Compare news coverage from around the world and across the political spectrum with Ground News: https://ground.news/feli ▸”Florida principal forced to resign after showing students Michelangelo’s ‘David’ statue” or “Parents Complain About ‘Pornographic’ David Statue” 👈 These types of headlines went around the world a couple months ago and left many people in Italy and other countries utterly confused. What’s wrong with the David Statue? How could anyone think this is p*rn? So let’s talk about how nudity is handled in everyday situations in the US compared to Germany, and why it seems to be such a big taboo topic in the US!
248,000 children were legally married in US in last 10 years. 77% were girls as young as 12, married to much older men. Which would account for human trafficking and rape in most part of the world, but in USA it's just old-fashioned "marriage." Hint: it's rape contract. pic.twitter.com/76Yv6zBbtY
— GRRLunderground 🏳️🌈🇺🇸⛑️🟧 (@grrls_sxy_shoes) June 25, 2023
The one’s fighting to keep this is fundamentalist religious republicans. Each state that has tried to raise the age has had it fought by religious groups and voted down by republicans. Ask why if their aim to remove LGBTQ+ books / media to protect the children and claiming pride flags sexualizes kids, yet they fight to keep preteen girls being legally raped by older men! The truth is these people just want to remove any non-heterosexual thinking from society and push straight heterosexual thinking on everyone, especially the kids. Hugs
The pushback is beginning. The public is not going to accept nor tolerate the bigotry and racism of a small minority of fundamentalist conservatives who demand that only history that shall be taught is propaganda that shows the US is the best light, shows the greatness of white people, and minimizes any injustice or harm to black people. I cannot understand how DeathSantis got as much racism and bigotry passed into law as he did. I remember a few years ago in a Texas state education board meeting, the leader of the board said basically it was much better that students learn the made up history and believe it than that they learn the true history and act on it. The LGBTQ+ community exists and always has, even before we had the words we now use to describe it. There are LGBTQ+ kids in every school, most families, and history is full of contributions from gay people that the fundamentalist Christian nationalists want never mentioned, never taught, and deleted forever. But what is worse is that these laws as written would also prevent the use of heterosexual sexual orientation and heterosexual gender roles. The laws don’t just ban gay sexual orientation or gender identity different from assigned at birth as they are written but that is how they are being used. But the bigots that wrote them just wink it away. Look to separate bathrooms for boys from girls is gender. Miss teacher or Mr teacher is gender. Mrs teacher who is married to Mr teacher is OK to show pictures and talk about family which pushes heterosexual orientation, but Mrs teacher married to Mrs teacher is totally banned. But the law is written to ban all mention of gender or orientation. That is why they are called don’t say gay bills. Hugs
The College Board released a letter Thursday putting its foot down on further demands from Florida to change any of its Advanced Placement (AP) classes, the latest development in the ongoing feud between the company and the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).
“[College Board] will not modify our courses to accommodate restrictions on teaching essential, college-level topics,” the company told the Florida Department of Education Office of Articulation.
“Doing so would break the fundamental promise of AP: colleges wouldn’t broadly accept that course for credit and that course wouldn’t prepare students for careers in the discipline,” it added.
The College Board says the Florida office recently asked it to modify any courses that conflict with the new Florida rule restricting teaching on sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom through 12th grade.
In a May 19 letter to College Board, Florida demanded the company do an audit of its courses and relay which ones would need to be modified to comply with the new rule by June 16.
DeSantis, a 2024 presidential candidate, had said in January that the AP African American Studies course would not be allowed in his state. Although the company says changes were in the works before the governor’s comment on the class, the course was regardless amended, causing outrage from those who believe the College Board bowed to DeSantis’s demands.
“We have learned from our mistakes in the recent rollout of AP African American Studies and know that we must be clear from the outset where we stand,” the College Board said.
Although Florida did not directly mention the AP Psychology course, that is the one the company focused on in its rebuttal Thursday.
It noted the American Psychological Association says college-level courses need to have a foundation on topics such as sexual orientation and gender identity.
“We don’t know if the state of Florida will ban this course. To AP teachers in Florida, we are heartbroken by the possibility of Florida students being denied the opportunity to participate in this or any AP course. To AP teachers everywhere, please know we will not modify any of the 40 AP courses—from art to history to science—in response to regulations that would censor college-level standards for credit, placement, and career readiness,” the College Board said.
The Hill has reached out to the Florida Department of Education for a response.
Desantis threatened previously that if College Board didn’t change their AP courses he may seek to ban all AP in FL. They just called him by refusing. https://t.co/eDZaRYsFJx
Why cannot these people understand or accept that people are born with the sexual attractions / orientation and gender identity are formed in the womb. They are inborn, formed with a person as the rest of them is building. While environment can influence the minor subsets and details of those things, the environmental factors cannot take a straight person and force them to be gay. If a straight person cannot be changed in to loving same-sex relations, why do they think that gay or lesbian people can be changed to be straight. It is not an idea backed up by science, it is a myth these people created to justify their hate. It is no different from the other science denying crap put out by fundamentalist religions / religious people. To deny these facts about sexuality that have been backed up with science is the same as denying the earth goes around the sun or that the earth is a globe instead of flat. It is the same as the refusal to accept the medical science on vaccines or the well documented science on transgender peoples treatments with gender-affirming care. I am so tired and sick of these anti-science anti-progress haters who only want to keep the status quo when they felt in charge and comfortable. Hugs
Via email from activist Wayne Besen:
The Freedom March is a right-wing Christian fundamentalist organization that exists to “help” LGBTQ people “pray away the gay.” They also claim to help people transition out of being trans. So, it was a really bad day for the Freedom March when its founder, Jeffrey McCall, announced online that he was hooking up with multiple men. Freedom March told the world that he was “healed”. They sold the lie that Jesus “cured” him. When Jeffrey McCall said he was straight – we didn’t know he meant straight to bed with men.
It gets worse for the Freedom March. McCall recently announced that she was transgender and came out as Scarlett. This group’s “gay cure” worked so well, that their founder tried to “pray away the gay” and somehow became significantly gayer. Those thoughts and prayers are always so effective. When they promised Jeffrey McCall was transformed by Jesus Christ, I don’t think this is what they meant. Instead of transformation, they got transition.
As you’ll see in the video below, the group is now calling themselves “Rainbow Revival.” In 2021, McCall was featured in the Netflix “ex-gay” documentary “Pray Away” and his appearance in the film resulted in adulatory posts on multiple Christian sites.
I wanted to post here before some people found out other ways. I have went back to my life as Scarlett. I never intended to hurt or disappoint anyone. I felt like no matter what I chose someone would get hurt. That’s a horrible spot to be in. felt like I tried to fight for so long. I tried to help many in ministry for so long. Please remember I’m just a human being and didn’t ask for any of things that I have went through. I didn’t ask to feel this way. Please show me compassion as a human being just as I have always tried to show everyone else compassion and understanding.
I’ve had this argument countless times with bigots on religious websites. Their response is always the same: Jesus didn’t say anything about a lot of things, that doesn’t mean he approved of it. You can’t win for losing with these people.
Christianity is founded on Paul’s teachings, where Jesus is little more than a figurehead. That is why Christianity does not observe the Sabbath, does not keep kosher, and basically ignores Jewish laws. Except, for some inexplicable reason, the prohibition on homosexuality, which the Tanakh imposes only on men, not women.
There actually are gay Orthodox Jews who avoid anal sex so as not to transgress that commandment, but they give and receive sexual pleasure in other ways.
(And there are plenty of other gay Jews who couldn’t care less about that ancient prohibition.)
A lot of LGBTQ christians squirm and writhe and do that christian thing of saying “oh, yes, the bible’s words say that, but what it really means is . . .” but, it’s an intrinsically anti-LGBTQ religion.
If they want to start their own religion, with a rewritten holy book, they’re always welcome to do that. They can make up whatever they want in a new religion. They can call themselves Jesusites or something if they want to hang on to some version of Jesus. But christianity is and has always been anti-LGBTQ, that was built in by the people who invented it.
Again the bill is vague to keep fear in the performers / venues that they may be arrested or fines. It is vague so that anything can be a violation of the law if the authorities don’t like it. In fact I am listening to Vaush describe this right now, it is a deliberate attempt to outlaw something that courts would prevent legislators from outlawing. That is why they took drag out of the bill specifically because courts have held up laws outlawing drag in other states, but they added prosthetics depicting sexual organs meaning fake boobies as sexual conduct. The bill classifies as sexual conduct the use of “accessories or prosthetics that exaggerate male or female sexual characteristics,” accompanied with sexual gesticulations. Also anything can be a sexual gesture even dancing. Remember when dancing was thought to be sinful and simulated sexual movements. This is clearly am attempt to eliminate any performance of someone dressed in gender clothing different than their assigned at birth sex. If a man adds fake boobs or a woman puts something to add a bulge to their pants, it is prosthetics that exaggerate male or female sexual characteristics. And the people pushing the bill admit they find drag disgusting and they want it removed from public / society. The US Taliban. Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, authored SB 12 after a small but loud group of activists and extremist groups fueled anti-drag panic by filming drag shows and posting the videos on social media. Those groups characterized all drag as inherently sexual regardless of the content or audience, which resonated with top GOP leaders in the state, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Notice that these same Christian lawmakers exempted super large breasted servers at restaurants designed to excite straight boys or adult men. I guess exaggerated sexual female sexual characteristics are OK if it is heterosexual prurient interest in sex. Democrats questioned whether the bill’s language would also ensnare restaurants like Twin Peaks that feature scantily clad servers. Shaheen said the way the bill is written exempts these types of performances. At the end of the article I will add some more stuff based on the bills author’s Christian beliefs that have been pushed into law or tried to get to be laws. Hugs
Originally pitched as an effort to restrict children from seeing certain drag shows, the House and Senate agreed on a version of the bill that could still ensnare LGBTQ performers.
The Texas State Capitol on June 8, 2022. Credit: Kylie Cooper/The Texas Tribune
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The Texas Legislature gave final approval Sunday to a bill that will criminalize performers that put on sexually explicit shows in front of children as well as any businesses that host them.
Originally designed as legislation to restrict minors from attending certain drag shows, lawmakers agreed on bill language that removed direct reference to drag performers just before an end-of-day deadline. The bill now goes to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.
Under Senate Bill 12, business owners would face a $10,000 fine for hosting sexually explicit performances in which someone is nude or appeals to the “prurient interest in sex.” Performers caught violating the proposed restriction could be slapped with a Class A misdemeanor, which carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $4,000 fine.
After lawmakers from both chambers met in a conference committee to hash out the differences between their versions of the bill, the House and Senate released a new one that expanded the penal code’s definition of sexual conduct.The bill classifies as sexual conduct the use of “accessories or prosthetics that exaggerate male or female sexual characteristics,” accompanied with sexual gesticulations.
Advocates said this addition is aimed at drag queens’ props and costumes, which is evidence that lawmakers are still targeting the LGBTQ community.
Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Plano, amended the legislation in the House by removing explicit reference to drag. Shaheen told The Texas Tribune that members had viewed videos of performances in which children were exposed to “lewd, disgusting, inappropriate stuff.” He said the updated bill addresses what was in those videos. Shaheen did not specify which videos concerned lawmakers.
Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, authored SB 12 after a small but loud group of activists and extremist groups fueled anti-drag panic by filming drag shows and posting the videos on social media. Those groups characterized all drag as inherently sexual regardless of the content or audience, which resonated with top GOP leaders in the state, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
Advocates say the revisions to the legislation still target drag, even if those types of performances aren’t directly mentioned in the bill.
Brigitte Bandit, an Austin-based drag performer, criticized the addition of “accessories or prosthetics” to the bill. Drag artists performing in front of children don’t wear sexually explicit costumes, Bandit said, adding that this bill creates a lot of confusion over what is and isn’t acceptable to do at drag shows.
“Is me wearing a padded bra going to be [considered] enhancing sexual features?” Bandit asked. “It’s still really vague but it’s still geared to try to target drag performance, which is what this bill has been trying to do this entire time, right?”
Shaheen said that including direct reference to drag performers wasn’t necessary to the intent of the bill, which was to restrict children from seeing sexually explicit material.
“You want it to cover inappropriate drag shows, but you [also] want it to cover if a stripper starts doing stuff in front of a child,” Shaheen said.
Rep. Mary González, D-Clint, spoke against the bill Sunday just before the House gave it final approval in a 87-54 vote. She criticized the removal of language that previously narrowed the bill’s enforcement to only businesses. González warned that the bill’s vague language could lead to a “domino effect” of consequences.
“The broadness could negatively implicate even the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders,” said González. “It can go into your homes and say what is allowed in your homes after the lines ‘commercial enterprise’ were stricken out.”
During a House hearing on SB 12, Democrats questioned whether the bill’s language would also ensnare restaurants like Twin Peaks that feature scantily clad servers. Shaheen said the way the bill is written exempts these types of performances.
LGBTQ lawmakers applauded the removal of the direct reference to drag performers. But advocates fear the phrase “prurient interest in sex” could be interpreted broadly since Texas law doesn’t have a clear definition of the term, said Brian Klosterboer, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas who testified against the bill in a House committee.
According to the U.S. Supreme Court, the term is defined as “erotic, lascivious, abnormal, unhealthy, degrading, shameful, or morbid interest in nudity, sex, or excretion,” though the language’s interpretation varies by community.
The Texas House sponsor of the bill, Rep. Matt Shaheen [photo above] first appeared on JMG in 2015 when he introduced a bill to nullify LGBTQ protections statewide.
The author of the bill, state Sen. Bryan Hughes, appeared here in April for his bill that would defund public libraries that host Drag Queen Story Hour.
In March, he appeared here for his bill to raise taxes on bars that host drag shows. A Texas lesbian bar has since been denied insurance.
Last year Hughes appeared here when his bill to force public schools to display “In God We Trust” posters went into effect.
In 2021, he appeared here for his bill banning criticism of white supremacy in history lessons.
RELATED: Several Pride organizations in Florida have banned drag performances or canceled events since DeSantis signed a similar bill that criminalizes shows that would potentially be within the view of children.
And yet history is repeating itself again. The very acceptance of homosexuality and personal sexual freedom experienced by German People was attacked by a movement that wanted to villainize it and made a virtue of not just all things heterosexual but of attacking the homosexuals along with those things that symbolized them or support for them. The things happening in Florida, on the Daily Wire, and in the fundamentalist Republican Party are the same steps taken by Nazi’s in 1930 Germany and in Russia more recently. As yourself, if the Nazi’s stopped with just the homosexuals or trans? Are you comfortable with the direction of the Russian / openly Nazi supporting Republican Party today? Hugs
The conversation had been growing and growing by the week. What started as murmurs of far-right thugs had developed into a fear of a coming political party. Across the bars and meeting places all over the country, the LGBT community of Germany could feel a storm coming. Homosexuality was illegal at the start of 20th century Germany but was counterweighted by a healthy thriving gay culture. Yet what was once angry grandstanding from a fringe socialist worker’s party soon became national policy. In 1933, Adolf Hitler would become Chancellor of Germany and enforced a thoroughly phobic policy agenda by the day. Barely a year later, following a Night of long knives, the Nazi police state made Germany’s homosexual population a primary target. Persecution, arrests, physical abuse, castration, and even the fate of the concentration camps lay ahead. Welcome to History on Fleek, today we examine the unspeakable fates of gay men in Nazi Germany.
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Scottie's Playtime 