have reached the conclusion I cannot continue to be effective in my current roles.”

KATY PERRY. I’d change “I Kissed A Girl” if I wrote it today.

QUINCY JONES. Music mogul says he used to date Ivanka Trump: ‘Yes, sir. Twelve years ago. Tommy Hilfiger, who was working with my daughter KidadaA former model and current designer, Kidada is the daughter of Jones and his ex-wife Peggy Lipton. Jones’s other daughter with Lipton is the actress Rashida Jones. Jones has five other children, with four other women., said, “Ivanka wants to have dinner with you.” I said, “No problem. She’s a fine motherfucker.” She had the most beautiful legs I ever saw in my life. Wrong father, though.’

RUSSIA. Sec’y of State Rex Tillerson says Russia is already interfering in 2018 midterms: “If it’s their intention to interfere, they are going to find ways to do that. We can take steps we can take but this is something that, once they decide they are going to do it, it’s very difficult to preempt it.”

CHANNELING. Amy Adams does Andy Warhol.

UNRULY PASSENGER. Sixth Sense star Haley Joel Osment in airport meltdown: ‘“A passenger on the evening of Sunday, Feb. 4, missed their flight at Las Vegas McCarran International Airport,” a representative for American Airlines told Page Six on Tuesday. “As a courtesy, they were placed on standby for another flight Monday morning from Las Vegas. Due to the passenger’s behavior toward our team members on Monday morning, law enforcement was summoned to the gate. The passenger was upset we would not confirm him on a flight, after he missed his flight the previous evening.”

PARIS. City sees biggest snow in decades and it’s gorgeous.

NORTH KOREA. Mike Pence really wants to go to war.

MEET CABLE. The Deadpool 2 trailer is here.

DESMOND. Meet the 10-year-old kid taking the drag world by storm. “My parents are not forcing me at all,” Desmond said. “This is what I wanted to do, and this is what I always want to do for the rest of my life. I just love their support, it’s fabulous.”

CLIP OF THE DAY. Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs.

Watch the exclusive first clip for Wes Anderson’s stop-motion #IsleofDogs t.co/8qDROBI1cM pic.twitter.com/MTqa67Afhm

— Vulture (@vulture) February 6, 2018

SIGNAL MASTER. James Corden introduces Jamie Dornan to the world of model train sets.

HUMP DAY HOTTIE. Tuan Yee.

The post Quincy Jones, Paris Snow, Steve Wynn, Wes Anderson, Katy Perry, Rex Tillerson, Mike Pence: HOT LINKS appeared first on Towleroad.

Quincy Jones, Paris Snow, Steve Wynn, Wes Anderson, Katy Perry, Rex Tillerson, Mike Pence: HOT LINKS

Gay Olympian Adam Rippon gave Mike Pence’s staff the finger when the Veep demanded a meeting
“No” means no.

www.queerty.com/gay-olympian-adam-rippon-gave-mike-pences-staff-finger-veep-demanded-meeting-20180207?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

Proprioception & 10 insanely hot fitness tips from Instagrammers who would know
Poke around for the social network and you’ll find a never-ending stream of athletes and trainers, only too happy to divulge the secrets of their physical fitness journey.

www.queerty.com/proprioception-10-insanely-hot-fitness-tips-instagrammers-know-20180207?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+queerty2+%28Queerty%29

Seth Meyers Hit a Breaking Point Last Night: WATCH

Seth Meyers hit a breaking point last night. What triggered it? Hogan Gidley.

Who the hell is Hogan Gidley? Exactly Meyers’ point.

Raved the Late Night host: “I just want to go back to a time where you knew the president – and maybe speaker of the House – and you could watch a whole baseball game without having to check Twitter to see if the president punched a nun. I don’t want to live in a world where I know Rachel Maddow’s entire blazer rotation. I guess what I’m saying is – get lost Hogan Gidley!”

So true, so true.

Also on Meyers’ mind: Trump’s infrastructure plan, his “treasonous” label for Democrats, an Illinois high school teacher and marijuana, and the Puppy Bowl.

The post Seth Meyers Hit a Breaking Point Last Night: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

Seth Meyers Hit a Breaking Point Last Night: WATCH