THEGAYUK

Tag: USA

  • Vermont LGBT bar changes name after pressure from community

    An LGBT bar in Vermont, USA, has changed its name after a backlash from the LGBT+ community.

    Mister Sister in Winooski in Burlington, Vermont, has changed its name to The Bridge Club after a huge backlash from some in the LGBT+ community. The bar opened in March and has faced calls for boycott because some in the community considered the name, Mister Sister a slur against trans people.

    Defending the name back in March, the bar’s owner, Craig McGaughan, who identifies as gay, said initially,

    “It is a term that has been used among gays and Drag Queens for decades intended to be positively gender-bending,

    “Mister Sister is for the Misters and the Sisters, those that identify as both and everyone in between. The official description of Mister Sister is “a gay bar for him, her and them.

    “I have been very intentional in using a pronoun that isn’t specifically male or female as a way to include anyone that identifies as part of the LGBTQ community.”

    Board members of the Pride Center in Vermont criticised the name. Bailey Cummings, who resigned from the board due said,

    “Basically the name of this bar is a transmisogynistic slur,

    “And I feel strongly as community leaders that the Pride Center is responsible for standing up for our trans community members, and coming out against a slur.”

    Unveiling the new name this week. Mr McGaughan said,

    “I hope everyone finds the humor in going to The Bridge Club to party, sees the nod to the historic Winooski Bridge and recognizes the camaraderie and necessity in building bridges

    “I realize now that I mistakenly listened to the fight rather than the pain. I apologize to anyone that feels personally affected by the actions of myself or the bar. I’m choosing to forgive and would ask for forgiveness in return”.

     

     

  • Hillary Clinton pays tribute to the 49 victims of the Pulse Massacre

    Hillary Clinton has paid tribute to the 49 victims killed in last year’s terrorist attack in Orlando.

    Hillary Clinton and the Pulse shooting

    Taking to Twitter, Hillary Clinton sent a heartfelt tweet saying that her heart was with “the loved ones” of the 49 victims who were killed when a lone gunman entered the Pulse nightclub on the 12th June 2016. Along with her message she tagged it with the hashtag #WeWillNotLetHateWin.

    The tweet was almost immediately retweeted 6000 times and liked over 20,000 times.

    During the US Presidental campaign Ms Clinton visited the Pulse nightclub laying a bouquet of white roses at the site.

    President Donald Trump also paid tribute to the victims Tweeting a picture of the victims and saying,

    “We will NEVER FORGET the victims who lost their lives one year ago today in the horrific shooting. “

    This article has been updated since it was published. Previously we observed that President Trump hadn’t Tweeted about the Pulse victims, but had mentioned that Ivanka Trump was on the news.

     

  • This US city has added two more colours to the Pride flag

    The US city of Philadelphia has added two more colours to the world famous and iconic rainbow flag to include brown and black in a bid open up a conversation about racial inclusion in the LGBT+ community.

    Gilbert Baker‘s iconic rainbow flag has had an addition made to it in the US city of Philadelphia. The organisers of the campaign have added the colours brown and black to the flag and used the hashtag #MoreColorMorePride to drive awareness around inclusivity in the LGBT+ community.

    A statement on the campaign’s website says,

    “In 1978, artist Gilbert Baker designed the original rainbow flag.

    “An iconic symbol of LGBTQ+ unity. So much has happened since then. A lot of good, but there’s more we can do. Especially when it comes to recognizing people of color in the LGBTQ+  community. To fuel this important conversation, we’ve expanded the colors of the flag to include black and brown.

    “It may seem like a small step. But together we can make big strides toward a truly inclusive community”.

    https://vimeo.com/220799582

     

  • Gay TV star dies, 34 after being found ‘unconscious and unresponsive’

    Reality TV star, Danny Dias has died at the age of 34 after being found ‘unconscious and unresponsive’ in his New York home.

    Aged just 34, Danny Dias who starred in MTV’s Road Rules in 2004 and The Challenge: Gauntlet 2 in 2005 has died after being found by a police after a friend had no heard from him for two days.

    Embed from Getty Images

    According to TMZ emergency services found the former reality star  ‘unconscious and unresponsive’. Initial reports allege that Dias may have taken his own life, whilst on the hallucinogenic drug LSD. These claims have not be verified by emergency services.

    An NYPD officer later told US Weekly, “No criminality is suspected at this time. The medical examiner is going to determine the cause of death.

    “There are no arrests and the investigation is ongoing.”

    MTV have responded to the news by issuing a statement that read, “We are saddened by the news of Danny Dias’ passing. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this time.”

     

  • Kathy Griffin reveals shes under Secret Service investigation since Trump photo

    Kathy Griffin has railed against “the Donald” after it is revealed she is under investigation by the secret service.

    Kathy Griffin is apparently under investigation by the secret service after pictures of her holding a bloodied mask of Donald Trump’s head emerged on the Internet. The comic spoke about her life as a comedian during a press conference and accused the President of trying to ruin her career.

    She said,

    “What’s happening to me has never happened,

    “A sitting president of the United States and his grown children and the first lady are personally,

    “I feel, trying to ruin my life forever.”

    Griffin also went on to say that she didn’t think she’d have a career after the picture incident, but was not afraid of Trump and called him a bully. She said,

    “I’m not afraid of Donald Trump,

    “He’s a bully. I’ve dealt with older white guys trying to keep me down my whole life, my whole career. I am a woman in a very male-dominated field.”

    She also revealed that she had received constant detailed death threats since the pictures were published.

    The comedian apologised for the image earlier in the week, saying she said she had gone too far. President Donald Trump said that Griffin should be ashamed of herself and that his 11-year-old son, Barron Trump had been traumatised by the image.

     

     

  • Trial delayed for man accused of killing his boyfriend

    Brian Canchola’s trial has been delayed until October after witness illness cancels a court hearing.

    The family of Stephen Sylvester will have to wait until October to learn the outcome of court proceedings against Brian Canchola, who stands accused of killing his boyfriend. The 18-year-old victim was found unconscious by police at his home, but died later from injuries sustained in an attack.

    Kxan.com reports that a witness illness caused the delay after a hearing on Friday was cancelled. The judge pushed the trial until October 16th 2017.

    Canchola was charged with first-degree murder after allegedly beating his 18-year-old boyfriend, Stephen Sylvester, to death. According to Canchola’s co-workers, the pair had been dating for two months.

    In 2015, a roommate told police that he had heard fighting between the two boyfriends after he arrived home in the early morning and it was then that Canchola accused Sylvester of cheating. An alleged fight apparently escalated with the roommate hearing “banging and violent crashing”.

    According to an affidavit, supplied by the roommate, the roommate also heard Sylvester’s pet dog crying out in pain after Canchola reportedly threatened to kill it.

    The roommate found Sylvester after the fight, conscious but with bleeding coming from the back of his head and transported him to University Medical Center Brackenridge. However, Sylvester left the hospital before receiving medical treatment. He returned back to his apartment, where he lost consciousness, was transported back to a hospital and later died.

    Canchola, who is now 22, is currently out on bond.

     

  • Orlando Massacre survivor dies in tragic car crash

    A survivor of last year’s ISIS attack on a gay bar in Orlando has died following a head-on car crash in Orlando.

    Jahqui Sevilla has tragically passed away after a head-on car crash nearly one year on from the Pulse nightclub massacre which left 49 people dead. The 20-year-old college student died on State Road 417 when her vehicle drifted into the opposite lane and hit another car head-on. Both drivers were killed.

    Sevilla survived last year’s terrorist attack on the Pulse nightclub. After the gunman opened fire, one of her friends was hit in the forearm, Sevilla applied pressure to the wound and stayed with the friend, helping her move to safety, outside the club where emergency services were able to help.

    Police are investigating the cause of the crash.

  • Donald Trump tweets disgust at Kathy Griffin after “sick” decapitation picture

    President Donald Trump has hit out at comedian Kathy Griffin after pictures of her holding a replica of his bloodied severed head emerged on the net.

    Taking to Twitter Donald Trump called the picture sick and said that his youngest son, Barron, who is 11 was having a “hard time” with the picture.

    In a video posted earlier today, Kathy Griffin said that she had “gone too far” after the picture of a decapitated President Trump attracted a major backlash from all sides of the political spectrum.

    In the video, which she published on Twitter she said,

    “I sincerely apologise. I’m just now seeing the reaction to these images. I’m a comic, I cross the line. I move the line, then I cross it. I went way too far. The image is too disturbing.

    “I understand how it offends people. It wasn’t funny, I get it. I beg for your forgiveness, I went too far. I made a mistake and I was wrong.”

  • Kathy Griffin apologises for picture with decapitated head of Donald Trump

    LGBT advocate and comedian Kathy Griffin has apologised after publishing a picture of her holding a bloodied replica head of President Donald Trump.

    Kathy Griffin said that she had “gone too far” after the picture of a decapitated President Trump attracted a major backlash from all sides of the political spectrum.

    See the picture here.

    In the video, which she published on Twitter she said,

    “I sincerely apologise. I’m just now seeing the reaction to these images. I’m a comic, I cross the line. I move the line, then I cross it. I went way too far. The image is too disturbing.

    “I understand how it offends people. It wasn’t funny, I get it. I beg for your forgiveness, I went too far. I made a mistake and I was wrong.”

    https://twitter.com/kathygriffin/status/869703678550171648

    The picture even attracted the ire of Mr Trump’s son Donald Jump Jr. who said it was “disgusting but not surprising”.

    Hillary Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea Clinton even said the picture was vile and wrong.

  • The White House excludes the name of the husband of Luxembourg’s gay Prime Minister

    The White House seemingly edited out the name of Luxembourg Prime Minister’s husband, Gauthier Destenay.

    The official White House picture, which included the spouses of Nato leaders, was published on the official White House Facebook page however at the time of publishing they omitted the name of Luxembourg Prime Minster’s husband, Gauthier Destenay.

    Embed from Getty Images

    The picture formed part of a album of 97 pictures taken during President Donald Trump’s first international visit since taking office in January.

    The picture included First Lady Emine Erdoğan of Turkey; Iceland’s Thora Margret Baldvinsdottir; the First Lady of France Brigitte Trogneux; First Lady Melania Trump; Slovenia’s Mojca Stropnik; Bulgaria’s Desislava Radeva; Luxembourg’s Gauthier Destenay; Belgium’s Amélie Derbaudrenghien, and Norway’s Ingrid Schulerud.

    Luxembourg’s Prime Minster Xavier Bettel is the world’s only openly gay head of state.

    The omission of Gauthier Destenay’s name caused an immediate backlash on social media. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, or GLAAD, was swift to respond to the post asking, why Mr Destenay was left out of the credit.

    The White House then updated the picture, to include his name, nine hours after publishing.

  • Chelsea Manning to walk free after 7 years in prison

    Chelsea Manning has left prison after 7 years incarceration it has been confirmed to the BBC.

    Trans whistleblower, Chelsea Manning has been freed after spending seven years in prison. Manning was imprisoned for one of the largest leaks of classified documents. She was sentenced to 35 years. Her sentence was commuted by President Obama, as one of his last acts as president.

    A US army spokesperson confirmed that Ms Manning had been freed earlier today.

    Two days ago, Ms Manning tweeted “Two more days until the freedom of civilian life ^_^ Now hunting for private #healthcare like millions of Americans =P”

    She was freed 28 years before the end of her sentence.