Sonoma County LGBTQI Pride is sponsoring the creation of The North Bay LGBTQI Historical Timeline. We are seeking photos of Sonoma County LGBTQI communities during 1970-90s. We need photos of people attending events, business and gathering locations, marches/demonstrations, other local happenings during those years. Please include descriptions with dates, locations and people’s names if possible so we can let viewers know the stories behind the photos. Send these to gary@sonomacountypride.org.
When Jill Soloway created TOPPLE Productions she did it to showcase LGBTQ+ and POC voices with shows like “Transparent,” which continues to represent the nuanced storylines of people from all backgrounds instead of silencing them. The multimedia brand is a tool to, as Soloway exclaimed during her 2016 Emmy win, “topple the patriarchy!”
Now, Soloway’s company continues to transcend in popular culture with Amazon Publishing’s new imprint, TOPPLE Books.The company will allow gender non-conforming, women of color, lesbian, bisexual and queer writers the opportunity to have an outlet specifically designed to spotlight their unique voices in storytelling. The imprint will focus on publishing narrative fiction and nonfiction pieces. TOPPLE Books will be an extension of TOPPLE Productions as well as an imprint for Amazon Publishing.
Launched in 2009, Amazon Publishing has 15 imprints, each focusing on different genres. TOPPLE Books, curated by Jill Soloway, is now a part of the company’s publishing empire. Little A Editorial Director Carmen Johnson will work with Soloway to pen introductions and select books for publishing. Little A is Amazon Publishing’s literary fiction and nonfiction imprint. Both imprints seek to uplift marginalized voices as a part of Amazon’s mission together with Soloway.
Aside from writing for hit TV shows like “Six Feet Under” and “I Love Dick,” Soloway herself has published an erotic novella as a part of an anthology series, “Jodi K.,” as well as a memoir titled “Tiny Ladies in Shiny Pants,” both published in 2005.
Amazon announced on February 27 that “TOPPLE Books will use the power of literature and storytelling to ignite discussion and affect change.” Soloway has taken on the role of Editor-at-Large to “introduce readers to an important and diverse canon of authors and experiences.”
Amidst the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, Soloway understands the importance of representation. “We live in a complicated, messy world where every day we have to proactively re-center our own experiences by challenging privilege. With TOPPLE Books we’re looking for those undeniably compelling essential voices so often not heard,” Soloway said in a statement.
A week after a mysterious car crash killed at least six members of a Washington family, police say they have “reason to believe” the plunge off a California cliff was “intentional.”
Washington married couple Jennifer and Sarah Hart, both 38, and at least three of their adopted children were found dead March 26 after their SUV plummeted down a 100-foot cliff on the Mendocino coast. Three other children were missing and believed dead.
The speedometer indicated the vehicle was traveling at 90 mph when it crashed, and there were no skid marks, Mendocino County Sheriff Tom Allman said at a news conference last week. No one was wearing a seatbelt.
Greg Baarts, acting assistant chief for the northern division of the California Highway Patrol, cautioned that the speedometer could have been affected by the crash, and the speed of the car hasn’t been conclusively determined.
“We do have reason to believe, however, that the crash was intentional,” Baarts told local NBC affiliate KGW8-TV Saturday. He did not elaborate. “This is all based on preliminary information,” he added.
A preliminary investigation indicates the crash was an “intentional act,” a CHP representative told Portland’s KOIN6-TV. Evidence shows the car came to a halt before the cliff, then sped for the edge, the station reported.
Police searched the Hart home in Woodland, Washington, on Thursday. The application for the search warrant said a felony had been committed, and Baarts confirmed to KGW8: “It is safe to report that a felony may have been committed in this case.” He offered no details.
Baarts said computers, bank records and credit card statements were removed from the family home. Chickens and a cat were also collected.
Allman said there was “every indication” all six of the couple’s children were in the car. The bodies of Markis, 19, and Jeremiah and Abigail, both 14, were recovered after the crash, along with the bodies of their parents.
Sierra, 12, Devonte, 15, and Hannah, 15, have not been found.
Courtesy Mendocino Sheriffs Office
This is the spot on the Mendocino coast where the Harts’ SUV plunged into the ocean.
There were recent indications of trouble with the family. Neighbors Bruce and Donna Dekalb told CBS News they called child protective services after Devonte Hart knocked on their door last month for food and told them that he was being “starved to death.” They also said a daughter, Hannah, came to them and asked not to be sent back home.
Washington state child protective services opened an investigation on March 23, the day the Dekalbs called the agency. Caseworkers said three attempts to contact the family since had failed.
Costa Rica’s governing party won a big presidential election victory Sunday as many voters rejected an evangelical pastor who had jumped into political prominence by campaigning against same-sex marriage.
The head of the Supreme Electoral Council, Luis Antonio Sobrado, said that with 95 percent of ballots counted Sunday night, Carlos Alvarado of the ruling Citizen Action Party had 60.8 percent of the votes in the runoff election. His opponent, Fabricio Alvarado of the National Restoration party, had 39.2 percent. The two men are not related.
Fabricio Alvarado rose from being a political unknown to the leading candidate in the election’s first round in February after he came out strongly against a call by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights for Costa Rica to allow same-sex marriage. Carlos Alvarado, a novelist and former labor minister who finished second in February to get the final spot in the runoff, spoke in favor of letting gays wed.
Instantly recognisable with his pink hair and nose ring, Christopher Wylie claims to have helped create data analysis company Cambridge Analytica before turning whistleblower and becoming “the face” of the crisis engulfing Facebook.
Carole Cadwalladr, the Guardian journalist who worked with Wylie for a year on the story, described him as “clever, funny, bitchy, profound, intellectually ravenous, compelling. A master storyteller. A politicker. A data science nerd.”
The bespectacled 28-year-old describes himself as “the gay Canadian vegan who somehow ended up creating Steve Bannon’s psychological warfare tool,” referring to Trump’s former adviser, whom the report said had deep links with Cambridge Analytica (CA).
With Wylie’s help, Cadwalladr revealed how CA scooped up data from millions of Facebook users in the US.
They then used the information to build political and psychological profiles, in order to create targeted messages for voters.
Facebook insists it did not know the data taken from its site were being used, but the revelations have raised urgent questions over how data of 50 million users ended up in CA’s hands.
Shares of the tech giant have since tumbled, with $70 billion (56 billion euros) wiped off in 10 days.
Wylie studied law and then fashion, before entering the British political sphere when he landed a job working for the Liberal Democrats.
Former Lib Dem colleague Ben Rathe had a less complementary description of Wylie, tweeting that he “thinks he’s Edward Snowden, when he’s actually Walter Mitty” — a reference to a fictional character with a vivid fantasy life.
Wylie became a research director for Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL), the parent company of CA, in 2014.
“I helped create that company,” he said of CA in an interview with several European newspapers.
“I got caught up in my own curiosity, in the work I was doing. It’s not an excuse, but I found myself doing the research work I wanted to do, with a budget of several million, it was really very tempting,” he told French daily Liberation.
Initially, he enjoyed the globetrotting lifestyle, meeting with ministers from around the world.
But the job took a dark turn when he discovered that his predecessor had died in a Kenyan hotel. He believes the victim paid the price when a “deal went sour”.
“People suspected poisoning,” he told a British parliamentary committee investigating “fake news” on Tuesday.
– ‘Repair Facebook!’ –
His appearance before MPs saw him swap his usual loud T-shirts for a sober suit and tie, producing hours of testimony against the firm that he left in 2014.
He said he eventually decided to speak out after US President Donald Trump’s shock election victory, which he partly attributed to the misuse of personal data for political purposes.
Cambridge Analytica vigorously denies the charges levelled against it, saying that Wylie was merely “a part-time employee who left his position in July 2014” and had no direct knowledge of how the firm had operated since.
Wylie urged British MPs to dig deeper into the story, insisting that his concern was not political and was focussed on abuses in the democratic process — including during the Brexit referendum campaign.
“I supported Leave, despite having pink hair and my nose ring,” he said.
He claimed that various pro-Brexit organisations worked together to get around campaign finance rules, using the services of Aggregate IQ, a Canadian company linked to the SCL group.
Wylie believes that it is “very reasonable” to say that CA’s activities may have swung the Brexit vote, although he stressed he was not anti-Facebook, anti-social media or anti-data.
“I don’t say ‘delete Facebook’, but ‘repair Facebook’,” he told the European newspapers.
However, he admitted to MPs that he had “become the face” of the scandal.
A prominent anti-trans activist has been suspended from Twitter after a series of ‘transphobic’ comments.
Venice Allan, a 43-year-old from South London, had gained notoriety for her anti-trans views on social media.
Allan has been a prominent figure in the backlash to streamlining the process of gender recognition for trans people and has been incredibly vocal with her anti-trans stance.
The meeting, called ‘Transgenderism and the War on Women’, was hosted in the House of Commons by the group ‘We Need to Talk UK’ and attended by a PinkNews journalist.
On March 22, it appeared that Allan’s Twitter account, with over 2500 followers, had been suspended.
The exact reason for Allan’s suspension is yet unknown, however, Twitter states that they suspend accounts for impersonation, spam, and abusive behaviour.
Twitter says: “we may suspend an account if it has been reported to us as violating our rules surrounding abuse.
“When an account engages in abusive behaviour, like sending threats to others or impersonating other accounts, we may suspend it temporarily or, in some cases, permanently.”
Many Twitter users sympathetic to Allan’s anti-trans point of view took to the micro-blogging site to show their support for the self-titled radical feminist.
(Photo: @jan_olier / Twitter)
“Without her, Twitter is a less safe space for women xx,” one wrote, referring to the ‘female’ sex chromosomes XX.
One wrote: “Her whole profile was a mass of bullying and transphobic posts.”
Labour party women’s officer Lily Madigan tweeted a celebratory gif after it was revealled that Allan had been suspended.
(Photo: @LilyMadigan / Twitter)
Earlier this year Allan was suspended from the Labour party over a series of memes on social media targeted at prominent transgender women.
Her social media feeds frequently feature transphobic memes and statements, which have included posts targeted at trans celebrities such as Paris Lees.
The Milwaukee Common Council Tuesday voted to ban a controversial therapy that aims to change someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity, a practice known as “conversion therapy.”
Aldermen vote 12-2 in favor of the ban, with one abstention.
Supporters and opponents of the ban packed Tuesday’s meeting at City Hall, with opponents occasionally shouting “Amen!”
“This is real,” said Ald. Cavalier Johnson, the measure’s lead sponsor. “This affects real people.”
A Milwaukee council committee approved the measure earlier this month.
Opponents said Tuesday they didn’t have advance notice to gather opposition to the measure.
Johnson introduced the ordinance to ban the practice for anyone under 18. He called it a “proactive piece of legislation” to address the practice that is commonly tied to religious values.
He stressed Tuesday that it did not affect free therapy or counseling.
But Ald. Bob Donovan, who opposes the measure, said it was government overreach. He said supporters “did not make the case that this problem even exists in Milwaukee.”
Last year, state lawmakers proposed a bill to penalize mental health providers or counselors who performed conversion therapy, but it did not get a hearing or committee vote. Several other states and cities have passed similar bans.
Major medical and mental health organizations have condemned conversion therapy, said Tony Snell, a member of the city’s Equal Rights Commission.
A 2009 American Psychological Association report concluded such practices can pose critical health risks to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youths, including depression, substance abuse, stress and suicidal thoughts.
A 2015 federal report found no existing research that such practices can change a person’s gender identity or sexual orientation and instead found those practices often are “coercive, can be harmful and should not be part of behavioral health treatment.”
The city proposal went before the council’s Public Safety and Health Committee where aldermen heard support for the ban from LGBTQ advocates and mental health experts from Alverno College and Mount Mary University.
Natalie Zanoni, director of client and program services at the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center, read a statement from a 29-year-old graduate student in Milwaukee who experienced conversation therapy.
The student came out as gay to his parents at age 16 and a youth pastor suggested Exodus International, a national conversion therapy nonprofit that has since been shut down.
“But what is worst of all is the emotional and spiritual damage it caused, the deep-rooted shame that came along with attempting to change my orientation,” he wrote.
Several council members asked about the prevalence of conversion therapy practices in Milwaukee.
Snell said they are present in the metro area but said it’s difficult to quantify.
“A lot of these folks who have gone through this are living in the shadows,” he said, later adding, “I think we need to send the message proactively and say this won’t be tolerated here in the city of Milwaukee.”
The committee previously voted 2 to 0 to approve the measure. Ald. Chantia Lewis and Ald. Jose Perez offered strong support, each signing on as co-sponsors and voting in favor of it. Ald. Mark Borkowski and Ald. Bob Donovan abstained from voting at the committee level.
The proposed ban carries a fine between $500 to $1,000 for each violation. The Milwaukee Police Department would have the power to enforce the ordinance, if it’s approved.
Parkland survivor Emma Gonzalez, the bisexual president of Stoneman Douglas High School’s Gay-Straight Alliance, has spoken out about the way her sexuality fuels her activism.
Together with fellow students like David Hogg and Cameron Kasky, the 18-year-old has prompted a tidal wave of public sentiment in favour of better gun regulation following the shooting in Florida.
She has been at the forefront of the #NeverAgain movement since her impassioned speech at a rally last month in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, when she emotively repeated the phrase “We call BS” about NRA-funded politicians, gun advocates and those who don’t believe the Parkland teenagers know enough to speak up.
(Getty)
At the March For Our Lives rally in Washington DC, she made an emotional speech which left her and many of the hundreds of thousands of protesters in tears.
And speaking to Yahoo, she said that being open with her bisexuality meant she was able to speak out in this powerful way as one of the leaders of the Never Again MSD movement.
“They’re definitely linked for me personally,” she said. “If I wasn’t so open about who I was I never would’ve been able to do this.
“In ninth grade,” she recalled, “I was in a creative writing class where I could actually really effectively communicate what I was feeling, and it especially helped me come to terms with who I was.
“That definitely was when I really understood who I am, and when I came to terms with it, and when I told most people.”
This experience, she explained, “helped me understand that everybody, no matter who they are and what they look like, is going through a lot of different things.”
She has become an icon (Getty)
Gonzalez’s position as head of her school’s Gay-Straight Alliance has also been a crucial part of making her the activist she is today, she said.
“It’s really helped me get used to shifting plans very quickly, planning in advance, and also being flexible… understanding that maybe you organise a club meeting with this one person in mind and they just don’t come because they aren’t coming to school, and you can’t get upset,” she said.
“Because most of the kids in GSA either have depression or they’re dealing with a lot of stuff at home, and it’s like, I can understand that.
(Getty)
“And there are so many people in the country who are dealing with that, in relation to gun violence. You have no idea.
“You don’t know how many people you talk to on a daily basis that have actually been shot before, or have lost someone through gun violence.
“With GSA it’s the same. Everything’s incredibly far-reaching and widespread,” added the teenager.
(Getty)
During her speech at yesterday’s rally, Gonzalez showed exactly how inspiring she could be.
“Six minutes and about 20 seconds,” she told the crowd. “In a little over six minutes, 17 of our friends were taken from us, 15 were injured and everyone in the Douglas community was forever altered.
“Everyone who was there understands. Everyone who has been touched by the cold grip of gun violence understands. For us, long, tearful, chaotic hours in the scorching afternoon sun were spent not knowing.
“No one understood the extent of what had happened.”
Gonzalez listed off the names of those who died in the mass shooting last month with actions – like joking, smiling and playing basketball – that the young victims “would never” do again.
Apart from sporadic shouting and chanting, the immense number of protesters did the same, staying quiet.
When she broke the silence, Gonzalez told the crowd: “Since the time that I came out here, it has been six minutes and 20 seconds. The shooter has ceased shooting, and will soon abandon his rifle”.
She ended the speech with the message: “Fight for your lives, before it’s someone else’s job.”
The US Conference Of Catholic Bishops has thrown its support behind a proposed federal law explicitly permitting anti-gay marriage discrimination.
Earlier this month a group of 22 Republican Senators reintroduced the First Amendment Defense Act, a bill that would block the federal government from enforcing anti-discrimination protections or civil rights laws in cases where people acted based on “a sincerely held religious belief” in marriage.
The bill, spearheaded by Senator Mike Lee, is co-sponsored by some of the most outspoken foes of LGBT rights in the Senate, including Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio.
As written, the bill states: “The Federal Government shall not take any discriminatory action against a person, wholly or partially on the basis that such person speaks, or acts, in accordance with a sincerely held religious belief or moral conviction that marriage is or should be recognized as a union of one man and one woman”.
It has today earned backing from the Catholic Church’s most powerful US body, the United States Conference Of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), which gave its full-throated backing to the law.
The USCCB said: “We welcome and applaud the recent reintroduction of the First Amendment Defense Act (FADA). The USCCB has been vocal in support of the legislation since its inception.
“FADA is a modest and important measure that protects the rights of faith-based organizations and people of all faiths and of no faith who believe that marriage is the union of one man and one woman.
“For example, in a pluralistic society, faith-based charitable agencies and schools should not be excluded from participation in public life by loss of licenses, accreditation, or tax-exempt status because they hold reasonable views on marriage that differ from the federal government’s view.
“The leadership of the Catholic Church will continue to promote and protect the natural truth of marriage as foundational to the common good.
“The Church will also continue to stand for the ability of all to exercise their religious beliefs and moral convictions in public life without fear of government discrimination. We are pleased to support the First Amendment Defense Act, and we urge Congress to pass this important legislation.”
Sarah Kate Ellis, President and CEO of GLAAD: “America was founded on the freedom of religion and this shared value continues to be critical to our nation’s success, but it does not give people the right to impose their beliefs on others, to harm others, or to discriminate.
“While President Trump and the Senate Republicans behind this bill are pushing for discriminatory legislation, the LGBTQ community will not be silent and continue to protect the hardworking LGBTQ American families who would be placed in direct harm by this unjust bill.”
The Human Rights Campaign warns: “FADA would undermine core civil rights protections for LGBTQ people.
“This bill would undermine the government’s ability to enforce the federal protections that exist to protect LGBTQ people and their families.
“Under FADA, individuals, many businesses, and non-profit organizations—even those using taxpayer dollars contracting with the federal government—could openly violate non-discrimination policies or refuse to serve same-sex couples. As long as they claimed their actions are based on their belief about marriage, the government would have little recourse. “
At the time, he said in a statement: “Religious liberty is enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution.
“It is our first liberty and provides the most important protection in that it protects our right of conscience. Activist judges and executive orders issued by Presidents who have no regard for the Constitution have put these protections in jeopardy.
“If I am elected president and Congress passes the First Amendment Defense Act, I will sign it to protect the deeply held religious beliefs of Catholics and the beliefs of Americans of all faiths.”
Trump’s pledge is believed to have been orchestrated by Vice President Mike Pence, who previously supported the discriminatory law himself and signed similar legislation while Governor of Indiana.
Senator Lee claims: “Without FADA, federal bureaucrats are free to punish individuals or institutions that have a different definition of marriage than they do.
“Just as Congress protected people from being punished for declining to participate in abortions after Roe v Wade, the First Amendment Defense Act prevents people from being punished for their beliefs about marriage.”
Lee continues to claim that FADA “does not alter public accommodations law” to allow anti-LGBT discrimination, despite the bill blocking the government from enforcing anti-discrimination protections.
He also adds that the bill is not homophobic because it also applies to people who support gay marriage.
The Senator, who has a lengthy anti-LGBT voting record, claims: “All Federal definitions of marriage are protected under FADA. FADA would protect a liberal institution that promoted gay marriage, just as it would protect a conservative institution that wanted to promote traditional marriage.”
