Can someone tell me why this action by the Israeli military is supported by the civilized world? Why does the US give billions of dollars a year to a country that has a population of people they attack even as those people try to have a funeral for their members killed by that very military? She was a clearly marked member of the press that the Israeli military did not want to report their abuses of the Palestinian people. So they killed her. Then they attacked her funeral and harassed her parents at their home that day claiming the occupied people who have no rights to fly or hold up their own flags. It might upset the good real people of the nation, the Jewish people. I am not an antisemite and shouldn’t have to say that. Criticizing the actions of a belligerent government against people unable to defend themselves is not bigotry against the Jewish people. The people of Palestine have no rights. They live under military rule. Their children can and often are rounded up and detained for no reason and the government doesn’t need a reason according to the Israeli government. The Palestinians live in an open air prison under military rule of an occupying army and they have no rights. The Israeli position is that they want to make it so horrible that all these people either die or leave, giving all of the land to the occupiers, who claim it’s all theirs given to them by their god. And the US government supports this. Your tax dollars support this. Hugs
Disturbing video shows Israeli riot police clashing with mourners at the funeral for Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was killed two days earlier as she covered an army raid in the Israeli occupied West Bank. At one point, the tussling becomes so intense that her coffin almost topples to the ground.
Veteran Palestinian-American Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed by the Israeli Defense Forces in the West Bank during her assignment covering Israeli raids in the Jenin refugee camp. Israel disputes that she was killed on purpose by Israeli gunfire, even though multiple eyewitnesses claim that there was no fighting before Abu Akleh and her crew arrived as well as her wearing an obviously marked press vest.
“Israeli forces killed a Palestinian American journalist for the Al Jazeera news network in the West Bank early Wednesday, according to the network and the Palestinian Health Ministry. Israeli officials said the journalist, Shireen Abu Akleh, was killed in an exchange of gunfire but said they had not determined who fired the fatal shot. Abu Akleh, 51, a longtime Al Jazeera correspondent and a revered figure on Arab television screens, was shot in the neck while covering Israeli raids in the Jenin refugee camp, according to witness accounts. In a statement, Al Jazeera accused Israeli forces of killing Abu Akleh “in cold blood” and said she had been “clearly wearing a press jacket that identifies her as a journalist.” In interviews, multiple eyewitnesses — including two journalists who were standing next to Abu Akleh — disputed Israeli assertions that she was killed during crossfire, saying there was no fighting in the area just before Abu Akleh was shot.”
A Louisiana pastor and headmaster of a Christian school who is also a member of the sate Republican Party governing board has been arrested for a second time on juvenile cruelty charges. John Raymond, 60, pastor of New Horizon Church in Slidell and founder of Lakeside Christian Academy, is an elected member of the Louisiana Republican Party State Central Committee.
Police said the new allegations include Raymond holding a 4-year-old boy upside down by his ankles and “whipping his buttocks” and in a separate incident covering the same child’s mouth and nose with his hand to stop a “tantrum.” Witnesses reported Raymond’s actions prevented the child from breathing “to the point of him going limp.” A staff member said the child was “out of it and lethargic” and “unable to stand.”
Raymond unsuccessfully ran for the Slidell-based 90th District seat in the state House of Representatives in 2018. His campaign played heavily on his support of President Donald Trump and his opposition to gay marriage, and Raymond touted himself as the most conservative Republican in a race that featured several other GOP candidates. He lost that race in a runoff to Mary DuBuisson, another Republican.
Raymond was a “Survivor” contestant in 2002; he was the voted off the island in Thailand. A story published about his exit from “Survivor” in 2002 described him as “bossy, dominating and (who) irritated his tribemates.” He has been active in state Republican politics as a member of the Louisiana Republican Party State Central Committee as credentials committee chair who determines if there is a quorum during meetings.
Story: Louisiana pastor, school headmaster and Republican Party official arrested again on new juvenile cruelty charge, accused of holding 4yo upside down by ankles and whipping him. John Raymond has bonded out of jail #lagov#lalegehttps://t.co/WEHF2bCz13 via @theadvertiser
Raymond had previous been arrested by Slidell Police on April 7 and charged with three counts of cruelty to a juvenile after allegedly taping three 13-year-old students’ mouths shut with packing tape for talking too much in class.
Raymond said the students were offered a choice between calling their parents to say that they were suspended or having Raymond tape their mouths. He blamed the students for upsetting a teacher.
I am the youngest public plaintiff in the “Don’t Say Gay” lawsuit. I am my Florida high school’s first openly-gay Class President. I am being silenced, and I need your help. 🧵
A few days ago, my principal called me into his office and informed me that if my graduation speech referenced my activism or role as a plaintiff in the lawsuit, school administration had a signal to cut off my microphone, end my speech, and halt the ceremony. (2/8)
I am the first openly-gay Class President in my school’s history–this censorship seems to show that they want me to be the last. This threat is not the first that I have received from administration about my queer rights. (3/8)
When administration discovered that I was organizing a Say Gay walkout, they had all our posters ripped from the walls and told me to shut down the protest. They said they would send school security if I did not listen. (4/8)
I held the walkout anyways, and it became our county’s largest protest. I won’t give into threats and I won’t be silenced. I have a plan to fight back again, and this time, I need your help. (5/8)
The SEE Initiative has secured 10,000 Say Gay stickers that we’re prepared to ship to high school seniors across Florida. We want you to wear them on your gowns as you cross the graduation stage, reminding underclassmen that we’re done with highschool, not the fight. (6/8)
Tennessee cops bust down the door of a 16-year-old transgender girl while she was playing Minecraft on a Twitch live stream for being truant from school. As it turns out, the school rejected her use of her preferred bathroom and was pressured into going to school online, and since she protested the online schooling, she was taken away into foster care. Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian discuss on The Young Turks.
Read more HERE: https://twitter.com/keffals/status/15… “a 16-year-old trans girl from Tennessee was denied an education because she wasn’t allowed to use the correct washroom. the state decided she was truant. while playing minecraft, cops busted her bedroom door down and before dragging her into foster care asked “are you winning””
A new nationwide survey confirms once again what LGBTQ+ people of all ages already knew: affirming and supporting queer and trans youth saves lives.
On Wednesday, LGBTQ+ advocacy and crisis support organization The Trevor Project released its latest research into the mental health of queer youth, a survey of 34,000 young people ages 13-24. The report is a revealing portrait of how LGBTQ+ youth are dealing with legislative attacks and the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as a road map for how to best support them.
One key finding in the survey — as has been noted in almost every other study of its kind, including last year’s survey — is the power of family and community affirmation to positively influence mental health. According to the report, only 6% of LGBTQ+ youth who “felt high social support from their family” had attempted suicide in the past year, less than half the rate of those who felt they had “low to moderate” family support. The same was true for communities in general; 21% of youth who described their community as “very unaccepting” had attempted suicide in the past year, compared with just 8% of youth who lived in “very accepting” communities.
The survey, which recruited participants via targeted social media ads, also highlighted the diversity and complex experiences of LGBTQ+ young people. 55% of survey respondents were White, compared to around 60% of the general U.S. population per the 2020 Census; 51% identified themselves as bi or pansexual, and 48% said they were transgender or nonbinary.
“Lumping diverse youth into broad identity categories and applying single-size approaches does a disservice to everyone, and makes our work to end LGBTQ youth suicide even harder,” said Dr. Myeshia Price, Senior Research Scientist for The Trevor Project, in a statement. “This year’s findings emphasize the importance of intersectionality in research, particularly among a community as diverse as LGBTQ youth, as disparities in mental health and suicide risk were found across race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity.”
The survey also highlighted struggles that LGBTQ+ youth face in obtaining mental health care. Overall, of the factors preventing young people from obtaining the proper care, “fear of discussing mental health concerns” was the most common barrier, followed by “concerns with obtaining parent/caregiver permission,” the fear of not being taken seriously by providers, and affordability of care.
Even when it doesn’t pass, discriminatory legislation still impacts trans youth.
Crucially, however, the survey also includes data on how to best support LGBTQ+ young people, and things that bring them joy. Respondents reported feeling support from parents and caregivers who were welcoming to queer and trans peers, “talked with them respectfully” about their identity, and simply used their proper names and pronouns. “[T]hey also described hundreds of ways in which they find joy and strength in their lives,” the report notes, like attending drag shows, dance, video games, and “just knowing that there’s people out there like me.” That joy of community can come from close relationships and mass media alike; 89% of respondents said LGBTQ+ representation in TV shows and movies “made them feel good about being LGBTQ,” as did celebrities coming out and non-LGBTQ+ celebrities expressing allyship.
“We urge fellow researchers to include expansive identity terminology in all youth survey research, and for public health officials and youth-serving organizations to tailor services to meet LGBTQ youth’s unique needs,” said Dr. Price. “Only then will we be able to better understand and support the young people who need us most.”
I like this video blogger. A vlogger is someone who uses an avatar instead of their face while they do their videos. The avatar is female, but the blogger is male, happily male. Cis Male. Also is happily polysexual, but that is beside the point. He uses a female avatar to make the point that it doesn’t matter to him, he doesn’t get upset over it. I preferred it when he used his own face and body to do his videos, but I understand his point.
His content covers a lot of subjects and I recommend you check out his other videos. He is a staunch supporter of LGBTQ+ rights despite having been raised a highly evangelical conservative Christian forced to attend church schools. He admits he believed the crap forced on him and treated the LGBTQ+ very badly as a teen and young adult. He even drove away a friend he had for years because the friend was gay. Even though Chris tried to apologize that friend never forgave his treatment by Chris and that is something Chris understands and regrets to this day. Suris / Chris claims it took getting away from his highly religious parents and that community living on his own in the real world that he had his eyes opened. When he tried to push the religious views he had been taught to be normal and the way things should be he found himself at odds with all the people he wanted to be friends with. Talking to them and listening to who they really were, he found he couldn’t reconcile that with what he had been taught. So he started to open his eyes and change his views. Unfortunately, as he says he can never make it up to those he hurt and bullied for his god because he was taught that was what his god wanted. At least he is honest and will admit the damage his highly religious upbringing did to him and the people he encountered.
At the very beginning there is some blog stuff he does with his followers, I usually ignore it as I am also doing other things. It is not very long but if it bothers you please fast forward to the real subject of the video, a Florida teacher got fired for answering a question by her students over her family / sexual partner relationships. Spoiler she was not graphic nor explicit, but she simply was not cis heterosexual one woman one man. How dare she let kids know that all people don’t follow that religious dictate! Watch the video to what life in the US under Republican rabid right religious wing is going to be like. Remember these are not little kids these are middle schoolers what was called JR high in my schooling years. This was not about teens drawing sexual pictures of their orientations but about the flags they drew representing their orientations. Colored flags are now so offensive that you can be fired in Florida if they do not represent the republican religious heterosexual normative one man / one woman only nature of sexual expression. I hate this so much! The right wing media really misrepresented this story.
Scottie's Playtime 