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Tag: GLAAD

All the latest breaking news on GLAAD. Browse THEGAYUK’s complete collection of news, articles and commentary on GLAAD.

  • Did Diane Sawyer Misgender Bruce Jenner?

    For many people watching last night’s Diane Sawyer special with Bruce Jenner, it seemed that she was misgendering Jenner after telling her that he was now a woman.

    It may have seemed disrespectful, but here’s why it wasn’t.

    Many took to social media to question Sawyer’s use of masculine pronouns, however, at the beginning of the interview, it was made clear that Bruce was still using male pronouns and had asked to be referred to in that way.

    A statement released by GLAAD may help people understand what might feel like a minefield when assigning pronouns to those who are trans, transitioning or transitioned.

    “At this time, Bruce Jenner has not requested that a new name or pronoun be used, therefore we are respecting his wishes and will continue to refer to Jenner by his current name and with male pronouns. Some transgender people prefer to change their name and/or pronoun quickly. Other transgender people may take more time to decide what name and/or pronoun feels right to them. To be respectful, use the name and/or pronoun requested by the individual.”

    During the 2-hour special, Jenner told Sawyer:

    “I am a woman now. I have told a lie all my life, and this is who I am. I cannot hide anymore and I just can’t pull the curtains”. He adds “I still have all my male parts but I identify as female.”

    He believes that what he is doing is going to change the world by talking about it all now.

  • Kerry Washington Stuns With Gay Ally Acceptance Speech

    The GLAAD Media Awards which “recognise and honour media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and the issues that affect their lives’ were handed out in Hollywood last night.

    Roland Emmerich director of Stonewall received the Stephen F. Kolzak Award from Channing Tatum, highlighting those working to eliminate homophobia within the entertainment industry.

    It was, however, actress Kerry Washington who had accepted the Vanguard Award from presenter Ellen DeGeneres, a prize handed to a significant ally of the LGBT community who brought the star-studded audience to their feet with her passionate plea for same-sex rights. “We can’t say that we believe in each other’s fundamental humanity and then turn a blind eye to the reality of each others’ existence and the truth of each other’s hearts. We must be allies. And we must be allies in this business because to be represented is to be humanised. And as long as anyone, anywhere is being made to feel less human, our very definition of humanity is at stake and we are all vulnerable.”

    The Winners List :
    Vanguard Award: Kerry Washington

    Stephen F. Kolzak Award: Roland Emmerich

    Outstanding Film – Wide Release: The Imitation Game (The Weinstein Company)

    Outstanding Drama Series: HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER (ABC)

    Outstanding Comedy Series: TRANSPARENT (Amazon Instant Video)

    Outstanding Individual Episode (in a series without a regular LGBT character): “Identity Crisis” DROP DEAD DIVA(Lifetime)

    Outstanding TV Movie or Mini-Series: THE NORMAL HEART (HBO)

    Outstanding Music Artist: Against Me! Transgender Dysphoria Blues (Xtra Mile Recordings)

    Outstanding Daily Drama: DAYS OF OUR LIVES (NBC)

    Outstanding Comic Book : Rat Queens, written by Kurtis J. Wiebe (Image Comics)

    Outstanding Digital Journalism Article: “31 Days of PrEP” [series] (Advocate.com)

    Outstanding Blog: Autostraddle (autostraddle.com)

  • Google and YouTube To Be Honoured As LGBT Game Changers

    GLAAD have announced that they are to honour Google and YouTube at a Gala in San Francisco.

    Glaad, the US’s national lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) media advocacy organisation, today announced it will honour global technology leader Google and video-sharing innovator YouTube at the GLAAD Gala San Francisco.

    At the gala, Google and YouTube will receive the Ric Weiland Award, which honours innovators who advance LGBT equality through tech and new media. The award is named after Ric Weiland, who was a computer software pioneer and philanthropist. Together with his surviving partner Mike Schaefer, he is known for his dedication to LGBT and HIV/AIDS organisations.

    For years, Google has been one of Silicon Valley’s most vocal supporters of LGBT equality. In 2008, Google spoke out against California’s Proposition 8, a statewide ban on marriage for same-sex couples, and donated significant contributions to efforts to remove the ban.

    In 2010, Google announced that it would cover extra health coverage-related costs incurred by gay and lesbian couples unable to legally wed. The following year, Google expanded its employee healthcare coverage to include transition-related care for its transgender employees.

    In 2012, the company launched ‘Legalize Love,’ an international effort to “promote safer conditions for gay and lesbian people inside and outside the office in countries with anti-gay laws on the books.” That same year, Google unveiled a YouTube video showcasing employees speaking out in support of marriage equality in four battleground states – Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington. In 2013, YouTube unveiled its first-ever pride campaign, #ProudToLove, and changed its logo to be pride-themed for the first time in the company’s history.

    Earlier this year, Google showed its support for LGBT Russians through a rainbow ‘Google Doodle,’ which debuted just hours before the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. And in June, YouTube unveiled its #ProudToPlay campaign – a celebration of LGBT equality in sports. The campaign was featured on the YouTube and Google homepages and marked the second consecutive year that YouTube changed its logo for a pride campaign.

    ‘Few companies have the power to reach billions, and even fewer use that power to help ensure everyone can live the life they love,’ said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. ‘Tech innovators like Google are now at the forefront of the global conversation on LGBT equality, ushering in a new era of acceptance and understanding for users across the world. Through groundbreaking campaigns, outspoken support, and a relentless commitment to its LGBT employees, Google has raised the bar on corporate leadership that drives equality forward.’

    GLAAD also announced that Kris Perry and Sandy Stier, lead plaintiffs in Hollingsworth v. Perry, the landmark case that struck down California’s Proposition 8, will receive the Presidential Local Hero Award at the event.

    ‘Kris and Sandy’s courage and leadership have now touched the lives of countless loving and committed couples across California and beyond its borders, drawing us closer than ever before to full marriage equality in the United States,’ said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis.

  • Michael Sam becomes first openly gay player drafted to National Football League (NFL)

    GLAAD, US’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) media advocacy organization, today responded to the historic draft of openly gay football player Michael Sam to the National Football League (NFL). Sam will become the first-ever openly gay footballer to play for the league next season.

    “Without a doubt, this is a game changer,” said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. “Today, Michael Sam has redefined what it takes to be a champion. He’s tackled stereotypes and joins the ranks of athletic trailblazers like Jason Collins and Brittney Griner in showing Americans that there’s no place for homophobia on the field. As support for equality continues to surge, it’s clear that sports fans are ready, football is ready, and America is ready for its first openly gay NFL player.”

    GLAAD encourages fans to share their support for Michael Sam by sharing #SamFans graphics on Facebook and Twitter.

    In February interviews with The New York Times and ESPN, Sam first stated: “I am an openly, proud gay man.”

    In December 2013, The Associated Press named Sam the SEC’s Defensive Player of the Year. He was also selected as one of 10 unanimous first-team all-Americans. He led the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in both sacks and tackles-for-loss and resides in the top 10 nationally in Division I in those categories.

    Sam is the among several high-profile athletes to come out as LGBT recently, with others including the NBA’s Jason Collins, the WNBA’s Brittney Griner, NCAA Division I basketball player Derrick Gordon, WWE’s Darren Young, UFC’s Liz Carmouche, MMA’s Fallon Fox, and Major League Soccer’s Robbie Rogers.

    In an NFL document released in April 2013, the league described its equal employment opportunity policy as: “It is the policy of the National Football League to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation or other status protected by applicable federal, state or local law.”

    In the document, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also stated: “The NFL has a long history of valuing diversity and inclusion. Discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation is not consistent with our values and is unacceptable in the National Football League.”

    The NFL added sexual orientation to its list of protected classes in September 2011.

    The NFL has also demonstrated its commitment to inclusion by participating in GLAAD’s annual anti-bullying campaign, Spirit Day. For the past two consecutive years, the NFL has ‘gone purple’ online in a stand against bullying and to show its support for LGBT youth. In December 2013, the You Can Play Project and the NFL announced the ‘High Five Initiative,’ an “effort to create meaningful connections between LGBT youth and leaders within the professional sports community.” Troy Vincent and Dwight Hollier, former NFL players and NFL player engagement executives, visited the Hetrick Martin Institute, the nation’s largest and oldest LGBT youth services organization, yesterday to do just that. The league is also collaborating with You Can Play and You Belong for the second annual You Belong LGBTQ Sports and leadership initiative

  • Glaad accuses Baldwin of “degrading gay people” new new anti-gay slur storm

    Glaad accuses Baldwin of “degrading gay people” new new anti-gay slur storm

    Alec Baldwin is being accused of ‘degrading’ gay people by GLAAD in new video released by TMZ.

    Alec Baldwin
    CREDIT: Joe Seer / Bigstock

    In the video, the 30 Rock actor is heard calling a photographer a ‘c**ksucker’ although a media storm has been created after it was suggested that Baldwin actually called a photographer a ‘C**ksucking F*g head’. Baldwin is insisting that he said ‘Fathead’ and has threatened to sue TMZ for suggesting that he used a homophobic word.

    Baldwin said that acoustic analysis of the recording proves the word said was ‘fathead.’
    You can hear the audio here:

    In tweets released by GLAAD the organisation said:

    ‘Mr. Baldwin can’t lend his support for equality on paper, while degrading gay people in practice,

    ‘It’s clearly time Mr. Baldwin listens to the calls from so many LGBT people and allies to end this pattern of anti-gay slurs.’
    Baldwin took his own Tweet feed to reply:

    ‘If c’sucker offends, then I apologize. Anti-gay? Never.’

    He later delete that message and offered:

    ‘1-Rich Ferraro from @glaad informs me that c’sucker is an anti-gay epithet. In which case I apologize and will retire it from my vocabulary,’ he tweeted.

    ‘2- you learn something new every day.’

    The incident happened outside his apartment, after the sentencing of his stalker Genevieve Sabourin in New York.

  • Paris Hilton Is “Sorry” for Disgusting AIDS Jibe

    Damage control is going into overtime at the Paris Hilton camp today as she released a statement to the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLADD).

    Yesterday’s revelations from Radaronline.com revealed a recorded slam by the reality star heiress saying gay men were “disgusting” and “probably had AIDS”, when the friend she was sharing a cab with showed her the gay dating App Grindr.

    Paris said in her statement:

    “I am so sorry and so upset that I caused pain to my gay friends, fans and their families,” Hilton said in part of a lengthy apology she released to the the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD.) “Gay people are the strongest and most inspiring people I know.”

    Hilton’s publicist, in a statement sent to CNN Thursday, confirmed the recording was authentic but said,

    “It was not her intent to make any derogatory comments about all gays.”

    “Paris Hilton is a huge supporter of the gay community and would never purposefully make any negative statements about anyone’s sexual orientation,” the statement said.

    Hilton said the tape captured a conversation that was supposed to be private.

    “I was having this private conversation with a friend of mine who is gay and our conversation was in no way towards the entire gay community,” her statement said. “It is the last thing that I would ever want to do and I cannot put into words how much I wish I could take back every word.”