Author: aceofmathematics

Opinion | Is America Growing Less Tolerant on L.G.B.T.Q. Rights?

questingqueer:

“I have believed that just as the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. predicted, the arc of the moral universe does indeed bend toward justice. Until now.For the first time since the poll began four years ago, support for L.G.B.T.Q. people has dropped, in all seven areas that the survey measured. They include “having an L.G.B.T. person at my place of worship” (24 percent of Americans are “very” or “somewhat” uncomfortable), seeing a same-sex couple holding hands (31 percent are uncomfortable) and “learning my child has an L.G.B.T. teacher at school” (37 percent are uncomfortable).

The increase in these numbers over years previous is not dramatic — 3 percent in some instances, two in others. What’s significant is not the margin of increase but the fact that the numbers are going up instead of down.  And in the past year, the number of L.G.B.T.Q. people reporting discrimination on the basis of their sexuality or gender identity has jumped 11 percent — to 55 percent in 2017 from 44 percent in 2016.

The reason for the change is not hard to discern. Week by week, tweet by tweet, Mr. Trump has normalized all of our worst impulses — and the routine expression of homophobia and transphobia. Mr. Trump’s administration sided with the right to discriminate against L.G.B.T.Q. Americans in the Masterpiece Cake case before the Supreme Court; he declared a new policy removing L.G.B.T.Q. people from the 2020 census; he failed to even mention gay people on World AIDS Day; and he attempted (although so far has failed) to ban trans people from the military. And of course, he made Mike Pence his vice president, a man who, as a congressional candidate, endorsed conversion therapy and who, as governor of Indiana, defunded H.I.V./AIDs testing and prevention — an action that may well have led to a record outbreak of the disease in that state.”

Opinion | Is America Growing Less Tolerant on L.G.B.T.Q. Rights?

apicturewithasmile:

apicturewithasmile:

85 years after the Nazis destroyed the Institut für Sexualwissenschaften and burned its research, a nazi was given a chair at the Magnus-Hirschfeld-Stiftung. I haven’t felt this nauseous since the AfD got voted into German parliament.

I still cannot find an English article on the matter so I decided to give you a condensed version of a bunch of German articles I read on the matter. Here are links to all the articles I used:
1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
TW for mentions of pedophilia, various forms of queerphobia, Nazis and antisemitism.

Nazis are once again trying to destroy the achievements of Magnus Hirschfeld. Don’t let them!!!

When in September of 2017 the right-wing party AfD (Alternative für Deutschland) got voted into German parliament it was clear that they would be given chairs in different federal organisations and foundations. That’s part of how German politics work and being a democracy that obviously goes for every member of parliament – no matter where they fall on the political spectrum. 

As for the Magnus-Hirschfeld-Foundation, usually each parliamentary group is allowed to have a chair on their curating board. So the obvious question was: who would the AfD choose for that position?

Keep in mind that with Alice Weidel, an openly lesbian woman as one of their most prominent party members, the AfD tried hard to paint themselves as something they are not: open-minded and queer-friendly. Yet the person they chose to send into the curatorship of Magnus-Hirschfeld-Foundation isn’t even close to keeping up their “queer-friendly” illusion: Nicole Höchst, a former teacher, is a strong supporter of AfD’s attempts to forbid diverse sexual education in schools and to abolish gender studies from German universities entirely. In AfD’s and Höchst’s opinion a diverse sexual education will leave children “confused”, is to be considered “mental cruelty” and will likely cause “long-term psychological damage”. Höchst also claims that “studies proof that there are more pedophiles amongst gay men” (yet fails to actually name any scientific studies that do so) and uses this as an argument against adoption rights for same-sex couples. She recently used her speaking time in parliament to derail a completely unrelated topic in order to speak negatively about marriage equality (which was legalised in Germany in late 2017) and any form of political decisions that are made in favour of minorities; and in regards to gender diversity she used her eloquence transphobia to say that “if there are more than two genders then I’m a rainbow-fartig unicorn”.

Now this person gets to have a say in a federal foundation that strives “to remind society of Magnus Hirschfeld, to support educational and research projects, and to fight against the discrimination of homosexuals in German society. […] The Federal Foundation Magnus Hirschfeld also realises its own projects: their main focus lies on the research and remembrance of the persecution and repression of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender, trans* and inter* (LGBTTI*) during National Socialism […]”

For anyone who doesn’t know this: Magnus Hirschfeld is considered the founder of the first gay liberation movement and coined the idea of gender being a spectrum; he was also jewish and had to leave Germany when the Nazis gained more and more power. In May 1933 his Institut für Sexualwissenschaft was attacked by Nazis and a couple days later the institute’s library, archives and research were burned. 

The fact that a blatantly queerphobic member of a right-wing party is allowed to even just as much as set foot into the doors of a foundation named in this man’s honour is the very definition of the word “unethical”.

It’s things like this which make it all the more important that people around the world start realising that Nazis aren’t just a part of German history. They are still here in the present tense and they walk proudly on the ruins of their predecessors, trying to find a way to make history repeat itself.

Don’t let them!!!

virgils-jacket:

whimslcott:

This organisation is taking donations. They’re a Canadian group working with the Russian LGBT Network to evacuate people from Chechnya.

This is an American fundraising group for the above organisation, for if you want to make a tex deductible donation.

This is a European organisation that provides funds to Russian groups working to get Chechens to safety.

Here’s how to make donations directly to the Russian LGBT network.

Signal boost this

This Jewish day school’s drag queen havdalah ceremony has S.F. roots – J.

Today January 20th Lander Grinspoon Academy, a jewish K-8 day private school in Northampton Massachusetts will include something unique for jewish schools storytime lead by a local drag queen. This will occur at Saturday evening after sundown to celebrate havdalah a ceremony marking the end of the Shabbat, in addition to the normal ceremony Jenayah De Resario a local drag queen will be reading a book written by Jewish children’s story author Leslea Newman called “Sparkle Boy” about a young jewish boy who likes to wear sparkly traditionally not male clothing, after seeing what his sister wears he falls in love with her sparkly skirt, nails, and bracelets he gets some of his own supported by his parents, the book is “

about acceptance, respect, and the freedom to be yourself in a world where any gender expression should be celebrated

“(Amazon.com). The author of the book will also be there and will read two of her other books “Here Is the World: A Year of Jewish Holidays” and “Heather Has Two Mommies” a book about a girl who has same-sex parents. The celebration will end with lots of glitter having, face painting, a photo booth with costumes and workshops to make sparkly bags and crowns.

This is an amazing show of LGBT inclusivity by this school and is teaching all of its students acceptance and respect at a young age of everyone, and how for themselves it is good to express yourself however you want, I am personally extremely happy for this and I hope that other Jewish schools and schools in general follow their footsteps.

This Jewish day school’s drag queen havdalah ceremony has S.F. roots – J.

Concordia University Reverses Course and Recognizes LGBTQ Student Group

Concordia University in Oregon, has reversed its previous decision to block a student group for LGBT students. The college was called out previously by this newspaper for trying to get the club to change its name, and would not approve the charter or allow it to host events. The president of this Lutheran college has released a statement saying 

“We remain committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we support all students, particularly people from groups who have historically been marginalized,” and then followed this by reversing the decision made approving the charter. This gives the group a space to hold meeting and student funding. The group a GSA said in response that they are still fearful of these policies and believe that the university will continue to discriminate against them.

Concordia University Reverses Course and Recognizes LGBTQ Student Group

Catholic University In Kansas Cancels Art Exhibit Meant To Celebrate Queer Creativity | Luxora Leader

A catholic university in Kansas was planning to have art exhibit entitled “Rainbow in reverse: Queer Kansas History” which used different art forms to honor the various achievements of LGBT Kansans. The artist originating from the town where the exhibit was going to be showcased is now looking for a new place to hold it after the community lashed out at the college after the college “thought it best to cancel, after local community members expressed concerns.” These community concerns were accusations of the college exposing the students to evil and a sickness in our society. LGBT student leader Kevin Clack, president of Kaleidoscope an LGBTQ group at the school formed last year stated that this shows how “they make us feel like we aren’t as much a part of the Newman community as other students.”

Catholic University In Kansas Cancels Art Exhibit Meant To Celebrate Queer Creativity | Luxora Leader

Ketua MPR: Lima Parpol Setujui LGBT

In Indonesia, five factions of the House approved LGBT recognition to be added, removing the laws that discriminate against lgbt people and approving same-sex marriage among other issues. This Could be showing a change in Indonesia where an anti-gay crackdown has been occurring, seen in another move today by the majority of the house where they asked google to remove all LGBT apps from the Indonesian store, and have arrested 141 gay men and publically humiliated them, created an anti LGBT police force and called all LGBT identities a mental disorder in a statement by the Air Force. Hopefully these factions can start to create a shift in the thought of indonesian people 93% of whom oppose homosexuality.
additional details in this article
https://hornetapp.com/stories/indonesian-lgbt-app-ban/ which is in english.

Ketua MPR: Lima Parpol Setujui LGBT

Catholic hospitals will continue treating LGBT patients under Trump’s new guidelines

In light of the Trump administration’s new proposed guidelines that would give protection to people willing to allow LGBT to die by not providing them services such as operations or ambulatory services to a hospital. This protection is put in under the guise of religious freedom because apparently if you change enough of the words murderous hatred of LGBT people becomes legal. These are not just some conspiracy that will never happen and everyone is just overreacting a case occurred under Bush-era similar legislation where a transgender woman died after an ambulance denied service. 

Well there is good news, Catholic Hospitals will continue to treat LGBT patients even with all this new freedom. They will provide all services that they provide to all patients independent of their sexual or gender identity, she made a statement that echoes as one that should be held strongly by every single religious person of an abrahamic faith and others of similar beliefs who is at all questioning how they should treat LGBT people in any situation which is “

It’s not that we’re endorsing this, it’s just that this is a human being, made in the likeness of God.” I personally dont agree with you in believing that being LGBT is wrong but by caring for LGBT people you are not going against your beliefs. I am personally very happy that the Catholic Church holds this opinion and has become extremely tolerant in comparison to the past with LGBT people and I look forward to a brighter future. (once trumps out of office)

Catholic hospitals will continue treating LGBT patients under Trump’s new guidelines

Senate passes ban on conversion therapy for LGBT youth

This is not a complete ban but it is still good news. The Bill that was passed by the senate 32-16 not only put forth that it would be “unprofessional conduct” meaning that they can be removed from being a certified therapist and other consequences for preforming therapy that would try to change a minor’s sexual orientation, while this does nothing for gender questioning youth it is a huge step in the right direction. They also passed another important bill that is heading as well over to the house which addresses transgender bullying in schools, and now places policies mandating that school districts either create or fix transgender student policies and develop a mandatory training class for teachers.

Senate passes ban on conversion therapy for LGBT youth