MOTHER’S DAY:
Hey homos did you get something for your mom today like a card or whatever? Does your mom still speak to you? Are you, in fact, a mom? Three cheers for all of us, let’s all have a drink, Happy Mother’s Day. Holidays in general, and ones that focus on familial love and bonding in particular, aren’t always easy for us. But the nice thing is, someone wants these things to suck slightly less: “A coalition of pro-gay religious and secular groups is celebrating Mother’s Day with a campaign encouraging Christians to be welcoming and fully inclusive of LGBT people in their congregations.”
Obviously this message isn’t exclusively about Mother’s Day, but the day wasn’t chosen by accident, either:
“To celebrate the diversity of all families, we chose Mother’s Day to kick off this campaign,” Sung Park, program director of Believe Out Loud, said in a press release. “Mothers teach us to value everyone equally, to treat others the way we would like to be treated. Jesus also taught us that. What better day than Mother’s Day to remind people of this universal value.”
Will this necessarily make you feel warm and fuzzy inside that heart-shaped space in your chest if you don’t have strong feelings about Jesus? Not really. But is it still meaningful? Yes! It’s become increasingly obvious that the problems faced by gay people in America are now based in Judeo-Christian belief systems, not politics. Prop 8 was ruled discriminatory in court, but gay people in California still can’t get married to this day because it was funded by millions of dollars of Mormon money. Defending DOMA in court requires huge amounts of government spending and explicit invasion of the federal government in the private lives of citizens, but Republicans are still fighting for it even though it defies every founding principle of their political party because it’s “wrong.” So, while it may not make everyone feel shiny and happy in equal measure, hopefully it will make all of our lives better in the long run! Also, Obama acknowledged gay moms in his Mother’s Day proclamation this weekend! Happy Mother’s Day! Also, here’s to people who were made to get up early today and go to church. We feel for you.
DEPORTATION POSTPONEMENT:
Binational couple Henry and Josh faced a deportation hearing on Friday to determine whether Henry would be sent back to his native Venezuela – but for now, the hearing has been postponed! This is actually kind of mixed news – it means six more months of uncertainty until another hearing, but it also means six more months of not being forcibly separated, and who knows what the legal situation around this issue will be in six months! Josh says “We understand that this is just a reprieve, but are really happy with this decision.”
“MIDWEST LESBIAN RAPPERS:”
Some people write YA novels that aren’t about shiny celibate vampires! Some of them are about “suburban Midwestern lesbian rappers.” “It’s possible that Sister Mischief sourced from a frustration, amidst the furor of Twilight, of wondering where the queer YA heroines were, or the Black or brown ones, or the ones willing to call themselves feminists, or to aspire, or achieve. These were the dynamic, whole heroines I would have loved to—needed to, in fact—discover at 14 and 17, and the ones I’d want my younger sisters and daughters to find. I didn’t believe that becoming vampire bait was the best aspiration we could offer them.”
LESBIAN WEREWOLVES:
Also relevant to your interests: a first look at the lesbian werewolf movie Jack and Diane. It sounds weird and awesome?? “Jack And Diane” will not only have animated sequences, but they will be directed by none other than arthouse faves the Brothers Quay. The duo are known for the painstaking stop-motion animated work that is singularly and utterly theirs and are best known for the distinctive works “Street Of Crocodiles” and “Institute Benjamenta.” They certainly add a whole new dimension to the film that is already quite out there and it will be fascinating to see it come together.”
SANDWICHES:
This is a video about the greatest movie sandwiches of all time. You’re welcome.
TORONTO SAFE SPACE:
Soon, every public high school in Toronto will have a designated safe gathering space for queer students! “Students at Lawrence Park Collegiate have chosen the 12th-grade student lounge as a “positive space” where LGBT students can seek support. Toronto school district officials say all 106 high schools and 480 elementary and middle schools in the city will have such a space by the end of 2012, with each staffed by a volunteer teacher who can help students deal with homophobia, sexism, and other issues. “We guess everything is positive and safe in schools, but we know that’s not necessarily the case,” said Ken Jeffers, the Toronto district’s coordinator for gender-based violence prevention. “Many students suffer in silence.”
CHICAGO:
The Illinois law allowing civil unions will go into effect in June, and there’s a mass ceremony planned to celebrate it. “Thirty couples will have a chance to unite June 2 at Wrigley Square in Chicago’s Millennium Park, in an event hosted by the Chicago Commission on Human Relations’ Advisory Council on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues. Ceremonies will begin at 10 a.m.”
FREJA BEHA:
This video has Freja Beha Erichsen making out with Anna Mouglalis. There’s some other stuff too, most of which is terrible, but do you care?
TIPPING:
You motherfuckers need to tip. If not, I fully hope someone chews you out for it on this tumblr. That is all. “I’m a paycheck-to-paycheck single mom, and I always, always, ALWAYS tip. Period. I just build it into the budget for eating/drinking out. So I have little (okay NO) sympathy for non-tippers or bad tippers (NTBT). And here’s a little “tip” for you NTBTs: Being a crappy tipper and/or being in ANY way rude to your server is a deal-breaker on a first, or any, date. Get over yourself and realize how freaking hard these people work for you!”
OTTERKITTEN:
Sorry it’s not a video.
I love the church I get to go to now! Here’s to that! SUNDAY FUNDAY FOREVER
this american wants to see a lesbians werewolves of london group.
Ok, is the channel thing a movie or a parody? Because either way I just saw Freja Beha boobs, just saying…
Woah woah WOAH. I have so many feelings w/r/t that greatest sandwich movie situation. I mean, I love Bastian’s PB&J for nostalgic reasons and that Impossible Egg sandwich in “Spanglish” is such a bittersweet sandwich because his first bite was sooooo close to happening.
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH IN BENNY & JOON???
How much money do I need to donate to never have to hear an auto-play on this website again?
We were all thinking it. You said it. Not sure if this is some sort of strange coincidence, but earlier today the auto-play started up and I turned the sound down. Now this evening every time it starts up the sound is turned down on its own. Perhaps there is some sort of Internet magic afoot. But I second your inquiry. Is there an amount of money it will take to forever silence the volume on the auto-play?
If I hear “tonight we have our own special guest” one more time I’m going to throw my trucker hat on the ground in frustration.
I am understanding if it is bringing in money for AS. But if it is just a bit of money pleasefortheloveofgod tell us how much and I am pretty sure we will pay the price to kill it. I am getting wristlash from clicking on any article to stop it.
Most lesbiany response ever. Don’t mess up your trucker hat!
I think it stopped autoplaying tho dudes, which I am ecstatic about. Thanks AS!
Thank you x infinity AS!
how cats’ eyes look from the side, like the lense or whatever = awesome
Word on the tipping portion of this entry.
Nothing disgusts me more when I’m out with friends than if they don’t tip/leave shitty tips. I’ve gone toe to toe with a few people, including an ex (one of the reasons they are an EX) over it.
Not a lot of people in the States realize that the minimum wage for most waitresses is $2.33 per hour, which is just ridiculously low for the physical hardship that serving puts on your body– I speak from experience at a family owned restaurant, not a chain or larger establishment– there are nights when I can’t walk to my car after a shift without a limp or my back hunched.
Getting stiffed on a table is equivalent to the payroll department telling you that they’ve opted not to pay you for a full hour or two of work because they want to save the money for the new Miley Cyrus album instead (and for the purposes of this scenario you really, really hate Miley Cyrus).
i don’t have strong feelings about Jesus but that ad still made me cry. like it is just sweet and i am susceptible to such things. it is more than sweet, actually, of course.
THANK YOU I thought I was going to be the only one who cried and also does not particularly have a thing for Jesus.
people who are both deeply religious and loving/accepting/celebrating are my favorite people. they just tug at my heart strings… i feel like they have something figured out.
very happy for Henry and Josh, let’s hope that in six months things have changed and they can stay here together
Kudos to your perception that YES, rampant homophobia is based in religious belief more than politics – and that’s something that needs to be talked about.
My partner and I are lesbian Christian pastors, and LOVE the Believe Out Loud video. The rejection of it by some Christians who “don’t want to take sides” strikes us as hypocrisy and worse…since when is the truth that God loves everyone something to take sides on?
Thank you for sharing the video, and for giving us some fun things to laugh about. Now if only the Otterkitten had been a video, it would have been PERfect.
Cheers,
Marian, Pastor Cathedral of Hope Salt Lake City
Somehow I misread “Toronto safe space” as “Toronto space cafe” and now I’m a little sad there isn’t a Toronto space cafe.
I hope you’d leave ASTRONOMICAL tips.
Shit, now I want one too. It can be called The Planet. It’ll be a LESBIAN space cafe
I’m sure the lattes would be outta this world!
Am I wrong for thinking the dark haired mom in the Jesus video is super hot?