We Need More Mallory McMorrows in Leadership #HateWontWin
#128
Welcome to Third Cultured, a newsletter covering all things queer and techno-politics from the perspective of Kyle Borland. My goal is to highlight all the ways today is different (and not so) from yesterday.
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This edition:
Essay/Opinion
Donate to the Protect & Defend Trans Youth Fund
Review: Ballsy
Links, Quotes & Things
Essay/Opinion
Republicans have seen so much momentum from their “groomer” and “pedophile” attacks that they’ve begun targeting cis, straight, white, Christian, suburban moms that disagree with them. If you haven’t had the chance, I highly recommend you take five minutes to listen to Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow’s (D) response to those exact kinds of attacks. She is what we need all our leaders to be in this moment, and truthfully, she showed the kind of force every cishet person needs to use against the fascist assault we’re all living through in today’s America.
It’ll only be so long before they come for you and yours.
McMorrow is deservedly an overnight political sensation after that speech.
Her timing was particularly poignant given this week’s viral video of Christian missionaries singing evangelical songs to a captive audience on a plane. The visceral cringe displayed through passengers’ faces and body language said everything even before Twitter for ahold of them. When paired with the 200+ anti-LGBTQ+ laws in the country at the moment, the insufferable shamelessness of Christianity is grating even to other devout Christians like Senator McMorrow. Not to mention the people who practice non-Christian religions or gender/sexual minorities forced to endure millennia of demonization at the faith’s hands.
It’s no secret to y’all that I have a lot to say about Christianity but, to what may surprise many, a lot of the feedback I receive across channels comes from Christians. They feel conflicted between genuine love for Christ and his message vs validating the Christian institutions that are going out of their way to attack, harm and shame rather than comfort, heal, and love. I’ve lost count of the folks who stopped going to any church and focus on introducing their kid(s) to the world as it is today.
Just last week, a college friend of mine in Ohio who is expecting his firstborn in weeks said that he couldn’t wait to go to Pride with them just so they could enjoy the colors and the new parents could join the many contingents of folks at Pride who give out hugs to anyone needing a little parental love (an ever touchy subject for LGBTQ+ folks at-large). If only Christianity would make space for those people who wish to go to church on Sunday morning and join the Pride parade later that same blessed day.
Based on my encounter with Brother Bubba in Palo Alto last Friday night, I don’t think any of us should hold our breath. Even when I didn’t acknowledge their presence whatsoever, they tried to bait me – specifically – with, “We’d love to know your religious beliefs.” They can never help themselves, but luckily I can.
I continued to ignore them, walked to a delicious dinner at a new Indian restaurant, and smoked a couple of infused joints afterward while enjoying a giant waffle cone of ice cream. It was a wonderful way to bask in the beauty of the Full Moon/Good Friday/Passover/Ramadan/etc crossover we were granted last weekend, a blessing those too small-minded to enjoy all of humanity looked right past.
I hope you didn’t, but even if you did – 420 was Wednesday to remind you about our interconnectedness to the Earth, the breath in our lungs, and each other. It takes a lot of personal reminders, every single day, but I think most of us get it.
Now if only we could get everyone to fight for it. #HateWontWin
As always, thanks for reading, beautiful people.
Kyle (@kgborland)
Donate to the D10 Pride and the Protect Trans Youth Fund
Review: Ballsy B2 Balls and Body Trimmer
Rating – 5 out of 5
Not to put too much of my partner and I’s business on blast, but being in a relationship for six years made it so we didn’t think too much about body hair upkeep. I even have a Karl Marx-level beard now because shaving during COVID of any kind was beyond a chore – it was pointless.
However, after being barraged with ads from men’s grooming companies via LGBTQ+ content, the well-worn grooves in my brain started to shift. By the time I was sent the B2, I was more than ready to try it out. (It didn’t hurt that I’d started shedding that COVID weight and was feeling my oats in more ways than one.)
After both my partner and I used it, I can confidently say this is the best trimmer I’ve ever used for manscaping and didn’t have any nicks, cuts, and snags. I was hesitant at first, but the device’s vertical design was intuitive to use and made it easier to get to some of those harder-to-reach angles. I highly recommend the Ballsy B2.
Product description:
“The sleek, waterproof device has interchangeable heads, one specifically designed for the pair down there and one for everywhere else. The balls trimmer head is vertical to navigate tricky trimming angles and uneven surfaces and features a squared blade design that helps avoid nicks, cuts, and snags. The body trimmer head is a traditional style head for full-body grooming and has a ceramic blade for a close, clean shave.”
Links, Quotes & Things
50 years on, Norway apologizes for law that criminalized gay sex (Reuters)
A Mississippi LGBTQ conversion therapy story takes center stage (Reckon)
Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws in the US
Alabama's Wave of Anti-LGBTQ Legislation Could Have National Consequences (TIME)
Censorship battles’ new frontier: your public library (The Washington Post)
“Don’t Say Gay” Was Just the Beginning (them)
I grew up gay in Alabama in the 70's, today's kids may have it harder (AL.com)
LGBTQ people face 'groomer' accusations and trolling as culture war rages on (NBC News)
Meet the woman behind Libs of TikTok, secretly fueling the right’s outrage machine, spreading anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment (LA Blade)
Republican vilifying high school over drag show was part of a high school drag show (LGBTQ Nation)
Rightwing candidate says being gay is unconstitutional because “homosexuals cannot procreate” (LGBTQ Nation)
Without clout: How Alabama’s LGBTQ community can move on politically from legislative setbacks (AL.com)
'Everywhere Is Queer': New worldwide map highlights LGBTQ-owned businesses (NBC News)
Homophobia has been increasing for years, warns LGBT community (News Talk)
In South Carolina, a battle rages over conversion therapy for LGBTQ youth (Reckon)
Janelle Monáe’s Queer, Afrofuturist Literary Debut (NYTimes)
‘Jesus loves me and my boyfriend’: how one gay-friendly town repelled homophobic protesters (The Guardian)
Meet the gay Muslim artist making waves for Montenegro at this year's Venice Biennale (euronews)
Newest J.K. Rowling movie has worst opening in franchise history as fans sour on author (LGBTQ Nation)
Nyle DiMarco talks Deaf, queer culture in 'Deaf Utopia' memoir: 'I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be' (USA Today)
🌈🦄 Rainbow Unicorn Torah! 🦄🌈 (Life is a Sacred Text)
Russia Adds Prominent Journalists, LGBT Activists To Registry Of 'Foreign Agents' (Radio Free Europe)
Rwandan LGBTIQ people warn: It’s unsafe to send queer asylum seekers here (Open Democracy)
The dark past of an Australian prison where convicted homosexuals were sent to separate from 'normal' inmates - and authorities tried to 'CURE' them (Daily Mail)
This Digital Exhibition of Posters from ACT UP and Beyond Will Ignite You (them)
Tracking a history of imaginary queer/gay men in modern Irish literature (Irish Times)
Violence Against Queer People Worldwide
Gay Man Left Bloodied, Bones Fractured After Random Homophobic Attack (Advocate)
Gay Man Sues, Claiming Halloween Store Boss Used Homophobic Slurs and Threatened Him (Daily Beast)
Roommate charged in death of LGBTQ activist found in Florida landfill (Washington Post)
The family almost killed man they thought turned their son gay. They blinded him instead. (LGBTQ Nation)
Ukrainian family facing hate crime charges for alleged beating of gay man (Local 10)
Vicious killing of two men has Irish LGBTQ+ community on edge (LA Blade)
What the Taliban Means for Queer Afghans (Foreign Policy)