Thank God for Kim Davis!

Hers is the face that launched a thousand memes. Comedians, pundits, and political cartoonists have been praising the Lord for sending this arrogant buffoon to walk among us — and provide them with months of satirical material.

You may be longing for her image, her name, and her antics to finally disappear from your television set and your Facebook feed. But before she goes (and go she will), let us pause for a moment to give thanks for everything that Kim Davis has done to advance the cause of marriage equality.

Anyone who’s worked for social causes or presidential campaigns knows that true change comes not from the far left or the far right. It comes from winning the hearts and minds of the vast majority of reasonable but perhaps traditional Americans — commonly known as “the movable middle.”

While the Supreme Court victory for marriage equality felt like it was a long time coming for the gay community, it most likely came as something of a shock to social and/or religious conservatives who may not have gay or lesbian friends or family members whose rights they’d want to defend.

Then came Kim Davis, who flatly and repeatedly refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples despite the Supreme Court’s ruling — and the fact that she’d taken an oath to uphold the law of the land.

Egged on by her antigay attorneys, Davis became the poster child for religious intolerance, insisting her religious beliefs served as her inalienable right to discriminate against gay and lesbian Americans who simply want to spend the rest of their lives with the ones they love.

To the Bible-thumping, right-wing minority, Kim Davis is a hero. To everyone else, including the reasonable if conservative “movable middle,” she’s a bigoted clown. It’s hard to imagine any decent-minded conservative looking at Kim Davis and thinking, Yes, this woman speaks for me.

Davis and her antics have herded the majority of Americans to the belief that gay couples are entitled to marriage equality.

According to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, 63 percent of those surveyed believe Davis should be required to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Nearly three quarters of those surveyed believe it’s more important to treat everyone equally than to accommodate someone’s religious beliefs when the two principles conflict.

So on behalf of the LGBT community — and everyone else who believes in the inherent fairness of marriage equality — thank you, Kim Davis. Don’t let the door hit you on your way out.

ADAM SANDEL is a regular contributor to The Advocate.

Adam Sandel

www.advocate.com/commentary/2015/9/17/thank-god-kim-davis

REVIEW: INNSIDE Manchester

A wise woman (or rather Ab Fab’s Edina Monsoon) once said, ‘I just want clean lines and surfaces!’

Well, darling, the INNSIDE Manchester delivers both and then some, in simple, stylish abundance.

This ultramodern four-star positively towers over its neighbors on Manchester’s up-and-coming First Street development, its striking rectangular exterior shifting in color depending on the light (red, maroon, purple, or all three? May depend how many shandies you’ve had).

With 208 rooms, this recently-opened hotel from the Melia group still feels box fresh, and it’s clear every effort is made to keep it looking immaculate.

The chic but unfussy furnishing and the white, purple and grey color scheme are very easy on the eye (the pristine white sheets, too, are heavenly). Truly, there’s not a boisterous or garish feature in sight – for once, this is a hotel with a modern feel that isn’t a slave to ‘funky chic’, whatever that is.

The decor at the INNSIDE Manchester is modern but low-key and restrained

Space is utilized to lend airiness: the rooms are large and uncluttered, and the floor to ceiling windows (in both the bedrooms and humongous, goldfish bowl-like dining room) let in a lot of light, making a clear architectural declaration. I’ve also got to take my hat off to the bold choice of bathroom (semi-open plan – the toilet is private).

Also worth applauding are the free toiletries and wifi, the fact there were multiple sockets easily accessible from the bed, the extensive continental breakfast, the gym, sauna, steam room, all free for guests, plus the swift, smooth service. We were also given late checkout. Finally, INNSIDE is also conveniently-located – but then, almost everywhere in the center of Manchester is walkable.

All in all, this achingly contemporary stopover is an asset to Manchester, and is as much suited to a business traveler with personality as a fashion-forward LGBTI up for cocktails on Canal Street.

For more information about INNSIDE Manchester, click here.

The post REVIEW: INNSIDE Manchester appeared first on Gay Star News.

Jamie Tabberer

www.gaystarnews.com/article/review-innside-manchester/

My Fellow Bisexuals: Let’s Talk About Sex

Last month I went to my gynecologist for a routine exam, and I promised myself that I would come out to my doctor as bisexual. Having just written a new research brief for the Human Rights Campaign Foundation about the major health disparities facing bisexual people, I knew that bisexual women in particular face disparities when it came to a variety of sexual and mental health issues as well as some forms of cancer. And only a third of us are out to our doctors.

Surprisingly, when I lived in South Carolina, the intake forms at my gynecologist asked about the gender of my sexual partners, so I could “come out” by simply checking both boxes. Not so much at my new doctor’s office. Unless I told her –– the person I’m entrusting to monitor and treat my sexual health –– my doctor would never know I faced elevated risks.

I’ve been out for well over a decade, so I didn’t think it’d be too tough. But, then again, I’d be naked from the waist down, save that lovely paper “robe.” There’s just something unsettling about the prospect of having a normal conversation with someone while they’re examining one’s vagina.

So I sparked up a conversation before my exam began.

Beth: “I’m bisexual, so I know that puts me at risk for some things and I just want to make sure I’m taking care of myself. I just got out of a five-year relationship, so I’m dating other people now.”

Doctor: “So you were with a woman for five years?”

Me, to myself: … deep breaths …

Me: “No, with a man.”

Doctor: “So how does that make you bisexual?”

Me: …

At this point, I could feel my face getting warm with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. I switched into the voice I used when I was a professor and I was trying to answer a student’s inappropriate question without revealing my frustration.

Me: “Well, I’m attracted to men and women, and just because I was with a man, doesn’t mean I stopped being attracted to other genders.”

Eventually the exam started, and it was at that point she asked if my parents are “OK with it.” Now, I don’t know about you, but the last thing that I want to think about while having a pap smear is how my family has grappled with my sexuality.

Clearly the conversation was going off the rails. She must have sensed it too because, referencing her own volunteer work, she told me her biggest motivation is helping people. I saw an opportunity to encourage her to do what she can to help LGBTQ patients. I explained the need for inclusive intake forms, for making sure her office was welcoming for the transgender men who also need gynecological care, and how important a simple change in paperwork can create a more inclusive space.

I was met with blank stares.

It was abundantly clear that even though I had come out to her, she didn’t know why a sexual history that included more than one gender might put me at risk for certain health concerns. She didn’t understand that avoiding awkward conversations like this one may lead me to miss preventative care and screenings for things like breast cancer and cervical cancer. She wouldn’t know to screen me for signs of clinical depression and anxiety, which I and a disproportionate number of bisexual people experience.

Walking out, I felt like all I accomplished was making both of us incredibly uncomfortable and realizing that I needed to find another gynecologist. I felt like I failed, even though it’s not my job –– nor is it any patient’s job –– to make my medical providers culturally competent.

Is it too much to ask that a person whose job it is to examine vaginas all day long actually knows something about the variety of people who have them, what we do with them, and how that affects our health?

But in the end, I know I didn’t fail. She needs to have these conversations –– and I’ll be sending her a copy of this piece and our new research brief, produced in collaboration with national bisexual advocacy groups BiNet USA, Bisexual Resource Center, and Bisexual Organizing Project.

I encourage my fellow bisexuals to talk to their doctors –– even though I understand why the vast majority of us do not. Medical providers need to do better, but until they do, those of us who have the safety, access, and courage to speak up about bisexual and other LGBTQ health needs and inclusive practices should do just that, for ourselves and for those in our community who can’t.

BETH SHEROUSE, Ph.D. is the senior content manager at the Human Rights Campaign.

www.advocate.com/commentary/2015/9/17/my-fellow-bisexuals-lets-talk-about-sex

Republicans Vilify Clinton, Obama, Supreme Court

The second Republican presidential mainstage debate was marked by fewer fireworks than the first — candidates for the most part avoided shouting matches — but Donald Trump still managed to offend some people, and the candidates generally returned to familiar Republican tropes.

Some of those: President Obama is weak on foreign policy and the Iran nuclear treaty is a terrible idea, Hillary Clinton is generally evil, economic and environmental regulations are job-killers, and, oh, the Supreme Court is out of control.

The high court came in for criticism largely because of the marriage equality decision — that was about the only time LGBT issues came up — and the decision upholding the Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. Obamacare.

In tonight’s debate at the Reagan Library among the 11 highest-polling candidates (after one among four lower-ranking contenders), former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee got the most digs in against the marriage decision, saying the Supreme Court created a right “out of thin air.” He also said not making an accommodation for Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis’s faith-based objection to licensing same-sex marriages amounted to “criminalization” of Christianity.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who had said Davis was sworn to uphold the law, backtracked a bit tonight, saying there should be an accommodation for Davis, as for florists or bakers who don’t want to provide goods or services for same-sex weddings. He thought that if she couldn’t in good conscience issue the licenses, someone else in her office should — and actually, that’s what has been taking place since Davis’s release from jail. Before she was jailed for contempt of court, though, she would not let deputy clerks issue licenses either.

The Human Rights Campaign called out Huckabee and Bush. “Mike Huckabee and Jeb Bush tonight tripped all over themselves trying to be the first to defend government officials who want to ignore the rule of law in order to discriminate against LGBT people,” said HRC senior vice president of policy and political affairs JoDee Winterhof, in a press release. “Our next president should defend the constitutional rights of all Americans, including LGBT people, and fight for full federal equality. Instead, tonight, Jeb Bush and Mike Huckabee continued down the wrong path by saying they want to encourage government officials who deny LGBT Americans their constitutional right to equal treatment under the law.” Watch a clip of the two candidates below.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas got a few comments in on marriage equality as well, saying that as president he would appoint Supreme Court justices who uphold the Constitution in full — implying that those who ruled for marriage equality did not — and would not be “philosopher kings” with a liberal agenda. He also said if a more åconservative nominee than John Roberts, now chief justice, had been appointed to the court, Obamacare would have been struck down and all previous state marriage laws would still stand. (Actually, while Roberts did vote to uphold Obamacare, he voted against marriage equality.)

Front-runner Donald Trump didn’t have a major woman-bashing moment, as he did in the first debate. But when Carly Fiorina was asked to respond to a comment Trump made to Rolling Stone about her — “Look at that face! Who would vote for that?” — she said, “I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr. Trump said.”

Trump, who had claimed the comment wasn’t about Fiorina’s appearance but her persona, then said of Fiorina, “I think she has a beautiful face.”

Trump’s remark about looks tonight was directed at U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. “I’ve never attacked him on his looks, and there’s plenty of subject matter there,” Trump said.

Trump and Fiorina had a back-and-forth about each other’s business acumen or lack thereof, which New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie called “childish,” and he reminded them that ordinary Americans, struggling with daily expenses, didn’t care about the two business executives’ careers.

Most of the candidates denounced the treaty designed to keep Iran from developing nuclear weapons in the near future, generally seeing it as yielding too much to Iran. Cruz promised, “On my first day in office, I will rip to shreds this Iranian nuclear deal,” and added, “If you vote for Hillary Clinton, you are voting for the Ayatollah Khameini to possess a nuclear weapon.” Huckabee called the treaty a threat to Western civilization.

But Paul said the idea of ripping it up is absurd, and Gov. John Kasich of Ohio pointed out that there are safeguards in place, with the option to impose sanctions on Iran if it violates the treaty.

Cruz wasn’t the only one vilifying Clinton. Christie, touting his own “pro-life” credentials, said she “believes in the systematic destruction of children in the womb.” And Fiorina accused Clinton of lying about the killings of U.S. diplomats in Benghazi, Libya, and about her emails during her tenure as secretary of State.

Who will get to face Clinton — or Bernie Sanders or another Democrat — in the general election remains very much an open question. The next Republican debate will be October 29 in Boulder, Colo. The Democratic hopefuls will have their first debate October 13 in Las Vegas.

Trudy Ring

www.advocate.com/election/2015/9/16/republicans-vilify-clinton-obama-supreme-court

Queensland moves to restore civil unions

The Australian state of Queensland has moved to bring back civil unions.

Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath will introduce the Civil Partnerships Bill in the state parliament on Thursday (17 September) afternoon.

Civil unions were legalized in Queensland – which includes Brisbane – by Labor in 2011, but were downgraded to registered relationships soon after the Liberal-National party came to power the following year.

State Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said her government was committed to restoring the state-sanctioned civil partnership ceremonies for couples of any gender.

‘It’s time to inject some maturity and some dignity into the marriage debate. It’s time to again allow heterosexual couples who might want to affirm their relationship but not take the step of actually getting married the right to do so,’ she told parliament.

‘It’s also time – once again – to allow same sex couples that same right.’

She added: ‘These ceremonies and the symbolism they represent are important, particularly to people in same-sex relationships.’

The bill will require cross-bench support if it is to pass.

Gay marriage is not legal in Australia, but a plebiscite on the issue is expected after the next federal elections.

The post Queensland moves to restore civil unions appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/queensland-moves-to-restore-civil-unions/

TV pranksters behind Putin gay rights call to Elton John

Two TV pranksters were behind the call that Sir Elton John thought was from Russian President Vladimir Putin ringing to discuss LGBTI rights.

Parts of the 11-minute conversation were aired Wednesday (16 September) on late-night talk show Vecherny Urgant on state-owned Channel 1.

The call came earlier this week after the British rocker told the BBC that he wanted to meet the Russian leader to to talk about his ‘ridiculous’ attitude toward LGBTI people.

‘I was told you wanted to discuss a few important questions about things in Russia,’ one of the hosts pretending to be Putin can be heard saying.

John responded excitedly: ‘I am a musician and a philanthropic person and a humanitarian. I’m not a politician, but I would love to sit down with the president and discuss things face to face, because I think we can solve many issues together he told the man he thought was the Russian president.

‘My position in life is that people who are gay should be included in all walks of life and given basic freedom.

‘I love Russia it’s been part of my life since 1979 and I just want to make the situation better if I can.’

Hosts Vladimir Krasnov and Alexei Stolyarov, who are known as Vova and Lexus, boasted to Russian media that Elton had no idea the call was a hoax.

‘Alexei has great English, so he introduced himself as Dmitry Peskov [Putin’s spokesperson] and translated our conversation. I was Vladimir Putin,’ Krasnov told the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper.

‘He said: “Thank you, you’ve made my day. This day and this conversation has been the most wonderful and lovely in my life.”‘

Listen to the conversation below:

The post TV pranksters behind Putin gay rights call to Elton John appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/tv-pranksters-behind-putin-gay-rights-call-to-elton-john/

On Kim Davis, Bush, Huckabee on Wrong Side of History, American Public, and the Constitution

Reality: Candidates defend Kentucky clerk who blocked deputies from following rule of law and issuing licenses.
HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/on-kim-davis-bush-huckabee-on-wrong-side-of-history-american-public-and-the?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

GOPers Talk 'Persecuted' Christians, Defying Supreme Court

The debate among four low-polling Republican candidates, derisively dubbed the “kids’ table” debate, didn’t have a lot to do with LGBT issues, but they did come up — specifically, marriage equality and the “religious freedom” of those who oppose it.

During questioning about how to balance national security needs with civil rights — the conversation turned on a Muslim teenager in Texas who was arrested after bringing a homemade clock to school, as his teachers thought it might be a bomb — Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal asserted that the greatest discrimination in the U.S. today is not against Muslims but Christians.

People who have a “traditional” view of marriage, like Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis, are being persecuted, Jindal asserted. Davis was famously jailed for defying a court order to issue marriage licenses to both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. He also touted his signing of an executive order in Louisiana to protect people with such views from government-imposed penalties.

Former New York Gov. George Pataki, who supports marriage equality, responded that Davis’s religious views can’t take precedence over her oath of office as a public official  “I would have fired her,” Pataki asserted. (As an elected official, she would have to be impeached rather than fired, by the way.)

Jindal later piped up, “I’d like the left to give us a list of jobs that Christians are not allowed to have.”

Rick Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, noted his support for the First Amendment Defense Act, a piece of federal legislation that would prevent the government from imposing penalties on businesses and individuals who claim faith-based objections to certain laws.

He also said the Supreme Court’s marriage equality ruling was “unconstitutional” and that the nation needs a president who will resist such rulings. Pataki responded that he wouldn’t want a president who defies the Supreme Court, and U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina noted that he learned his first day in law school that the Supreme Court’s job is to interpret laws. He said he didn’t agree with the ruling, but it is the law of the land.

Graham also used the discussion to turn to something he cited several times in the debate, the need to defeat “radical Islam” in the form of ISIS and others. “Whether you’re the cake baker, the gay couple, or the Baptist preacher, radical Islam will kill you all,” he said.

The debate aired on CNN from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif. It’s being followed by a debate among the 11 higher-polling candidates. Pictured, from left: Pataki, Santorum, Jindal, and Graham.

Trudy Ring

www.advocate.com/election/2015/9/16/gopers-talk-persecuted-christians-defying-supreme-court

Mike Huckabee On Kim Davis Case: Ignore Supreme Court Rulings

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said the U.S. Supreme Court crossed a line when it “decided out of thin air” to legalize same-sex marriage, and he vowed to stand by Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who went to jail this month for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Huckabee compared the treatment of Davis to the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the 2013 shooter at Fort Hood, who was allowed to grow a beard while in prison because of his Muslim faith. He said the government made accommodations for their religious faith, but not for Davis when she refused to issue marriage licenses.

“You’re telling me that we cannot make an accommodation for an elected Democrat county clerk from Rowan County, Kentucky?” Huckabee asked. “What else is it other than the criminalization of her faith and the exaltation of the faith of everyone else who might be a Fort Hood shooter or a detainee at GITMO.”

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush pointed out that Davis was sworn to uphold the law as a county clerk, so if she can’t do that, she might need to find another job.

“You can’t just say, ‘Well, the gays can’t get married now,'” Bush said. “If she, based on her conscience, can’t sign that marriage license, then there should be someone in her office to be able to do it.”

Read the latest updates on the GOP debate here.

Also on HuffPost:

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Mike Huckabee Defends Anti-Gay Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis at GOP Debate: WATCH

Mike Huckabee was asked if Jeb Bush was on the wrong side of the debate over the jailing of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis and the “criminalization of Christianity.”

Huckabee, who stood by Davis at a rally when she was freed from the clink, had this to say:

“We made accommodations to the Fort Hood shooter, to let him grow a beard. We made accommodations to the detainees at Gitmo. I’ve been to Gitmo and I’ve seen the accommodations that we made to the Muslim detainees who killed Americans. You’re telling me that you cannot make an accommodation for an elected Democrat county clerk from Rowan County, Kentucky? What else is it other than the criminalization of her faith and the exaltation of everyone else who might be a Fort Hood shooter or a detainee at Gitmo?”

Watch:

The post Mike Huckabee Defends Anti-Gay Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis at GOP Debate: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

Andy Towle

Mike Huckabee Defends Anti-Gay Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis at GOP Debate: WATCH