| I had just stepped out of a bar in southern New Mexico, near the border of Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexico, in a tiny, isolated desert town. A man followed me out, opening the door for me, offering to help me to my car. “Are you two sisters?” he asked in a challenging tone as I stepped out of the dark bar and into the open air. He had seen me with Hannah inside while she was paying for our lunch in the adjoining restaurant. I heard his question but did not answer, simply headed for the car. My guide dog Fresco was leading me, eager to get there. The man, having seen I was blind when I stumbled a bit and bumped into tables as I made my way out of the dim interior of the bar, now offered to assist me further, following me as I walked across the dusty parking lot. “Do you need some help?” he asked. Then again, “Are you two sisters?” “No,” I said to the first question and got into the car hurriedly when I reached it.
Why do people ask if we are sisters? I thought. But more than that, I felt aware of having been asked this question many times before. Often it occurred when Hannah and I were traveling. Did women often travel with their sisters? I wondered. Was that why people asked me about it, or assumed that we were two sisters? I thought at first that could be so. But underneath, I doubted it. I thought it was because we were lesbians, because we both had short hair, because, perhaps, we were familiar with one another—in a casual, intimate way—because we were not wearing makeup or dressy, femme-style clothes. At home sometimes, it had happened, too. A repair person would come to the house to fix the furnace or the garage door and assumed that we were sisters, commenting on it, in fact. Why did they comment? Why did they ask? Why would it matter if we were sisters or not?
Between Lesbian & Straight |
Ozzy Lusth Is Bisexual
| Fans couldn’t be more excited that Survivor legend Ozzy Lusth has come out as bisexual.
Lusth was first introduced to reality TV on Survivor: Cook Islands, where he finished in second place back in 2006. He later came back for three more seasons – Survivor: Micronesia, Survivor: South Pacific, and Survivor: Game Changers. His best placement as a returning castaway was in South Pacific, where he got fourth place.
Now, Lusth has taken to social media to speak out on his sexual orientation. The Survivor fan-favorite wrote in a tweet: “And for my Republican Colleagues, and anyone else who matters, Yeah I’m Bisexual. Am I committing crimes?? If so come get me. Let us ALL live with dignity. Ask yourself if you support people or the fucked dogma you’ve been fed. #ozzyisBi.”
Historically, Lusth has always been outspoken about his distaste for certain Republican politicians and the bills they have advocated for. Most castaways keep pretty low profiles after appearing on Survivor, but Lusth’s massive popularity on the series made it pretty impossible for him to lay low. Aside from his regular social media activity on Instagram and Twitter, Lusth has also joined OnlyFans to share adult content.
As fans started to react to his coming out, Lusth shared tweets responding to the ongoing discourse. In one tweet, the Survivor alum joked, “Admitting I’m Bi, the only question y’all have is; Top or Top?” He then replied to a follower who noted that the Republican party includes LGBTQ+ individuals. Lusth replied, “And too many more sit idle and support leaders who spew hate.”
Ozzy Lusth Is Bisexual |
Disney Heir Is Transgender
| Charlee Disney, one of the heirs of The Walt Disney Co., came out publicly as transgender and condemned anti-LGBTQ bills in a recent interview.
Disney, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, announced that their family would match up to $250,000 in donations to the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ advocacy group, during the organization's annual gala in Los Angeles last month.
Roy P. Disney, Disney's father and the grandson of the company's co-founder, upped that amount to $500,000 last week.
“Equality matters deeply to us,” Roy P. Disney said in a statement, according to the Los Angeles Times, “especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community.”
The older Disney also said the family was "heartbroken" when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the Parental Rights in Education Act, which critics have dubbed the "Don't Say Gay or Trans" bill because it prohibits classroom discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity with students in grades K-3 or in a way deemed developmentally or age inappropriate.
Charlee Disney, 30, a high school biology and environmental science teacher, told the L.A. Times that the HRC gala was sort of a public coming out for them, since they had come out privately as trans four years ago.
Disney said that even though they have a lot of support and privilege, their journey has been difficult.
Disney Heir Is Transgender |
New Passport Designation
| U.S. citizens applying for a passport can now select the gender "X" on their applications in addition to the previously available "F" and "M" options.
The State Department announced last year that it was adding a third gender option following a lawsuit by an intersex and nonbinary Colorado resident who argued that it was impossible to get a passport that accurately reflected their gender identity.
The change took effect on Monday, with passport application forms on the government's website reflecting the additional choice.
"We continue to work closely with our federal government partners to ensure as smooth a travel experience as possible for all passport holders, regardless of their gender identity," the State Department said in a statement in March.
"We reaffirm our commitment to promoting and protecting the freedom, dignity, and equality of all persons – including transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming persons around the world."
The State Department is the first U.S. federal agency to offer the gender "X" marker on an identity document.
New Passport Designation |
Oreo Continues Allyship
| The latest piece of work from award-winning filmmaker Alice Wu (The Half Of It, Saving Face) is a short film about coming out. We meet a young man who appears to be stumbling through his coming-out process to his parents. But there’s a twist that extends this story from the traditional coming-out story to illustrate a larger point about the process, the struggle, and the challenges that don’t end after that first conversation. It’s also an Oreo ad.
The Note is the latest result in a multiyear collaboration between the cookie brand and PFLAG National, and is the launching point for its new #LifelongAlly campaign, which includes a $500,000 donation to the advocacy organization. Oreo senior brand manager Olympia Portale says the brand didn’t want to show another coming-out story, but worked with PFLAG, ad agency 360i, and Wu to find an insight for taking the discussion around coming out in a positive, new direction. That insight revolves around the idea that coming out isn’t just a one-and-done experience. “For many people, the only time their parents or family even acknowledge that they’re in this community is in that first moment,” says Portale. “That [subsequent] silence can last years and can be really harmful. So we wanted to show that being an ally, being supportive to family members, isn’t just about saying ‘I love you, and I support you’ in that one moment, but how you show up in an active way, so that individual feels you have their back all the time.”
Oreo’s first high-profile Pride campaign came back in 2012, the brand’s centennial year, with a Facebook post featuring a cookie stacked high with rainbow-colored icing alongside the comment, “Proudly support love!” The post was widely celebrated but also sparked a backlash, as it came amid the gay-marriage debate at the time. A decade later, LGBTQ+ rights are again at the center of the culture wars, as Texas has passed a controversial anti-trans law, and Florida has passed its “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The landscape for brands in this environment has only become more charged, as Disney has found out amid the Biden-era attacks on “woke corporations,” which take public stands on issues. After initially drawing backlash from LGBTQ+ fans and allies for remaining silent on Florida’s new law, Disney is now a constant target for Fox News and right-wing politicians for its opposition to the bill. Despite this fraught climate for brands, Oreo has continued to step into this issue with impressive creative work and zero hesitation.
Oreo Continues Allyship |
Your Laugh For The Day!
Contributors: CellarDweller115
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