Posts Tagged: LGBTQ
NQAPIA: The Foreign Concept of Home
The biggest parts of my identity consist of being API, queer, and a sweet southern gentleman. Never in my life did I think these three communities could possibly come together. The National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA Southern Summit launched its first of five regional leadership conferences this weekend! Being from red states and located in the Bible belt, it was important to hear about the political momentum necessary to overcome being such a small community. For the first and only time in my life, I felt at home. Everyone says y’all and complains about the weather just the same and southern hospitality has never been more comforting than warm fried rice and catered Indian cuisine.
This Is Not Just About Birth Control
If the Supreme Court finds in favor of Hobby Lobby, we are not just facing the repeal of a benefit that helps over 20 million people nationwide. We are facing the potential for an erosion of civil rights protections and the beginning of an era of government sanctioned discrimination. We can couch this debate in arguments of religious freedom or we can see this case for what it really is–discrimination wrapped in the cloak of religious belief. If we look at the very basis of the suit it becomes apparent that this case is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of birth control and emergency contraceptives. The Green family (the owners of the Hobby Lobby stores) has a particular objection to Emergency Contraception (EC) and IUDs. The Greens wrongly believe that… Read more »
4 Reasons Why the Hobby Lobby Supreme Court Case is a Big Deal
Recently, there has been a huge uproar over Arizona’s discriminatory bill contrasting religious freedoms and LGBT discrimination. Fortunately, Arizona’s governor vetoed the bill. However, not many of those who opposes the Arizona bill are talking about the Supreme Court case involving Hobby Lobby, a for-profit arts and crafts store. The company is facing legal matters in Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby where the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA) is used as a standard the company to deny its employees health care coverage for contraceptives. We heard the same debate used during the Obamacare debate, but using the First Amendment’s religious freedom argument to drive a wedge is taking it to another level. Here are 4 reasons why this case should be a no brainer: 1). Insurance, not medical care
March is Bisexual Health Month, Here Are Some Things You Need to Know
March is bisexual health awareness month. According to the Bisexual Resource Center, it was created ” to help raise awareness about the severe physical and mental health disparities the bisexual community is suffering” Week one of March was dedicated to biphobia and mental health. Week two, this week, is all about sexual health. The Bisexual Resource Center has given us three Ts we all need to know when dealing with the sexual health of bisexuals. The three Ts are Talking, Testing and Tools.
An Open Letter to Judge Orlando Garcia
Thank you. I don’t even think a thank you can express a fraction of how I’m feeling. It’s a kind of I want to run up to you and give you a long embracing hug as I cry in your shoulder kind of thank you. I’ve been a Texas southern boy my entire life. No, a gay Texas boy and I never thought in my young life that I would live to see today. As I see other states pass sweeping legislation granting a right to love, I never thought Texas would be nearing equality. I remember last summer when the Supreme Court struck down DOMA. I was in my accounting lecture and was browsing through my Facebook feed on one of our breaks. Status upon status of the news… Read more »
An Open Letter to White Queer People
In 1969, in the early hours of June 28th, in a small corner of New York City, police raided Stonewall Inn. It’s been close to fifty years since that day and a lot has been lost and convoluted to fit the more dominant discourse of queer activism. Now, I am not claiming to be an expert on the Stonewall riots in any way. But let me be clear about what I do know. I do know that a budding concept of trans* identities were coming to fruition in the late 1950s and 60s. And that a lot of these people, men, women, and non-binary, began their transitions through drag. And I do know that on June 28, 1969, it was a black drag queen that picked up the first brick and… Read more »
Can We Stop Pretending “Religious Liberty” is the Real Motivation for Legislation?
You know, after getting back from a national conference with 4,000 queer folks and allies, I was floating on a little rainbow hued cloud, having all the queer feels, and so on—until that queer cloud gets swallowed up by a thunderstorm of oppression and the dismantling of civil rights. Otherwise known as the latest bill my home state’s legislators have introduced that attempts to target queer people, by allowing both private AND public employees to not “treat any marriage, domestic partnership, civil union or similar arrangement as valid.” Oh, though apparently it’s all about religious freedom and not queer people. My bad, homies. I am a ~little~ tired of having a bunch of old white dudes claiming that being able to rescind someone’s else’s rights is inherently promised within the… Read more »
Creating Change: Finally Feeling “Queer Enough”
The language I use to describe how I identify my space within the LGBT community changes day to day. Sometimes I call myself bi, sometimes queer, sometimes fluid (and sometimes, after some free Planned Parenthood Suite Cocktails at Creating Change, Queer Princess). However, a constant is that my identity is a non-monosexual one—meaning I’m not just attracted to one sex and/or gender. And for a long time, in fact ever since I first got into queer politics and communities, I’ve often felt that I’m just not “queer enough.” Now, trust me—I am real queer here. Not that I should need to legitimize my queerness, but I’ve been attracted to/dated/slept with all kinds of people with kinds of bodies with all kinds of identities attached to their bodies: trans women, trans… Read more »
Creating Change: The Importance of Belonging
This past weekend I had the amazing opportunity to attend Creating Change 2014, a conference hosted by the Gay and Lesbian Task Force, in Houston, Texas. I must admit, I entered the conference with certain expectations created and based off of my experience with previous conferences. But my expectations were completely blown out of the water. Creating Change was more than I could have ever hoped for. It was a safe space. It was a place for activism. It was place to see people like myself and those different from me come together and embrace our similarities and celebrate our differences. Never in my life had I been able to be surrounded by other queer identifying people who looked like me. For someone in that position, seeing so many queer… Read more »
How a Pool Party Could Spark a Revolution
This weekend, I had one of those moments that fueled me to continue to break down barriers and stigmas around bodies. This experience happened at the Trans* Pool Party at Creating Change: National Conference for LGBT Equality. Not exactly the place I planned to experience a transforming moment after hours of workshops, caucuses and networking. When I walked into the party, I was amazed. The small pool was crowded full of all types of people. I will never forget the range of bodies – from fat to muscular, with everything exposed, from bruises to moles to scars to tattoos and stretch marks. People who had transitional surgery, women with unshaven legs and adorable queer couples were swimming free of harassment. When I looked around, I realized that it was more… Read more »
