Alabama Senior Arrested For Threats Regarding Pride Flag At Hair Salon

James Willoughby Wood (mug shot)

An 83-year-old man in Alabama has been arrested and charged after leaving a threatening note on the door of a hair salon flying a rainbow flag.

AL.com reports that police identified James Willoughby Wood using surveillance footage which showed the senior leaving a note at the salon.

“This is not San Francisco or downtown Birmingham,” read the note in all caps. “This is Homewood which is a religious and family city. We suggest that you remove that flag before it is too late. We are concerned citizens. Good Bye.”

Before it is too late...

The owner of the salon, Issam Bajalia, found the note after returning from attending World Pride in New York City.

“We’re just very disappointed because our only crime (according to) this person is we have a rainbow flag in front of our building,” Bajalia told AL.com. “My thing is what is so offensive about a rainbow or a flag and how does this disrupt your religious journey?”

Due to the threatening nature of the note, an employee reported the message to the police.

Wood was picked out of a lineup and charged with misdemeanor harassment. His bond was set at $300.

Podcast: Buttigieg's Big Bucks; Former Mr. Leather Europe Aids African Refugee; Church Steps Up For LGBTQ Teen Prom

In this week's podcast:

• Mayor Pete Buttigieg announces largest campaign donations of any Democratic candidate for the second quarter

• A former Mr. Leather Europe comes to the aid of an African lesbian refugee as she starts a new life in Manchester. To help Shadia, click here.

• A local church stepped up after haters shut down an LGBTQ teen prom

• A new study shows there's still a LOT of stigma to overcome regarding HIV

All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report



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Thanks for listening, folks!

Second Pride Flag Set On Fire At Harlem Gay Club

A Pride flag hanging at the front of a Harlem gay bar was set on fire early Monday morning. This is the second time a rainbow flag has been burned at the same club in just over a month.

NBC News reports the flag was discovered by staff members sometime between 12:20 a.m. and 12:45 a.m.

The previous attack, which New York City Police have been investigating as a possible anti-gay crime, occurred in the early morning hours of May 31.

Alexi Minko, owner of the Alibi Lounge, says he finds the timing of the two incidents suspect.

"I have to say that what I find odd was the timing of both events," said Minko. "One was at the beginning of Pride, and one was right at the end. One has to wonder if there's a kind of message they're trying to send."

Sad to report that it happened again tonight! https://t.co/AdzSaLXd1L pic.twitter.com/8sdI06B0rI

— Alibi Lounge (@lounge_alibi) July 8, 2019

Calling the repeat offense "surreal," Minko added that he's surprised the second flag-burning happened since police had released surveillance camera footage of the suspect in the first incident, alerting the public that cameras are trained on the nightclub's entrance.

"Second time around, I'm really kind of in shock, I have to admit," Minko said.

Speaking to local news station PIX11, the owner said that no matter the message, “What’s important is that we stand tall, we don’t get afraid.”

PIX11 reports that Alibi Lounge bills itself as the only black-owned LGBTQ bar in Manhattan.

Touching Anonymous Note Demonstrates Why Showing LGBTQ Pride Is Important

Earlier this week, partners Meghan Stabler and Sal Stow found a touching note placed under a rock on their doormat in Williamson County, Texas.

“You don’t know me, but my name is [redacted]” the note read. “We’re moving today, but I wanted to thank you.”

“Seeing a pride flag waving so proudly out side your house every day has given me the courage to come out to my family and be more comfortable with who I am,” the note concluded.

“This is why visibility is SO important,” Sal Stow wrote on Facebook in sharing the note. “You never know who needs the support and to know it’s ok. I hope this person is ok, their family is being supportive and they find a community to connect with that can help them through this brave process.”

She also explained that county officials recently voted 4-0 to not allow the Pride flag to be flown over the courthouse, but that won’t stop her from showing her pride.

“I am proud of who I am and the person I love” Stow wrote. “I will continue to be visible in whatever way I can.”

Anti-LGBTQ Pastor: Every Rainbow Flag In The Country Should Be Burned

E.W. Jackson

Right Wing Watch reports that anti-LGBTQ pastor and failed 2018 U.S. Senate candidate E.W. Jackson took to his radio program on Monday to rant about Pride Flags being flown and announced “we need to burn every rainbow flag in this nation.”

Incensed that U.S. embassies were displaying the rainbow flags in honor of Pride Month, Jackson compared the Pride flag to the Confederate flag.

“As far as I am concerned, the rainbow flag is no different than the Confederate flag. That’s right, I said it and I mean it. The rainbow flag is no different than the Confederate flag in that sense. It is a flag that represents the interests of a special group and their interests, not the interests of our country.”

Of course, it goes without saying that the Confederate flag was created to represent the South during the Civil War - a bloody conflict over slavery.

The rainbow flag is a symbol of pride raised in peace to represent a marginalized minority.

So, slavery on one hand, peace and pride on the other…

Jackson goes on to say that the only reason Pride flags are flown is because “these homosexual activists and radicals have so intimidated people throughout the culture, throughout the government, throughout the society that everybody thinks you’ve got to kowtow to them.”

Considering the LGBTQ population makes up about 4.5% of the U.S. population, according to a 2017 poll by Gallup, I’m not sure if we’ve really got folks “kowtowing” to us. If they were “kowtowing,” we’d have the Equality Act enacted by now.

Jackson continued with some general bashing of gays saying “it’s a lie” that folks can be attracted to people of the same sex.

He also declared that “We need to burn every rainbow flag in this nation.”

Hit play to hear the man lose his mind over a rainbow flag.



For those who may not know the good pastor, the list of outrageous statements he’s made against the LGBTQ community includes blaming the Charleston mass murders on LGBTQs and President Obama, saying Christians should be willing to die to stop marriage equality, and that Satan made Mayor Pete Buttigieg gay.

Trump Administration Rejecting Requests To Fly Pride Flags At US Embassies

NBC News reports that the Trump administration is rejecting requests from U.S. embassies to fly the rainbow pride flag on embassy flagpoles during LGBTQ Pride Month.

The U.S. embassies in Israel, Germany, Brazil and Latvia are among those that have requested permission from Trump's State Department to fly the pride flag on their flagpoles and have been denied, diplomats said.

Although the pride flag can and is being flown elsewhere on embassy grounds, including inside embassies and on exterior walls, the decision not to allow it on the official flagpole stands in contrast to President Donald Trump's claim to be a leader in supporting LGBTQ rights overseas.

Trump's administration has announced a campaign to decriminalize homosexuality overseas and this month issued a tweet and formal statement to "celebrate LGBT Pride Month and recognize the outstanding contributions LGBT people have made."

The denials to U.S. embassies have come from the office of the State Department's undersecretary for management, Brian Bulatao, a longtime associate of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who also worked for him at the CIA. Under State Department policy, embassies that want to fly the flag on their flagpoles are expected to obtain permission from Washington.

There's irony in that one of the embassies being told 'no' is in Germany. Donald Trump's Ambassador to Germany, openly gay Richard Grenell, is supposedly leading the international campaign to end the criminalization of homosexuality around the world.

The Obama administration had no problem allowing pride flags to be flown during Pride Month.

California Town Denies Request To Fly Rainbow Flag At City Hall

You might think the city of Dublin, California, would be pretty inclusive in regard to LGBTQ issues being just 35 miles east of San Francisco.

But at a City Council meeting Tuesday night, a request for flying the LGBTQ rainbow flag at City Hall for Pride month was voted down, according to local Fox affiliate KTVU.

Shawn Kumagi, the first openly gay member of the city council, filed the request for flying the flag as well as issuing a proclamation for Pride month.

The proclamation was unanimously approved by the five-member panel, but the response from some citizens about the rainbow flag surprised many.

One resident attending the council meeting asked, “If you agree to fly the rainbow flag, can we fly the Confederate flag, the Black Lives Matter flag, a Communist flag?”

Another Dublinite, Mike Grant, owns the Guns Unlimited firearms store in town. He brought his NRA flag to the meeting insisting if the rainbow flag gets time at City Hall, so should his flag.

“I’ve been discriminated against for 41 years as a federal firearms dealer by the Democrats,” said Grant. “They don't like guns. I'm in the same group as they are.”

Mike Grant (screen capture)

One resident opposed the idea because they said they had heard of plans to add a “P” - for ‘pedophile’ - to the LGBTQ acronym. And another objected since LGBTQ doesn’t have an “S” for ‘straight.’

Jeannine Sullivan, a member of the local LGBTQ community for 20 years in Dublin, told the San Francisco Chronicle, “It was ridiculous and unfounded, but it still shows what is being perpetuated by some people in our community.”

And Dublin resident Maria Ceremello said she felt “angry” about the comments.

“I came out of there steaming, swearing,” she told KTVU. “It's unreal people are against this when it's just a flag flying for a month. It's not right.”

Kumagi amended his request to flying the rainbow flag for just one day, but even that was voted down.

“Of course I find it disappointing,” said Kumagi. “But I think it is a testament that, even in the Bay Area, we still need to have this conversation.”

Pride supporters are reportedly organizing a grassroots campaign via social media to encourage citizens fly their own rainbow flags at their homes for Pride month.

(Source: KTVU, SF Chronicle)

Gay Couple Told To Remove Pride Flag, But Other Flags Allowed To Fly?

A gay couple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, have been ordered to remove their Pride flag from the outside of their apartment home or be evicted.

Kevin Kollman and Merle Malterer told their local NBC News affiliate they received a note from their landlord at the Country Oaks Apartments on Wednesday informing them flying their Pride flag outside their home was a breach of their lease.

They were given five days to remove the flag.

“It’s a symbol of America, it’s a symbol of our pride in America,” Kollman told NBC2. “Personally, I feel like we’re being singled out here because of what it is.”

When contacted by NBC2, the landlord said the conflict wasn’t a ‘discrimination issue’ but an issue with the appearance of the property.

According to the landlord, “No one is allowed to have flags anywhere, and it’s against the lease agreement.”

The couple was asked in January to remove a Packers flag as well.

However…

A neighbor in the apartment complex, Ken Miller, flies flags outside his apartment and hasn’t received the same written warning.

"I've been here for three years, and I've had these flags up for at least two years, and I've never had any issues with the flags," Miller said.

In the NBC2 report, several flags could be seen throughout the complex.

Kollman and Malterer say they aren’t backing down, and will continue to fly their Pride flag.

“It’s part of my house, it’s part of who I am,” said Kollman. “My neighbors don’t care - why should he?”

The couple told NBC2they are looking into possible legal action.

You can watch the video report from NBC2 here.

News Round-Up: January 10, 2019

Some news items you might have missed:

• Ok, I can hear you already, "Randy, that hot pic of Gus Kenworthy is just click bait! Why do you do this to us?" But it's not - see that phone grip that says 'Be True?' Proceeds from sales will help Gus raise $1 million for his AIDSLifeCycle campaign. Click here to buy. See? I'm here to help ;)

• Josh Hutcherson revealed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert that he and Hunger Games co-star Liam Hemsworth once stripped naked together at Berlin fetish club. Pics or it didn't happen...

• Manchester Pride has announced they've added a black and brown stripe to their Pride flag to represent Black, Asian and ethnic LGBTQ people. What do you think - do we need a new version of the iconic rainbow flag? I think the original flag already represented everyone...

• Fox and New Regency have announced that they’ll release a karaoke version of box office juggernaut Bohemian Rhapsody in 750 theaters across the US and Canada starting this Friday, January 11.

• Seniors and 'ultra conservatives' shared about seven times more 'fake news' on social media than younger adults, moderates and super liberals during the 2016 election season.

• It may be the middle of winter, but Aussie singer Troye Sivan has his head in summer sunshine with his new music video for "Lucky Strike."

Designer Proposes New Pride Flag

Newly proposed pride flag

In 1978, Gilbert Baker created the now-iconic rainbow flag to represent the burgeoning gay rights movement.

At the time, Baker explained the stripes each stood for an aspect of the "gay community," which is what we called it before the alphabetical LGBTQ+ designation today.

Now, an artist named Daniel Quasar has launched a crowd-funding campaign to help him manufacture a new flag, one that includes the colors of the transgender flag as well as stripes for race.

According to Quasar, the body of the flag would remain the rainbow flag “so as not to take away from its original meaning.”

The light blue, pink, and white stripes on the left come from the transgender flag. The brown and black stripes represent people of color, “as well as those living with AIDS, those no longer living, and the stigma surrounding them,” Quasar adds.

The new colors form an arrow pointing right “to show forward movement.”

The iconic rainbow flag

I'm going to offer an opinion on this, as I have in the past, and say we have a flag that we've embraced.

The iconic pride flag is made up of the colors of the rainbow which Baker assigned meaning to human values: Life, Healing, Sunlight, Nature, Serenity, Spirit.

In other words, the rainbow flag is already fundamentally inclusive of everyone already.

By the way - June 25 will be the 40th "birthday" of the rainbow flag. Thank you, Gilbert Baker.

Chime in below if you agree or disagree.

Transgender flag first shown at a pride parade in Phoenix, AZ, in 2000.

These Rainbow Pride Flags Can Stop A Bullet

In a new video from Fondation Émergence, a gun is fired at 193 rainbow Pride flags - one for every country in the world.

Together, the flags can stop a bullet - just as when citizens of the world stand together we can stop LGBTQ violence and discrimination through the power of our togetherness.

From the video:

LGBT people around the world are still the targets of prejudice and violence.

What if we all took a stand against it?

We created this flag to show the world that together we can stop violence.

It’s made out of 193 Pride flags - one for every country in the world.

The video was created in observance of this year’s International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.

The Pride Shield exhibit will be available to different cities in the hopes of sparking a conversation about LGBTQ violence and discrimination around the world.

Get involved at PrideShield.com.