Univision To Premiere Its First Series To Feature Gay Couple As Lead Characters

Univision announces the premiere of “El Corazón Nunca Se Equivoca” (The Heart Is Never Wrong), the first Spanish-language U.S. broadcast television series featuring a same-sex couple as the leading characters.

The coming of age series is a spinoff of Juan Osorio’s popular telenovela “Mi Marido Tiene Más Familia” (My Husband Has More Family) and follows the fan-favorite love story of Aristoteles and Cuauhtémoc (Temo), better known as their couple name “Aristemo.” 

Loyal fans flooded social media in support of the spinoff, with the #Aristemo trending worldwide on Twitter and Instagram. 

Many viewers express that the young couple has inspired them to embrace their identity with a sense of confidence, happiness, and encouragement.

In “El Corazón Nunca Se Equivoca,” the storyline centers around the young couple as they move to Mexico City to attend college. 

Aristótles, played byEmilio Osorio, is ready to begin his music career and his communication studies, while balancing his influencer status and his personal relationship. 

Temo, played by Joaquin Bondoni, wants to be a politician despite the prejudice that he might encounter. 

Their love will be put to the test as they create new friendships and overcome the challenges of being gay in Mexican society.

Praised for their positive LGBTQ+ portrayal, the duo has received a GLAAD Media award and an E! Online’s “TV’s Top Couple” award.

The new series will premiere on Tuesday, August 13, at 9 p.m. ET/PT 8 p.m. CT.

(via press release)

Mormon Church Reverses - Announces Children Of LGBTQs Can Be Baptized

The Mormon Church, aka the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has announced a reversal of its 2015 policy and will allow the children of LGBTQ parents to be baptized.

Beginning immediately, LGBTQ parents will be able to request a blessing for their child or children.

At the age of eight, a Church member will contact the parents and propose that the child have a baptism.

“Effective immediately, children of parents who identify themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender may be baptized without [governing] First Presidency approval,” the church posted on its website, "if the custodial parents give permission for the baptism and understand both the doctrine that a baptized child will be taught and the covenants he or she will be expected to make.”

The announcement for the new policy was made at the Church’s 189th Annual General Conference in Salt Lake City today by President Dallin Oaks.

While certainly good news, the Church’s position on same-sex marriage will remain unchanged with gay Mormons being expected to remain celibate.

The church's doctrine will remain that having same-sex attraction is not a sin, but acting on it is.

However, the Mormon church will no longer label same-sex couples "apostates." An apostasy is the abandonment of a religious or political belief or principle.

The church added that the shift in policy positions come, in part, as an effort "to reduce the hate and contention so common today."

This all comes on the heels of the Governor of Utah signing a new, tougher hate crimes law to help, in part, address anti-LGBTQ violence.

The Trevor Project's Sam Brinton, Head of Advocacy & Government Affairs, issued this statement in support of the change in policy:

"The Trevor Project welcomes any faith group's public commitment to treat the LGBTQ community fairly and equally, and this statement by the LDS Church to change course is a move in the right direction that will make a real difference in the lives of LGBTQ Mormons. We hear from LGBTQ young people in crisis every day who struggle to reconcile being part of both the LGBTQ and faith communities, and decisions to end policies of exclusion can help LGBTQ youth feel seen, loved, and less alone."

The Trevor Project is the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people.

And Zeke Stokes, Chief Programs Officer for GLAAD, tweeted this:

This change demonstrates that hearts and minds are changing in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. There is no conflict between being a person of faith and being LGBTQ or loving our LGBTQ friends, family, and neighbors. https://t.co/i2z5DGIakY

— Zeke Stokes (@zekestokes) April 4, 2019

Podcast: Hookup Goes Bad; Same-Sex Parents Win In Court; Out Musician Matracia Takes Things "Slow"

In this podcast:

• A gay dating app hookup goes bad, really bad

• A federal judge rules in favor of same-sex parents who sought American citizenship for their son

• The Trump administration wants to decriminalize being gay around the world - really?…

• Jussie Smollett of Empire arrested and charged for filing false police report

• You really should be watching Netflix's reboot of One Day at a Time

• New music from out alternative artist Dylan Matracia takes things “Slow”

All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report

New Study Indicates Children Raised By Same-Sex Parents Perform Better In School

(image via Depositphotos)

A new study indicates children raised by same-sex couples perform better in school than those of opposite-sex parents, reports The Washington Post.

Using government data tracking all children born between 1995 to 2005 in the Netherlands, researchers found children with same-sex parents scored higher on tests in elementary and secondary school, and had a seven percent higher likelihood of graduating from high school than children reared by a mom and dad.

A team of economists at research university KU Leuven in Belgium crunched the data which followed the children’s progress through primary school through high school.

The research was presented at the American Economic Association conference in Atlanta last month.

Educational performance, family income and more was utilized in the massive study which followed over 1 million children, including 1,200 children raised by same-sex parents.

The researchers noted that same-sex parents tended to be more financially well off, more educated, and older.

Because same-sex couples often have to access to pricey fertility treatments, higher wealth and a deep motivation to have children can play a big part in same-sex parenting.

As we all know, gay and lesbian couples don’t have children ‘by accident.’

(image via iStockphoto)

“It is difficult for same-sex couples to obtain children so they have to have a high socioeconomic status," said economist Deni Mazrekaj. "Research shows that socio-economic status positively influences the school outcome of children.”

Sometimes children become part of a same-sex family due to divorce between straight and gay parents. But that doesn’t necessarily mean those children were raised in same-sex family households.

Even when looking at children specifically born and raised in same-sex families, researchers noted higher educational performance when compared to heterosexual families.

Earlier studies have shown no real differences between children raised by heterosexual versus homosexual parents, although a 2014 study from the University of Melbourne in Australia indicated children of same-sex couples often exhibit happier and healthier behavior than those of opposite-sex parents.

In that study, researchers suggested same-sex couples sharing more equal household responsibilities may have contributed to “greater social cohesion.”

That same report showed one of the biggest issues children of same-sex parents face is stigma.

(h/t The Washington Post)

Only One State Won't Issue Restraining Order In Cases Of Same-Sex Dating Abuse

(stock photo via Depositphotos)

In the entire United States, there’s only one state that doesn’t allow people in same-sex dating relationships to get a restraining order should the romance turn violent.

Anyone who becomes a victim of domestic violence can go to the police and file criminal charges in North Carolina.

But criminal cases can take time, and when there’s a greater sense of urgency, many opt for a restraining order - also known as a 50(B) protective order.

A restraining order can prohibit the alleged abuser from coming near the victim, force them to give up their guns or lose custody of their children.

Married people, straight or gay, can file for a restraining order. Divorced couples, as well as parents and children, have the legal option as well.

But in the Tar Heel state, when it comes to folks who are living together or just dating, the state law on restraining orders only applies to “persons of the opposite sex.”

According to the NewsObserver, the loophole became news after a Wake County woman attempted to get a protective order against her ex-girlfriend last May.

At the time, the judge denied her request. The woman filed again a month later, and was rebuffed again thanks to the language of the law.

Now, the state Attorney General, Josh Stein, is working through the courts to have the law overturned.

Stein, a Democrat, filed a legal brief earlier this week saying the law is unconstitutional because it singles out LGBTQ people and denies them equal protection and due process under the law.

Gov. Roy Cooper, also a Democrat, agrees and has asked to join Stein’s efforts.

Additionally, LGBTQ advocacy group Equality NC has also filed a brief in support of Stein’s efforts.

In their ‘friend of the court’ filing, Equality NC writes that since “the threat of intimate partner violence does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, neither should the State in protecting individuals from such violence.”

“Otherwise, there is no constitutionally guaranteed ‘equal dignity in the eyes of the law’ for same-sex relationships,” the brief continues.

Stein has support from the ACLU of North Carolina as well as the North Carolina Association of Chiefs of Police.

The NewsObserver notes there are other legal options available to same-sex victims of abuse.

The woman who originally filed her request in May was eventually granted a 50(C) no-contact order. However, that kind of restraining order doesn’t give a judge the authority to revoke an alleged abuser’s right to own guns.

The woman’s primary concern for protection was predicated on threats of physical violence from her former girlfriend as well as her access to guns.

(h/t The NewsObserver)

Celebrating The First Same-Sex Kiss On The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

The cast of Broadway's 'The Prom' on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

While cooking our Thanksgiving Day celebration meal this morning, I had the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on the big TV, pausing each time a current Broadway show offered a performance for the folks at 34th Street and across the nation.

This year, television viewers were treated to numbers from My Fair Lady, Mean Girls and the most recent addition to the Great White Way, The Prom.

And so it was that I put the stove on simmer and poured a mimosa to watch "Build A Prom" from The Prom.

The show is about a group of Broadway actors who swoop into an Indiana town to save a young teen lesbian whose high school won’t let her bring a girl to her prom.

The show recently opened at the Longacre Theater on Broadway to rave reviews.

Upbeat, lively and full of energy, the musical number closes with two female leading characters, played by Caitlin Kinnunen and Isabelle McCalla, kissing.

We’re pretty sure this is the first same-sex kiss in the parade’s history.

Whoo-hoo!

“Broadway’s The Prom is grateful to Macy’s and NBC for their acceptance and inclusivity of a community and a story that is about acceptance, tolerance and love,” the show’s producers shared with EW. “These are some of the themes reflected in our musical comedy and we are very proud to be the very first LGBTQ kiss on the Thanksgiving Day Parade.”

Here’s the number:

Of course, the Twitterverse went insane (in good and bad ways) over the historic lip-lock.

Celebrated out director and playwright Tina Landau tweeted:

Two girls. Just kissed. On live TV. On the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. I suddenly cried. Lovely. Thanks given to @ThePromMusical. (& Macy’s/NBC.) & lesbians everywhere. & turkeys. For their sacrifice. But esp. @ThePromMusical.

— Tina Landau (@TinaLandau) November 22, 2018

And there’s more…

The first ever LGBTQ+ kiss on the Macy’s thanksgiving day parade @ThePromMusical rocked it! pic.twitter.com/w5xjNnW3L2

— Matt (@broadway_4me) November 22, 2018

I’m most thankful for the #MacysParade performance from The Prom. It just warms my heart thinking of all the homophobic family members are out there pissing themselves over it. This is a win for all the queer kids who can’t come out to their families this Thanksgiving

— ☼ lizz☽ (@lizzsoileau) November 22, 2018

Anybody in their feelings about The Prom, shut up and enjoy your turkey later. That was beautiful to see on national TV, and don’t blame your homophobia on being worried about what kids see. They only know what they are taught. Teach them love and acceptance. #MacysParade

— Joan Smith (@TVandSheetMasks) November 22, 2018

Just got chills seeing The Prom on the #macysthanksgivingdayparade so important to see that kind of representation, especially on a holiday where many people are turned away from their family for who they are

— nikki (@louispaladin) November 22, 2018

I can’t stop thinking about what watching The Prom’s performance meant to so many young queer people today #MacysParade

— Sarah Burney (@SarahBurbur) November 22, 2018

#TheProm kiss means even more to me because it's my first Thanksgiving with my LDR girlfriend of 6 years! I'm still crying and that kiss meant so much! #loveislove #pride Thank you @nbc and @Macys for showing that!

— Brigid (@BrigidWriter) November 22, 2018

So proud. So thankful. pic.twitter.com/DGTYNsJhxB

— Josh Lamon (@JoshLamon) November 22, 2018

I JUST WANNA DANCE!!! More dancing lesbians front and center please! Big cheers for @ThePromMusical! #MacysParade

— Filmed Live Musicals (@filmedliveMT) November 22, 2018

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! If you are queer, remember you aren’t alone. #macys #macysthanksgivingdayparade #queer #lesbian #gay #lgbt #lgbtq #trans #transgender #thanksgiving #theprom pic.twitter.com/toeGu9FbZs

— Melody Maia (@MaiaMonet) November 22, 2018

And then, of course, we have the haters - but who cares? :)

Wow #Macyday #ThanksgivingDayParade parade has totally went to the crapper with a #lesbian kiss on national TV while millions of children watch two women make out on a #Thanksgiving as parents DONT LET KIDS WATCH THIS STUFF!!!! Boycott #Macy's this was a total #abomination!!! pic.twitter.com/LmQVmTh11K

— Sonny Cardona (@extrmlifechager) November 22, 2018

We were watching the @Macys Thanksgiving Day parade as a family (always do) BUT that lasted all of 5 minutes when they announced the second musical,The Prom...could do without the agenda this early in the morning. Not the family friendly programming we’ve come to expect.

— Laura Slavich (@LauraSlavich) November 22, 2018

Absolutely ridiculous. Not shopping Macy’s this year! Changed channels!

— Liz Doyle (@lizrdld_liz) November 22, 2018

Here's wishing you all a fabulous Thanksgiving!

New Ad Tells Same-Sex Couples To "Hold Tight"

Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) is responsible for this new ad which highlights the anxiety many LGBT couples may experience when engaging in the simple act of holding hands

The message from ANZ?

"Hold tight."

I can admit that hubby Michael and I rarely hold hands having lived a lifetime of fear of being gay-bashed.

I'm not proud of that fact, but thanks to societal pressures it almost seems like a "forced" display of affection for us now. Maybe that will change...

Thanks to ANZ for sending this message.

Watch below.

Kissing Same-Sex Couples Cover Vogue Italia

A post shared by Emanuele Farneti (@efarneti) on Aug 27, 2017 at 7:35am PDT

Vogue Italia features same-sex couples engaging in some lip lock for their September issue.

Real-life couple Edoardo Velicskov and Pablo Rousson on one cover, Lily Aldridge and Vittoria Ceretti on another.

Photo credit for the cover shots goes to Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.

A post shared by Mert Alas (@mertalas) on Aug 27, 2017 at 5:23am PDT

One Million Moms Loses Their Minds Over Two Animated Same-Sex Characters Kissing

Oh, good grief.

From the homophobic One Million Moms via email:

Alerting all parents! In a first for the Disney Channel, a Disney XD show subtly displayed several gay kisses in an episode that aired a couple of days ago. The “Star vs. the Forces of Evil” episode featured a scene at a boy band concert where several people, including same sex couples, kiss on cue with the music. The gender of various other kissing couples in the crowd is not always visible.

[snip]

This is the last place parents would expect their children to be confronted with content regarding sexual orientation. Issues of this nature are being introduced too early and too soon, and it is becoming extremely common and unnecessary. Disney has decided to be politically correct versus providing family-friendly entertainment. Disney should stick to entertaining instead of pushing an agenda. Conservative families need to urge Disney to avoid mature and controversial topics.

The fleeting moment happens at the 1:27 moment as five or six other animated couples having a smooch.

Can you believe folks care about this???

New NYC Subway Station To Feature Public Art Depicting Same-Sex Couple

After years and years of construction and delays, NYC’s 2nd Avenue subway will finally open on January 1. As with other subway stations throughout the city, the new stations will feature public art, with the 72nd line showcasing the work of Chuck Close, Vik Muniz, Jean Shin and Sarah Sze.

The 72nd street station will feature a mosaic mural by Vik Muniz called “Perfect Strangers” which depicts “the different people that riders are likely to encounter on their daily commutes” according to the AP, and among them is the above picture of a same-sex couple.

From the AP:

"It was like winning the lottery," Thor Stockman, 60, said of finding out that he and his husband of 3 ½ years, Patrick Kellogg, were going to be part of artist Vik Muniz's "Perfect Strangers," a series of life-size mosaic portraits of everyday New Yorkers gracing the walls of the new subway station at 72nd Street. But "part of me wishes that it wasn't a rarity, that it wasn't remarkable."

Muniz said it made sense to include the two men in a project intended to show the different people that riders are likely to encounter on their daily commutes.

"They are just people you would expect to see," Muniz, who divides his time between New York and Brazil, said in phone interview from Rio de Janeiro. "You would expect to see men holding hands."

Jonathan David Katz, an expert in queer art history, said he could find no other example of a permanent, non-political LGBTQ public artwork in New York City. He mentioned George Segal's "Gay Liberation Monument" near Stonewall Inn, the site of the 1969 riots that launched the gay rights movement. But that work, featuring two men standing and two women sitting, is expressly commemorative of a political moment.

IKEA Features Mixed-Race Same-Sex Couple In New Ad

With a new ad campaign that asks the question, "Where did the American Dream go?" Ikea looks to focus more on it's customers - including a mixed-race same-sex couple at home - and less on actual merchandise.

Not only that, but there's a clear nod to marriage equality with a flag flying in the background which reads, "All homes are created equal."

More from AdWeek:

"The idea of asking where did the American dream go was not to show that it went away," explained Leslie Stone, director of strategic services for Ogilvy, the shop behind the creative work, "but that people are living it every day in diverse ways."

"There are so many different ways that Americans live—multigenerational, gay parents, etc.—that define the real portrait of the America that's really out there," Stone said. "If we'd put across 20 different living situations, they'd all be equally powerful."

Arkansas: Same-Sex Couples Sue Health Officials Over Birth Certificates

The AP is reporting that three same-sex couples have filed lawsuits in Arkansas as state Health officials refused to list both parents on their children's birth certificates.

The married women said in the lawsuit filed in Pulaski County Circuit Court that the state Health Department would list only the biological mother on the birth certificate, and said they were told they would need a court order to name both spouses. The couples sought the birth certificates after last month's U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down gay marriage bans nationwide.

The lawsuit says not providing the birth certificates "(deprives) these children of the dignity, legitimacy, security, support and protections provided to children of heterosexual couples, regardless of marital status."

Of course, if these were opposite-sex couples there would be no problem listing the two parents.

A spokesperson for the state Attorney General's office has declined to comment.

Tiffany & Co. Feature Gay Couple In New Ad

Tiffany & Co. debuted a new ad featuring a same-sex couple — a very welcome first for the brand. The image is a sneak preview of Tiffany's forthcoming “Will You” campaign, which "honors the idea that love knows no boundaries," a representative told us today.

According to fashion/style website Refinery29, the handsome men in the ad are a real-life New York City couple.

The text of the ad reads:

"Will you promise to never stop completing my sentences or singing off-key, which I'm afraid you do often? And will you let today be the first sentence of one long story that never, ever ends?"

“Nowadays, the road to marriage is no longer linear, and true love can happen more than once with love stories coming in a variety of forms,” a Tiffany spokesperson told Elle.com. “The Tiffany engagement ring is the first sentence of the story that a couple will write together as they create a life that is deeply intimate and exceptional, which is the message we hope to convey through this campaign.”

Bryan Fischer - Victim Of Judicial Rape

From asshat homophobe Bryan Fischer today.

I still want him to explain how same-sex marriage is "imposed" on him or anyone.

If you don't want a same-sex marriage, don't marry someone of the same sex.

Is this hard???

Texas Attorney General: Same-Sex Marriage Bans Reduce Out-Of-Wedlock Births

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has filed a brief with the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals which asserts the state's ban on same-sex marriage should remain in place because it reduces out-of-wedlock births.

"Texas's marriage laws are rationally related to the State's interest in reducing unplanned out-of-wedlock births. By channeling procreative heterosexual intercourse into marriage, Texas's marriage laws reduce unplanned out-of-wedlock births and the costs that those births impose on society," the brief read. "Recognizing same-sex marriage does not advance this interest because same-sex unions do not result in pregnancy. At the very least, one could rationally believe that opposite-sex marriages will do more to advance the State's interest in reducing unplanned out-of-wedlock births than same-sex marriages will."

The brief went on to state:

"Same-sex marriage may very well produce other societal benefits - such as increasing household wealth or providing a stable environment for children raised by same-sex couples - but that does not establish that Texas's marriage laws lack a rational relation to the State's interests in reducing unplanned out-of-wedlock births and encouraging the creation of new offspring."

The 5th Circuit recently agreed to expedite oral arguments in the case challenging Texas's ban on same-sex marriage.

You can read the brief below:

Texas Gay Marriage Reply Brief by laurenmcgaughy

Target ad features LGBT family - "Made To Matter"

New Target ad for their "Made To Matter" line features two gay dads making art with their child.

Sweet!