Tuesday, 27 June 2017

Sesame Street Celebrates Pride Month



Sesame Street has long been one of the most progressive and groundbreaking children's shows, having covered topics like death, HIV and Aids, divorce, Autism, financial difficulties, disability, parental incarceration, and environmentalism to name but a few.

With such a rich history of supporting good causes and raising children's awareness of real world differences and issues it's of little surprise that the show has come out in support of the LGBT+ community and Pride month.

The show's official Twitter page tweeted an image of popular character Elmo and several other muppets forming a rainbow.


Whilst the tweet has received a great deal of support and approval on social media some people are decrying the tweet as 'evidence of an agenda' at Sesame Street and HBO, with some on the extreme end claiming that the show, and Pride, are trying to sexualise children.


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Monday, 26 June 2017

Teenager Arrested Following Pride Death Threats



A 19 year old man from Cumbria has been arrested following online threats to kill people at a Pride event with a machete.

The young man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was arrested by Cumbria Police after posting threatening messages on a Facebook page for a Cumbria Pride event that was being held at the New Empire pub.

'I'm going to walk in with a fucking machete and slaughter every one of the gay bastards.' He wrote on the events post, along with a photograph of the weapon he had purchased.

'I've had enough. I don't want to live in a gay world and I sure as hell don't want my children living in one. What happened to our traditional qualities? They're fucking ruined.

'I don't care if I die, I'm fighting for what I believe in and that's the future of my country, my folk and my race.'


The manager of the New Empire pub told the press that they did consider cancelling the event, however, after discussions with attendees and staff decided to go forward with the plans.

'We asked customers in the pub if they wanted to stay or leave and they all said no. We felt safe as armed police were parked outside. We had lots of phone calls and massages of support but obviously, some people stayed away.' They told news outlet Pink News.

'We are very proud to support the LGBT community and will not be deterred by any of this.'

The man was arrested shortly before the event, with Cumbria Police Superintendent Mark Pannone releasing a statement to reassure the public and the attendees of the event.

'I can confirm that following further inquiries it was determined that it would be appropriate for the investigation to be led by the North West Counter Terrorism Unit. We will support them, as required, with their ongoing investigation.

'Public safety is our absolute priority which was why we acted quickly last night to protect the community, and arrested a 19-year-old man from Barrow.

'I can reassure the community that we have robust procedures in place to respond to reports of of serious activity and we will continue to work closely with our local communities to help keep Cumbria safe.

'Over the last few weeks we have increased patrols in our neighborhoods and at local events to prioritise the safety of the public and would ask people to continue to be alert and report any suspicious activity to the police.

'There is no place for hate crime in Cumbria, it will not be tolerated.'


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Chicago Dyke March Bans Jewish Pride Flag, Ejects Participants



The Chicago Dyke March, part of the larger Chicago Pride events happening in the city this month, has faced controversy and condemnation as it has banned participants from carrying Jewish Star of David flags at their event.

Local LGBT+ newspaper, Windy City Times, reported that three people were asked to leave the celebration after flying the flags.

The Windy City Times wrote;

However, also asked to leave by Collective members of the Dyke March were three people carrying Jewish Pride flags (rainbow flags with the Star of David in the middle).

 According to one of the individuals - A Wider Bridge Midwest Manager Laurel Grauer - she and her friends were approached a number of times at the park because they were holding the flag.

 'It was a flag from my congregation which celebrates my queer, Jewish identity which I have done for over a decade marching in the Dyke March with the same flag,' she told Windy City Times.

 She added that she lost count of the number of people that who harassed her.

 One Dyke March collective member asked by Windy City Times for a response, said the women were told to leave because the flags 'made people feel unsafe', that the march was 'anti-Zionist' and 'pro-Palestinian'.

 'They were telling me to leave because my flag was a trigger to people that found it offensive,' Grauer said. 'Prior to this I had never been harassed or asked to leave and I had always carried the flag with me.'

 The Dyke March is billed as a more inclusive event, one that has a stronger focus on social justice issues that larger Pride events. More than 1,500 people participated in this years march.

The American Jewish Committee condemned the actions and called for others to do so too, to speak up against the decision to eject Jewish LGBT+ people. American Jewish Committee Chicago Director Amy Stoken said, 'In the heart of our city one of the most blatant incidents of anti-Semetism took place at the Dyke March. Where is the collective outrage over this despicable targeting of Jews?'

Dyke March did release a statement about the matter on their social media, which read;

Yesterday, June 24, Chicago Dyke March was held in the La Villita neighborhood to express support for undocumented, refugee and immigrant communities under threat of deportation. Sadly our celebration of dyke, queer and trans solidarity was partially overshadowed by our decision to ask three individuals carrying Israeli flags superimposed on rainbow flags to leave the rally. 

 This decision was made after they repeatedly expressed their support for Zionism during conversations with Chicago Dyke March Collective members. We have since learnt that one of these individuals is a regional director for A Wider Bridge, an organisation with connections to the Israeli state and right-wing pro-Islam interest groups.

 A Wider Bridge has been protested for provocative actions at other LGBTQ events and has been condemned by numerous organisations for using Israel's supposed 'LGBTQ tolerance' to pinkwash the violent occupation of Palestine.

 The Chicago Dyke March Collective is explicitly not anti-Semetic, we are anti-Zionist. The Chicago Dyke March Collective supports the liberation of Palestine and all oppressed people everywhere.

 From Palestine to Mexico, border walls have to go!

In January 2016, a Shabbat service being held for Jewish participants of a gay activism conference in Chicago, was protested by hundreds of people.

Protesters entered the conference area chanting 'Hey hey, ho ho, pinkwashing has to go', eventually taking over the stage and preventing visitors from being able to speak at the event.

Pinkwashing is the term used to describe the alleged efforts by the Israel government to cover up treatment of Palestinians by celebrating its record on gay rights.

Views on events on social media such as Facebook and Twitter seem to be divided, with some members of the LGBT+ community supporting the Dyke March's decision to remove members of the Jewish community from the event, whilst others have condemned it as an act of anti-semetism.


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Friday, 23 June 2017

Everything Left Episode 15 - Coalition of Chaos


In this episode I'm joined by Adi Anhang as we discuss the results of the UK election, terror attacks, a racist mother and the Grenfell disaster.




Twitter: @_EverythingLeft
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EverythingLeftPodcast
Acast: http://www.acast.com/everythingleft
iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/everything-left-podcast/id1159488919?mt=2
Worpress: http://www.everythingleftpodcast.wordpress.com
Blogger: http://www.everythingleftpodcast.blogspot.co.uk


Everything Left is a Trans-Scribe Production
Hosted by Amy Walker
Theme music http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music


Now a part of the Black Hole Media Network www.facebook.com/blackhmedia


Donate here to support those affected by the Grenfell Tower Fire: http://artistsforgrenfell.com
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Friday, 9 June 2017

Everything Left Episode 14 - Cannibal Murder Pope


In this episode I'm joined by Pete Gaskell and Adi Anhang as we discuss Trump's visit to the Middle East, the horrors of the Manchester bomb attack, the UK General Election and the upcoming Wonder Woman film.



Twitter: @_EverythingLeft
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EverythingLeftPodcast
Acast: http://www.acast.com/everythingleft
iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/everything-left-podcast/id1159488919?mt=2
Worpress: http://www.everythingleftpodcast.wordpress.com
Blogger: http://www.everythingleftpodcast.blogspot.co.uk


Everything Left is a Trans-Scribe Production
Hosted by Amy Walker
Theme music http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music
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Tuesday, 30 May 2017

Theresa May Meets With Anti-LGBT+ Church In Run Up To General Election



On Sunday Prime Minister Theresa May visited London's Jesus House church, a part of the Redeemed Christian Church of God movement, which has a long history of anti-LGBT+ conduct.

May, who has a record of voting against LGBT+ rights, described the visit as 'fantastic' and the church as 'one of the most lively growing churches in the UK'.

Jesus House has publicly expressed extremist views on sexuality, marriage equality and abortion rights, even going so far as to liking homosexuality and transgenderism to bestiality. Their website even included a section dedicated to anti-abortion propaganda.

The church has also been accused to have links to gay conversion therapy and and to have allegedly performed exorcisms on gay people.

Whilst this 'fantastic' visit itself is troubling when added to the news this week that a Tory candidate has stood by her choice to accept an intern from a Christian hate group that advocated gay conversion therapy it begins to paint a worrying picture of the Conservative Party less than two weeks before the election.


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Sunday, 28 May 2017

Legends of Tomorrow Season 3 Cast Confirmed



Following the events of the second season of Legends of Tomorrow it seemed pretty certain that most of the main cast would return for season 3. However, once the official synopsis was released it became clear that one particular character was not mentioned, resulting in fans speculating that they would no longer be part of the team.

'After the defeat of Eobard Thawne and his equally nefarious Legion of Doom, the Legends face a new threat created by their actions at the end of the last season. In revisiting a moment in time that they had already participated in, they had essentially fractured the timeline and created anachronisms - a scattering of people, animals, and objects all across time!

 'Our team must find a way to return all of the anachronisms to their original timelines before the time stream falls apart. But before our Legends can jump back into action, Rip Hunter (Arthur Darvill) and his newly appointed Time Bureau call their methods into question. With the Time Bureau effectively the new sheriffs in town, the Legends disband - until Mick Rory (Dominic Purcell) discovers one of them in the middle of his well-deserved vacation in Aruba.

 'Seeing this as am opportunity to continue their time travelling heroics, Sara (Caity Lotz) wastes no time in getting the Legends back together. We reunite with billionaire inventor Ray Palmer (Brandon Routh), the unconventional historian-turned-superhero Nick Heywood (Nick Zano), and Professor Martin Stein (Victor Garber) and Jefferson 'Jax' Jackson (Franz Drameh), who together form the meta-human Firestorm.

 'Once reunited the Legends will challenge the Time Bureau's authority over the timeline and insist that however messy their methods may be, some problems are beyond the Bureau's capabilities. Some problems can only be fixed by Legends.'

Thanks to a tweet from Brandon Routh it's been revealed that the Amaya Jiwe version of Vixen from the Justice Society of America (played by Maisie Richardson-Sellers) will also be returning despite not being mentioned in the previous press release.

Legends of Tomorrow will return on the CW this autumn.


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Universal Reveals The Dark Universe



As the release of The Mummy from Universal Pictures fast approaches the studio has once again been discussing their plans for a shared monster universe, this time with a title, the next film in the series announced and an image of the current principal cast.

The series of films will be known as the Dark Universe, and The Bride of Frankenstein will follow as the next film in the franchise on February 14th 2019. The film will star Javier Badem as Frankenstein's monster, however, no casting has been announced regarding the titular bride.


Some of the other films in the series will include the already announced The Mummy, which stars Tom Cruise as Nick Morton, Russell Crowe as Doctor Jekyll/Mr Hyde and Sofia Boutella as Ahmanet; The Invisible Man starring Johnny Depp. No news regarding other classic Universal monsters such as Dracula, the Wolf-Man or the Creature from the Black Lagoon have yet been announced, however their inclusion does seem to be hinted at in the Dark Universe teaser.

The Mummy is set for release on June 9th.


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Woman Who Sued Her Transgender Daughter Loses Case



In November 2016 Annmarie Calgaro began legal proceedings to sue her daughter for transitioning from male to female. Along with her daughter Calgaro took legal action against two non-profit healthcare providers, the St Louis School Board, the principal at her daughter's school, Saint Louis County, and the director of the county's Health and Human services agency, This week a judge called the case 'meritless' and dismissed the lawsuit.

Calgaro began the lawsuit after learning that her daughter was transgender and was undergoing treatment to transition. She learnt that members of her daughters school staff and other organisations had helped her daughter to begin this process, something that she claimed violated her rights as a parent.

Whilst Calgaro's daughter is considered a minor, she had been officially emancipated with help from a local aid group. Calgaro's daughter had moved away from her family home and was living alone, which the school argued allowed the teenager to make her own medical decisions.

The judge in the case, Paul Magnuson, concluded that teenager was not in fact emancipated as it 'did not act under color of state law' as Minnesota law does not allow a minor to become emancipated for their parents unless a state court makes the decision, which did not happen. Despite this, Calgaro's case was dismissed on Tuesday.

Calgaro's lawyer, Erick Kaardal of the Thomas More Society, has stated that she may consider appealing the decision.

'It was brought to my knowledge that my son began receiving hormone replacement treatment from Park Nicollet Health Services to transition from male to female, with medical assistance paying for this. I was not consulted or informed in any way,' Calgaro told journalists, claiming that her daughter's actions had violated her rights under the 14th Amendment.

The Thomas More Society is an anti-abortion law firm who are currently also in a legal case where they are representing a Texan activist who has attempted to frame Planned Parenthood for buying and selling organs.

Calgaro's daughter, who turns 18 in a few months time, has stated that those who helped her did not pressure her into transitioning or to exclude her mother from the process, but that both decisions were her own.

'My providers had no involvement in my decision not to involve my mother in my healthcare decisions,' she said in court documents. 'I was not pressured in any way by my providers to consent to this treatment.'

It is currently unknown if Annmarie Calgaro intends to appeal the ruling.


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Tuesday, 23 May 2017

Dragon Ball Super To Introduce First Female Super Saiyan



After sixteen years of Super Saiyans Dragon Ball Super will finally be introducing the Dragon Ball saga to the first ever female Super Saiyan.


The latest episode of Dragon Ball Super the Saiyan warrior from Universe 6, Caulifa, will transform into a Super Saiyan for the very first time in preparation for the Multiverse Tournament. The preview for the upcoming episode shows the transformation as she trains with Cabba, her fellow Universe 6 Saiyan.

As Caulifa transforms she's watched by yet another Universe 6 Saiyan, Kale, who we know from promotional images will soon be following Caulifa to become a Super Saiyan, though one who bears a striking resemblance to the Legendary Super Saiyan Brolly.



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