News Round-Up: July 30, 2019

Michael Caprio

Some news items you might have missed:

• Hottie of the Day: Prior to last week's red carpet at Chippendales in Las Vegas when 'Jersey Shore' star Vinny Guadagnino returned as celebrity guest host, my hubby Michael (longtime publicist for Chipps) helped photographers get their light settings right standing in for the reality star. This was his 'back of the dress' pose.

• Tennessee: A group of over 300 lawyers says Coffee County District Attorney Craig Northcutt should have his law license suspended after admitting he doesn't prosecute domestic violence crimes involving married same-sex couples. "I don’t prosecute them because I don’t recognize it as marriage. There’s no marriage to protect."

• Sun Sentinel: The South Florida newspaper had an 'oopsie' when it tweeted out a headline about moving a 100-year-old house, but instead featured a hot guy and a link to a story about an 'adult-themed' party in Key West.

How a nearly 100-year-old house will be saved by moving it across town https://t.co/F1vqJgJTEv pic.twitter.com/K9VZ876Vnt

— South Florida Sun Sentinel (@SunSentinel) July 28, 2019

• Lambda Legal: Military leaders, medical associations, public health groups, and HIV advocates joined three friend-of-the-court briefs which argue the Pentagon’s exclusion and discharge of HIV-service members is outdated, irrational and discriminatory given the advancements made in HIV medicine.

• Newsweek: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell got his panties in a wad when #MoscowMitch began trending on Twitter after he refused to allow a vote on new election security measures to stop interference in U.S. elections. What he's not keen on admitting is he received campaign donations from voting machine lobbyists before blocking the vote.

• Out Music: Earlier this month, I interviewed out singer/songwriter Tom Goss about his latest single, "Quayside," from his upcoming album, Territories.

The song is born out of Goss's own experience exploring a polyamorous relationship after his husband asked to open their marriage. It was a journey he'd not previously considered.

“I really wanted the video to reflect the uncomfortableness of my situation,” Goss recently told Parade. “I want the viewer to feel the uncertainty and fear that I did visiting the Quayside for the first time."

"That said, we were very conscious to make sure that my actions were still my own," he added. "Nobody ever forced me through the door, I was, and am, a person who chooses his own path. The final decision, to walk into the Quayside and to completely submerge, represents the most complicated and uncharted path of them all — polyamory.”

Dying Man's Funeral Refused By Church Because His Son Is Gay

L-R Brandon Smitty, Jessie Goodman (image via WTVC)

For years now, the LGBTQ community has endured reports of being denied services - like trying to buy a wedding cake or wedding invitations, or enrolling children of same-sex parents at private schools - all because of 'deeply held religious beliefs.'

But a church in Tennessee is now denying a dying man’s request to host his funeral because his son is gay.

Jessie Goodman’s father is 71-years-old, very ill and dying.

His father has two requests after he is gone: that Jessie sing “The Anchor Holds” at the funeral, and that the services be held at Lee’s Chapel Baptist Church in Sweetwater, Tennessee. It’s the church the father first attende

But when Jessie, who is engaged to Brandon Smitty, approached the church about the service, Pastor Jay Scruggs and several members of the church told him neither he nor his fiancé could be involved in the funeral because they are gay.

Goodman told local ABC affiliate WTVC News 9, “As long as I was going to take part in any way, he (Goodman’s father) could not have his service there.”

Goodman was reportedly told the funeral could be held at the church if Jessie would attend alone, and not be a part of the service at all.

And if his fiancé showed up, he would be asked to leave.

News 9 reached out to Scruggs, but the pastor refused to comment saying he would speak to the press “after Jessie’s father is in the grave.”

"They're punishing my dad for a lifestyle choice I've made," said Goodman. "It's not me up there in a casket. It's him."

The father, whose name is being withheld at the family's request, has been told that his services will not be held at his own church.

"He did know that his funeral wouldn't happen there," said Goodman. "And he had a very hurt look on his face when we told him that."

The family has since found a different funeral venue in the area to host the services.

And Goodman will sing "The Anchor Holds" at his father's funeral.

News Round-Up: July 3, 2019

InstaHunk Jeff Ferreira

Some news items you might have missed:

• InstaHunk Jeff Ferreira calls the setting for this photo (above) "perfectly perfect." No wonder he looks so natural there ;)

• ABC News: According to New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, nearly 5 million people took part in this past weekend's World Pride festivities.

• New York Times: It was 38 years ago today that a mysterious disease was reported to be targeting gay men in San Francisco and New York City. And so began a pandemic that the Reagan and Bush administrations would choose, in large part, to ignore.

• Washington Post: Tennessee has quietly enacted a new law that bars ministers ordained online from solemnizing weddings in the state. As of July 1, only priests, rabbis, ministers, people designated through a temple or church, and public officials can perform weddings. Many LGBT folks have their weddings officiated by family members or friends since many religious or elected officials won't perform the ceremony, especially in deep red states.

• Page Six: Anderson Cooper (youngest child of now-deceased Gloria Vanderbilt) will inherit almost all of his mother's estate. In 2014, Cooper told Howard Stern he didn't expect to inherit anything.

• Tweet of the Day: White contractor shows up to the job of black homeowner with a racist Confederate flag on the back of his truck. Hit play to see what happened next.

A white contractor shows up to the job of a black homowner with a racist confederate flag on the back of his truck. The homeowner turns him away. pic.twitter.com/P6lsS7UG89

— Brother Tyrone X (@tyrone345345) July 2, 2019

Sashay Away: Cracker Barrel Cancels Hate Pastor's Reservation

(image via Flickr/JeepersMedia - CC License)

Tennessee hate pastor and Knox County Sheriff’s Detective Grayson Fritts has been told to ‘sashay away’ by popular southern restaurant Cracker Barrel.

Fritss, who recently made national headlines for a series of sermonshe gave calling for police to round up and kill LGBTQ people (whom he referred to as ‘filthy animals’), had planned to hold a meeting at a Cracker Barrel restaurant in Cleveland, Tennessee, on June 29.

But the restaurant has turned the pastor and his church group away citing the company’s zero-tolerance policy for “discriminatory treatment or harassment of any sort.”

Grayson Fritts

In a statement posted to the company’s Twitter account, Cracker Barrel wrote, “We strongly disagree with their statements of hate and divisiveness” and added that Fritts and his group “will not be permitted on site.”

“We take pride in serving as a home away from home for all guests and in showing our communities and our country that the hospitality we practice is open to everyone,” continued the statement.

In closing, the company wrote, “We serve everyone who walks through our doors with genuine hospitality, not hate, and require all guests to do the same,” said in closing.

Local LGBTQ activist David Tierney had spoken to the restaurant and jumped into action organizing a phone campaign.

Speaking to the Knoxville News Sentinel, Tierney said, “It is a small victory for our community and it took a lot of work for us to even get this accomplished.”

"This is all started as an online campaign and action, organized by direct message (online), then grew into a real action, and then got picked up by the states Democratic Party,” Tierney told the News Sentinel. "It really just spread like wildfire over the course of 5 days."

The community action helped spur the Tennessee Democratic Party to contact Cracker Barrel as well.

Party chair Mary Mancini penned a letter to Cracker Barrel CEO Sandra Cochran reminding the executive of the company’s own pledge to honor inclusivity and diversity.

A letter to @CrackerBarrel CEO Sandy Cochran from @tndp chair @marymancini re: Grayson Fritts' church, All Scripture Baptist, hosting an event at their store in Cleveland, TN. pic.twitter.com/VI6carVyaY

— TN Democratic Party (@tndp) June 18, 2019

As Fritts’ controversial sermons went public earlier this month, he was allowed to use paid sick days until a Voluntary Workforce Reduction Buy Out program kicks in July 19 when he will retire with benefits.

Fritts has used his ‘sick leave’ to travel this past weekend to Orlando, Florida, where he took part in the three-day “Death to Gays” rally celebrating the 3rd anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub shooting which left 49 dead and more than 50 more injured.

Tennessee: Detective Calls On Police To Arrest & Kill "LGBT Freaks"

A Sheriff’s Office detective who is also a pastor at the All Scripture Baptist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee, has drawn heavy criticism for a sermon he gave on June 2 where he called on police to “enforce a bible passage” that calls for killing LGBTQ people.

During a sermon titled, “Sodomite Reprobates,” Grayson Fritts said "The purpose of this sermon is, our government, like the police, should enforce Leviticus 20:13," reports local CBS News affiliate WVLT.

In the King James Bible, Leviticus 20:13 reads, "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them."

Fritts said that “God has instilled the power of civil government to send the police in 2019 out to the LGBT FREAKS and arrest them.”

The detective said “riot teams” should round up gays at Pride events, take them to jail and put them on trial.

“We got a bunch of them we're gonna get convicted because they've got their pride junk on and they're professing what they are, they're a filthy animal,” said Fritts.

If convicted, Fritts’ prescription is to put the LGBTQs to death.

On Wednesday evening, WVLT reporter Robert Grant attended a service where Fritts delivered another sermon at his church. According to Grant, Fritts concluded his sermon with the message, “Put homos to death.”

WVLT news anchor Amanda Hara posted on her Facebook page a photo of a message left after Fritts’s sermon that read, "Dear Pastor Fritts, I don't know what happened to you, but I am so sorry. Love, Thy Neighbor.”

Interestingly, the Sheriff’s office reports the detective put in a request to take part in the Knox County Voluntary Workforce Reduction Buy Out program days being delivering the controversial sermon.

Timing is everything, no?

Sheriff Tom Spangler issued a statement saying Fritts is “currently on paid sick leave until the effective date of the workforce reduction which will be July 19, 2019.”

“I want to be very clear that it is my responsibility to ensure equal protection to ALL citizens of Knox County, Tennessee under the law, my oath and the United States Constitution without discrimination or hesitation,” Spangler added. “Rest assured that I have and will continue to do so.”

Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs told reporters he found Fritts’s remarks to be “extremely vile and reprehensible” and condemned the calls for violence.

WVLT reports the Knox County District Attorney’s office is now investigating the matter, as well as past closed cases handled by Fritts where his anti-gay bias may have played a role in his investigations.

News Round-Up: June 4, 2019

InstaHunk Anthony Bowens

Some news items you might have missed:

• Today's InstaHunk lead photo was not even hard to decide. Thanks to out pro-wrestler Anthony Bowens for the awesome inspiration. Caption:

"Happy Pride everyone! Let’s spread the love and focus on things that bring us together as human beings rather than our differences. Let’s remember those that have paved the way for us to live openly and freely. Let’s continue fighting for those who have yet to have that freedom and provide hope that they will soon love in a world where they can. How will you celebrate pride?"

• A homophobic prosecutor in Tennessee (do I even need to continue?) says he doesn't prosecute domestic violence cases involving same-sex couples because bigot.

• Actor Kevin Spacey appeared in court on Monday in Nantucket for a pretrial hearing where he is accused of groping a male teenager in 2016. Spacey's lawyers say the teen's mother deleted text messages from his phone (that could help prove Spacey's innocence) before turning it over to authorities.

• A UK teenager mowed a giant penis shape in the field along the Stansted Airport flight path as a welcome to Donald Trump as he landed for a state visit to London early Monday morning.

Guess who's been busy today mowing a stiff message for Trump under the Stansted flightpath... Please share and let's see how far we can spread the welcome!#climatechange #Trump #welcometrump pic.twitter.com/crnZo5rnDv

— born_eco (@born_eco) June 2, 2019

• A Florida man is facing a manslaughter charge after deputies say he accidentally shot and killed a woman during an act of foreplay with his handgun. The man told police he and the woman were using the loaded weapon for 'sexual excitement.' #smh #straightpeople

• Donald Trump's campaign held a rally in El Paso, Texas, in February but has refused to pay bills from the city to the tune of more than $470,000. The Trump campaign, using an old Trump tactic, says the city of El Paso is 'overcharging.'

• The city of Boston, one of the most pro-LGBTQ cities in America, may have agreed to issue a permit for a 'Straight Pride Parade.' #IsntThatEveryDay?

Props to everyone supporting the Straight Pride Parade

We know it was tough for you coming out to your parents, getting kicked out of your house, forced to get straight conversion therapy, lost your job, not allowed to marry who you love, and just generally discriminated against

— Rogue NASA (@RogueNASA) June 4, 2019

Straight pride parade is just gonna be three guys in cargo shorts in the back of an F-150 one of their bored wives is driving, the Chic-Fil-A cows, and grand marshal Eddie Money who thought he was booked for something else

— Mark Agee (@MarkAgee) June 4, 2019

Floats for the Straight Pride Parade...

- Giant AXE body spray
- Bag of Doritos
- Big Mountain Dew
- Tomi Lahren riding a Swastika
- Jacob Wohl waving on a Twinkie
- Charlie Kirk in a diaper
- The curly hair gun girl in a beige leotard riding an AR-15
- Giant Parent’s basement

— Tony Posnanski (@tonyposnanski) June 4, 2019

ATTN: Straight People. Don’t be upset that you don’t have a pride parade ... be grateful you don’t need one!

— Ginger Minj (@TheGingerMinj) June 4, 2019

And SmashMouth takes it for the win:

Straight Pride Parade????? FUCK OFF!!!!!!!!

— Smash Mouth (@smashmouth) June 4, 2019

The last 3,000 years have been a Straight Pride Parade so you can all sit the fuck down.

— Ally Maynard (@missmayn) June 4, 2019

'Slate Of Hate' Anti-LGBTQ Legislation Moves Along In Tennessee

Several anti-LGBTQ bills have been working their way through the Tennessee state legislature that have come to be known as the ‘slate of hate.’

Pop star Taylor Swift brought the national spotlight to the issue when she donated $113,000 to the Tennessee Equality Project in early April.

Here’s an update on some of the bills that would negatively affect LGBTQ Tennesseans.

HB 1151puts transgender and non-binary people at increased risk of harassment by adding public restrooms, changing rooms and locker rooms to the state’s indecent exposure laws.

In its original form, the bill had specific anti-trans language saying there would be no exception for folks with a diagnosis of “gender dysphoria, gender confusion, or similar conditions.” While explicit anti-trans language has been removed, LGBTQ advocates worry the law will still be used to arrest trans people.

The legislation has passed in the state Senate and House, and heads to the governor’s desk for his signature.

Another anti-trans bill, HB 1274, has passed in the state House and the Senate is expected to take it up soon.

The legislation would push school districts to keep trans students from using the bathrooms that align with their gender identity. The legislation also requires the state Attorney General to defend discriminatory anti-transgender laws.

The sponsor of HB 836 has pulled his own bill from consideration even though the legislation had passed in the state House already.

The bill would allow state contractors who receive taxpayer funds for providing adoption and foster care services to refuse to place children with LGBT parents if the agency’s religious beliefs didn’t approve.

By spiking the bill, the legislation will now be shelved until the next legislative session.

And the so-called “Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act,” has also, thankfully, stalled.

The bill aimed to void recognition of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 Obergefellruling on same-sex marriage based on the premise that Tennessee has its own constitutional amendment banning marriage equality.

Many major companies like Hilton, IKEA North America Services, LLC, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), Lyft, Marriott International, MassMutual, Nike, Inc. Replacements, Ltd., Salesforce, Unilever and Warby Parker have signed a letter opposingthe 'slate of hate.'

Major corporations signed an open letter opposing Tennessee's anti-LGBTQ “State of Hate," including:
🏳️‍🌈@HiltonHotels
🏳️‍🌈@IKEAUSA
🏳️‍🌈@IHGCorporate
🏳️‍🌈@lyft
🏳️‍🌈@MarriottPOV
🏳️‍🌈@massmutual
🏳️‍🌈@Nike
🏳️‍🌈@replacementsltd
🏳️‍🌈@salesforce
🏳️‍🌈@Unilever
🏳️‍🌈@WarbyParker#TNLeg https://t.co/o1x0mLzNcA

— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) April 24, 2019

Additionally, the Tennessee Titans have also come out against the anti-LGBTQ bills saying:

The Tennessee Titans oppose discrimination in any form. We are long-standing supporters of Tennessee Thrives. Discriminatory legislation hurts all of us.

It also impacts our ability to secure events like the 2019 NFL Draft, major conventions, major athletic contests and other events that benefit our local and state economy.

It also weakens our ability to recruit new business and industry to Nashville and to Tennessee. We would encourage our elected officials to keep us on a path that protects all our citizens, our growth and our economy.

During this past weekend's NFL draft, the Tennessee Titans took a stand against LGBTQ discrimination in their state. The team spoke out against the oncoming "Slate of Hate," a set of anti-LGBTQ bills that is making its way through Tennessee legislature.https://t.co/0Eb90qkqRX

— Believe Out Loud (@BelieveOutLoud) April 29, 2019

Taylor Swift Donates $133K To Fight Anti-LGBTQ Legislation In Tennessee

Taylor Swift

International recording artist Taylor Swift has donated $113,000 to the Tennessee Equality Project to aid in its attempts to stop state lawmakers from passing a slew of legislation that has been labeled as a “slate of hate.”

Chris Sanders, of Tennessee Equality Project, announced the donation.

“She sees our struggle in Tennessee and continues to add her voice with so many good people, including religious leaders, who are speaking out for love in the face of fear,” Sanders said on Facebook.

In a handwritten note to the organization, Swift praised the group for organizing a group of Tennessee faith leaders in a petition against the legislation.

“I’m so grateful that they’re giving all people a place to worship,” she wrote.

The bills being considered in the state legislature would:

• Allow adoption agencies to legally discriminate against prospective LGBTQ parents

• Ban transgender people from using the bathroom or locker room that aligns with their gender identity

• Ban marriage equality in spite of the 2015 Obergefell decision at the U.S. Supreme Court

Celeb Baker Saves The Day After Couple Were Turned Away By Anti-LGBT Baker

Celebrity baker Jay Qualls (image via Facebook)

Last week, I reported on yet another baker who has refused to sell a wedding cake to a same-sex couple.

After meeting with Susie Dennison of Susie’s Sweets bakery in Burns Tennessee, Brandi Ray shared on her social media that Dennison sent her a Facebook message saying she wouldn’t make the cake in question because ‘Jesus.’

“I really enjoyed our time together and I truly wish you the best but after realizing that your union will be of the same sex, I cannot with my spiritual conviction and beliefs, do your cake,” wrote Dennison. She added, “I want you to know in saying that, I do love you in The Lord.”

Ray responded writing, “I’m sorry you feel that way. Have a good night.”

After the story went viral, celebrity baker Jay Qualls of Nashville stepped up and has offered to bake a free wedding cake for Ray and her fiancé, Michele Schmidt.

With over 30 years in the baking industry, Qualls has worked with Martha Stewart, appeared on TLC’s The Next Great Baker and Cake Boss, as well as Food Network's Cuthroat Kitchen.

The veteran baker told The Tennessean the story left him “enraged.”

“This has to stop. It’s discriminatory,” Qualls told the newspaper. “I can’t sit back and allow this, as a gay man who has a very healthy and meaningful life with two adult children who are loved, and a very meaningful relationship.”

The baker shares that his outrage stems in part from having experienced discrimination himself when planning his second wedding.

Qualls was married to a woman for 13 years and has two grown children. He was 33-years-old when he came out, and three years ago was denied wedding services due to homophobia.

He and his fiancé had made plans to hold their ceremony at Montgomery Bell State Park’s Cumberland Presbyterian Church. But when the couple went to pay the facility fee, they were turned away due to the same-sex marriage.

At the time, he didn’t go public with the story because he didn’t want his wedding “turning into a circus.”

But this time, he’s speaking out on behalf of Schmidt and Ray, and told the couple they can have “anything they want.”

Over his 30+ years as a professional baker, Qualls says he’s “sat across from thousands of couples over the years,” and some of them he didn’t share the same beliefs. But he didn’t turn any of them away.

“When you are serving the public, you have to be willing to serve all the public,” Qualls said.

(h/t The Tennessean)

Another Day, Another Homophobic Baker Refuses To Bake A Wedding Cake

(image via Depositphotos)

Another day, another baker refusing to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple.

This time, the baker is Susie Dennison of Susie’s Sweets bakery in Burns, Tennessee.

Brandi Ray shared in a Facebook post that she met with Dennison to arrange for a wedding cake for her upcoming nuptials.

Apparently the chat was very pleasant, but Ray received a note from Dennison via Facebook afterwards saying she would not be able to make the cake because ‘Jesus.’

Dennison’s message read:

“I really enjoyed our time together and I truly wish you the best but after realizing that your union will be of the same sex, I cannot with my spiritual conviction and beliefs, do your cake! I want you to know in saying that, I do love you in The Lord! Had I known before you left, I would have said something then!”

“I’m sorry you feel that way,” Ray responded. “Have a good night.”

Dennison claims in her note that she didn’t know it was to be a same-sex wedding, but Ray posted a photo of the invoice Dennison hand-wrote which clearly shows both brides’ names.

She also shared on her Facebook post that she mentioned her fiancée’s name, Michele Schmidt, “like 10,000 times” when she and Dennison met at the consultation.

According to the bakery’s website, Dennison says she “can bake any type of sweet treat you need for any occasion.”

Well, clearly not “any” occasion. Nowhere on the website does Dennison say she doesn’t make wedding cakes for same-sex couples.

We’ve seen cases like this before, most notably in Colorado where anti-LGBTQ baker Jack Phillips, of Masterpiece Cakeshop, refused to bake a cake for a gay couple for their wedding celebration.

Phillips took his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court where he won a narrow victory when the high court ruled the Colorado civil rights commission had appeared to view his case with anti-religious bias.

Unlike Colorado, the state of Tennessee has no legal protections for LGBTQ citizens, so Dennison's behavior here is totally legal.

:(

Ray hasn’t indicated if she plans any kind of legal action.

News Round-Up: February 8, 2019

(image via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• InstaHunk 'Steve In LA' wants you to remember to consider adopting from a dog rescue next time you want to expand your furry family. OMG, I want all four! 

• The Arizona state government has raised over a million dollars for a notorious anti-LGBTI group, Alliance Defending Freedom, by selling specialty license plates.

• Things got way out of hand last night at popular West Hollywood gay bar, Micky's, when a patron being escorted out of the establishment turned and stabbed the security guard twice in the back.

• Tennessee state Sen. Joey Hensley, virulently anti-gay and professes "deeply held religious convictions," has introduced legislation in his state that would allow adoption agencies to discriminate against same-sex couples. Hensley, who has divorced four times (sanctity of marriage my ass), was named in a divorce proceeding in 2017 for sleeping with another man's wife. #DeeplyHeldReligiousBeliefs

• One of the highest ranking officers in the California National Guard has announced the state won't discharge transgender soldiers from its ranks even as the Trump administration continues to move its ban on trans military service members.

• The president of Brazil has announced plans to remove all references to homosexuality, feminism, and violence against women from public school textbooks. President Jair Bolsonaro's campaign for the presidency proudly included anti-LGBTQ policies.

• Laverne Cox was giving you LIFE as she closed the 11 Honore fashion show finale during New York Fashion Week.

The event is a first for 11 Honore as it only featured plus size clothes from designers.

Wearing a gown by Zac Posen, the Orange is the New Black star twirled on the runway, serving up glamour, and clearly having the time of her life. Get it, diva!

View this post on Instagram

What an incredible honor to close @11honore's first fashion show with these incredible women who represent the size diversity of the women of America. Thank you for existing @11honore and for giving me this incredible honor. ...thank you @zacposen for the gown of LIFE!!! #TransIsBeautiful #SizeInclusivity #SizeDiversity ... Reposted from @harpersbazaarus - Now this is how you close a fashion show! @11honore set the bar high for the kickoff of #NYFW. @lavernecox - #regrann

A post shared by laverne cox (@lavernecox) on Feb 6, 2019 at 4:48pm PST

Tennessee Hardware Store Puts Up Sign "No Gays Allowed"

In response to the recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the Colorado baker who refused to sell a wedding cake for a same-sex wedding in 2012, a Tennessee hardware store put up a sign which read, "No Gays Allowed."

From USA Today:

Jeff Amyx, who owns Amyx Hardware & Roofing Supplies in Grainger County, Tennessee., about an hour outside of Knoxville, added the "No Gays Allowed" sign on Monday, because gay and lesbian couples are against his religion.

Amyx, who is also a baptist minister, said he realized Monday morning that LGBT people are not afraid to stand for what they believe in. He said it showed him that Christian people should be brave enough to stand for what they believe in.

"They gladly stand for what they believe in, why can't I? They believe their way is right, I believe it's wrong. But yet I'm going to take more persecution than them because I'm standing for what I believe in," Amyx said.

On Tuesday, Amyx removed the "No Gays allowed" sign and replaced it with a sign that says: "We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone who would violate our rights of freedom of speech & freedom of religion."

Tennessee: State GOP Uses Gay Couple's Wedding Photo In Attack Ad

A gay couple in Tennessee were surprised recently to find their wedding photo being used in a political attack ad by the Tennessee Republican Party.

The couple's ceremony was officiated by the Democratic candidate for State Senate District 14, Gayle Jordan, and the state GOP party used the photo without permission.

The couple, Shane Morgan and his husband Landon, are private citizens and they feel the attack ad is using their wedding illegally.

After years in the Air Force and enduring the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" years, Morgan says wearing his wedding ring has deep personal meaning. "More than words can say," Morgan said.

After nine years together, the couple married this past December.

The photo was taken from Jordan's Facebook page where she had posted the pic with the joking caption, "Doing my part to destroy the fabric of American society."

The attack ad features the picture with the text, "Liberal Gayle Jordan will 'destroy the fabric of American society.' Take her word for it."

According to the Nashville NBC affiliate, the state GOP organization says the comment is very serious and the mailer has nothing to do with the couple.

Morgan and his husband have hired attorney Sunny Eaton of Eastside Legal, who asserts her clients' privacy has been violated and they have been exploited for political purposes.

News Round-Up: November 20, 2017

(via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• Alex Abramov (above) seems to be handling the cold weather in NYC quite well :)

• According to a professor at Cornell University, young men are becoming comfortable identifying as "mostly straight" (as opposed to bisexual) which might be linked to relaxed millennial attitudes toward sexuality.

• Out singer Colum Scott of Britain's Got Talent fame has a new song - "You Are The Reason." He says the song is a "thank you to those special people who make our lives better, simply because they’re in it.” Watch below.

• True Blood star Rutina Wesley has come out and announced her engagement.

• A Tennessee town has banned drag shows as being "sexually oriented business."

• The mother of one of Kevin Spacey's accusers says 8 more men have shared allegations with her.

• And, as today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, let's take a listen to these trans young people about their feelings on how they are perceived and how they'd like to be seen:

Tennessee "Don't Say Gay" Lawmaker Accused Of Adultery With Second Cousin

File this under "Christian Values Hypocrisy."

Ye who protesteth the loudest, do it the mosteth!

Tennessee state Sen. Joey Hensley, four times married and divorced “Christian family values” crusader, has been named in the divorce filing for a local couple.

According to court documents, both parties in the divorce allege he’s been "having relations" with the wife for three years.

Apparently, having sex with your married second cousin is ok with Jesus, but whatever you do, "don't say gay."

From The Nashville Scene:

Hensley, 61, was subpoenaed to appear last week in Williamson County Circuit Court to testify in the divorce proceedings of Hohenwald Vice Mayor Don Barber and his wife Lori. He refused to show up, citing legislative and medical privilege. “I didn’t have time to do it,” Hensley said when contacted on Friday afternoon. “I had nothing to do with the court case, and any testimony I would have given wouldn’t have made any difference.” But according to the sworn testimony of both Barbers, Hensley has been having an affair with Lori since 2014. Lori, 48, is a part-time nurse in Hensley’s medical practice in Lewis County; she is also his second cousin.

Hensley gained national notoriety in 2012 as a sponsor of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which would have banned public school teachers from even mentioning that homosexuality exists. During one hearing that year, Hensley commented, “I don’t think Modern Family is appropriate for children to watch” — because it features a married gay couple raising children. This session, Hensley is sponsoring a bill from the Tennessee Family Action Council that would make children created using donor sperm illegitimate — an attempt to make it harder for gay and lesbian parents to establish paternity. He is also a sponsor of the so-called “Milo Bill,” aimed at liberal practices on college campuses.

But Lori Barber is not just a friend or a cousin or a lover — she is also Hensley’s patient. Barber testified in court that Hensley is her only doctor other than a cardiologist, and that she relies on him for recurrent Botox injections. She also said he has regularly prescribed her the hydrocodone pill Lortab — a Schedule II controlled substance — for “chronic back pain,” which she said Hensley first diagnosed after she hurt her neck.

Bolding is mine.

(h/t JoeMyGod)

Tennessee Lawmakers File Legislation To Defy SCOTUS Ruling On Same-Sex Marriage

Anti-LGBT lawmakers in Tennessee have filed legislation that would instruct state agencies to defy the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage.

From the local NBC affiliate:

It’s called the Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act, with bills filed by Sen. Mae Beavers in the Senate and Rep. Mark Pody in the House.

The bills define marriage as between one man, and one woman in Tennessee, despite what outside courts decide.

Both Sen. Beavers and Rep. Pody declined comment on the bill, telling News 2 that questions would be answered at a press conference next week.

They argue that despite the Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling, same sex marriage is unlawful and all unlawful orders “remain unlawful and should be resisted.” The time and date for the Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act has not been set.

Truly an exercise in futility.

Watch the news report below:

Tennessee: Governor Signs First State Law Allowing Therapists To Turn Away LGBTs

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam today signed the first ever state law, hiding under the pretense of "religious freedom," to allow therapists and counselors to refuse to treat clients based on "sincerely held religious principles."

Read that - "turn away the gays."

According to Buzzfeed's Dominic Holden, "House Bill 1840 provides counselors and therapists immunity from liability if they turn away a client whose goals, outcomes, or behaviors conflict with their beliefs. Counselors who decline clients would need to refer them to a provider who will see them."

From AP reports:

Republican Gov. Bill Haslam told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he signed the bill after talking to numerous counselors, including those who were in favor and those opposed.

The American Counseling Association called the legislation an “unprecedented attack” on the counseling profession and said Tennessee was the only state to ever pass such a law.

The bill's sponsor, Senator Jack Johnson, maintains the bill is “not anti-anybody, it’s not anti-anything; it’s just pro-religious liberty.”

Via press release, Art Terrazas, the Director of Government Relations at the American Counseling Association said, “We are extremely disappointed that Governor Haslam has ignored the lessons learned in North Carolina, Georgia, and Mississippi and has elected to sign this dangerous bill into law. Plain and simple, this bill codifies discrimination.

"It not only disproportionately affects LGBTQ Tennesseans seeking counseling, but will also have unintended consequences that will reach Tennesseans in all walks of life—whether it’s a veteran suffering from PTSD, a woman suffering from spousal abuse, or a business owner simply trying to attract out of state clients."

Sarcastic Tennessee Tourism Ad Skewers State For Anti-LGBT Legislation

Funny Or Die skewers the state of Tennessee for the recently passed anti-LGBT law that allows health care providers to deny services to LGBT patients based on discriminatory religious beliefs.

This video serves up a satirical invitation to visit Tennessee:

“Soon you could cross the bridge to unenlightenment, ride a horse without worrying a gay guy is looking at your butt, tiptoe across humanity to relive a time when people were unequal, sing a sad country song about your gay friends being refused counseling services, enjoy live music, if we can convince anyone to perform here, gaze at the beautiful rolling hills where the fog is as thick as our ignorance, and laugh at an effeminate child!”

Tennessee: Same-Sex Marriage Plaintiffs Awarded $2 Million In Legal Fees

The state of Tennessee has been ordered by a federal judge in Nashville to pay the legal fees of the three couples whose lawsuit brought about marriage equality in the state.

From the Knoxville News Sentinel:

Judge Aleta Trauger awarded $1.98 million in attorneys' fees and $59,916 in expenses to the plaintiffs, which include Knoxville veterinarians Valeria Tanco and Sophy Jesty. The award, allowed under federal law, is 15 percent less than the $2.33 million the plaintiffs sought.

"The results obtained in this case were superb and far-reaching," Trauger wrote in her memo. "As the prevailing party, the plaintiffs will, therefore, be rewarded a significant portion of their requested reasonable attorney's fees and expenses under Section 1988."

A spokesman for Tennessee Attorney General Hebert H. Slatery's office said his office was still reviewing the order Monday afternoon and did not have a comment. In court documents filed in January and unsealed on March 7, Slatery's office argued the plaintiffs' attorneys were overcharging for their services, and insisted they should be paid $1.1 million instead.

According to JoeMyGod, same-sex marriage plaintiffs nationwide have been awarded a total of $17,090,388.61 in legal fees and court costs, thus far.

I hope the haters who pushed the issue so far feel every single dime was worth losing.

#Forward

Legislation Targeting Trans Students Defeated In Tennessee House

Good news out of Tennessee where anti-transgender legislation HB2414, the so-called "Gender Inspection" bill, was sent to legislative purgatory

From Freedom For All Americans:

At a hearing this morning in the House Education Administration & Planning Committee, members of the committee voted unanimously to send HB 2414 to “summer study”—meaning it will not become law during this legislative session. The vote to not advance the bill came after numerous members of the committee had met face-to-face with transgender students from across the state, hearing their personal stories of why this legislation would put them at real risk.

If passed, this invasive “Gender Check Bill” would have required that students prove that their anatomy matches that of their birth certificate as a condition of using the restroom. As with similar measures seen around the country, HB 2414 did not describe how school officials are to determine if a student’s gender matches the sex on their original birth certificate. This means under this bill, schools could be required to collect DNA or perform physical examinations before a student is allowed to use the restroom.

HB 2414 would have meant real economic consequences for Tennessee, too. Just last week, Republican Governor Bill Haslam voiced concerns that the “Gender Check” bill could jeopardize hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal education funding and force school districts to undergo costly litigation on their own dime.

Today’s bipartisan victory in Tennessee marks the latest in a wave of defeats of anti-transgender legislation across the country, including Virginia, Wisconsin and most notably South Dakota, where Republican Governor Dennis Daugaard vetoed a nearly identical bill after hearing from businesses, faith leaders and transgender students who would have been personally impacted.

Anti-transgender bills have popped up across the nation as trans people are becoming the new target for anti-LGBT forces.

Last week, South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard vetoed similar legislation after meeting with transgender students who would have felt the full force of the bill.