Is life over for gays in america?

[Titanomachina]

nope, that's how I feel. I'm sorry you lack empathy, maybe someday you'll develop some.

I'm realistic. All I know is that I have to wait and see. Fear of "maybe" is stupid. It's nothing to do with empathy, but reason.

Stop being so dramatic and life becomes livable .

 

[deleted37010]

Sexual assault survivors struggle to cope with Trump election
cbsnews http://www.cbsnews.com/news/sexual-assault-survivors-cope-with-donald-trump-election/

 

[Industrialsize]

I'm realistic. All I know is that I have to wait and see. Fear of "maybe" is stupid. It's nothing to do with empathy, but reason.

Stop being so dramatic and life becomes livable .

Fuck you, don't tell me how to feel.

 

[HotBulge]

Titanomachina,

Industrialsize has been a member of LPSG for a decade, and if you look over his long history of posts, it is unfair to characterize his concerns as dramatic. In fact, in Trump's America, there is legitimate reason to panic actually; Trump's administration represents a potential role back of progress made over the last 60 years - hard fought Civil Rights, specifically.

• Both in 2004 and (partially) in 2016, Republican strategists have been successful in using "Gay Marriage" as a wedge issue for voting. The Trump-Pence administration can do a lot of damage to LGBT federal and employment protections. Marriage Equality may be more difficult to dismantle, but a lot of damage can be leading up to a possible judicial reversal of marriage equality.
• Women who are pro-Choice face the biggest challenge to reversing or curtailing Roe vs. Wade since the 1972 ruling.
• As governor of Indiana, Pence went against the advice of state health officials and epidemiologists and allowed HIV and Hepatitis C outbreaks to explode, simply because he prejudiced religious views made him closed-minded to needle exchange programs.
• Trump campaigned on creating a Muslim registry -- using Japanese internment camps from WWII as a justification. Whether you believe the campaign rhetoric or not, he's tacitly given bigots permission to put a target on the backs of Muslim Americans.
• Look at Trump's cabinet picks, especially for the EPA and NASA. The majority of Trump's cabinet picks were chosen for their ideology and desire to dismantle the very agency they are to be in charge of.

Basically, there are several legitimate reasons to be concerned/fearful of the potential damage Trump's administration can do.
Despite the potential DOOM of a Truminp administration, I DO believe LGBT have a special role to play in the resistance. We have the social latitude (or nothing to lose) by speaking truth to power because of our historical oppression. Also, as a community, we have the creativity and drive to influence American culture.

I'm realistic. All I know is that I have to wait and see. Fear of "maybe" is stupid. It's nothing to do with empathy, but reason.

Stop being so dramatic and life becomes livable .

 

[Brodie888]

Titanomachina,

Industrialsize has been a member of LPSG for a decade, and if you look over his long history of posts, it is unfair to characterize his concerns as dramatic. In fact, in Trump's America, there is legitimate reason to panic actually; Trump's administration represents a potential role back of progress made over the last 60 years - hard fought Civil Rights, specifically.

• Both in 2004 and (partially) in 2016, Republican strategists have been successful in using "Gay Marriage" as a wedge issue for voting. The Trump-Pence administration can do a lot of damage to LGBT federal and employment protections. Marriage Equality may be more difficult to dismantle, but a lot of damage can be leading up to a possible judicial reversal of marriage equality.
• Women who are pro-Choice face the biggest challenge to reversing or curtailing Roe vs. Wade since the 1972 ruling.
• As governor of Indiana, Pence went against the advice of state health officials and epidemiologists and allowed HIV and Hepatitis C outbreaks to explode, simply because he prejudiced religious views made him closed-minded to needle exchange programs.
• Trump campaigned on creating a Muslim registry -- using Japanese internment camps from WWII as a justification. Whether you believe the campaign rhetoric or not, he's tacitly given bigots permission to put a target on the backs of Muslim Americans.
• Look at Trump's cabinet picks, especially for the EPA and NASA. The majority of Trump's cabinet picks were chosen for their ideology and desire to dismantle the very agency they are to be in charge of.

Basically, there are several legitimate reasons to be concerned/fearful of the potential damage Trump's administration can do.
Despite the potential DOOM of a Truminp administration, I DO believe LGBT have a special role to play in the resistance. We have the social latitude (or nothing to lose) by speaking truth to power because of our historical oppression. Also, as a community, we have the creativity and drive to influence American culture.

To add to that, several supreme court seats could be decided over the next 4 years considering the ages of the sitting judges.

So the effect of a Trump/Pence presidency could shape the interpretation of constitutional issues for decades to come.

 

[slurper_la]

LGBT protections now illegal in Louisiana:
https://www.queerty.com/louisiana-lgbtq-protections-just-declared-illegal-wait-20161214

 

[HotBulge]

Let's also add using "Religious Liberty" as a shield for discrimination:
http://www.advocate.com/politics/20...-religious-liberty-bill-targeting-lgbt-people

We can hopefully see the hypocrisy in the "religious liberty" tactic by a counter-example. You better believe that when a Muslim-owned business decides to refuse service against Christians, the Muslim-owned business will be run out of town. Those same Christians who worry about their "religious liberty" won't lift a hand to protect the "religious liberty of non-Christians.

LGBT protections now illegal in Louisiana:
https://www.queerty.com/louisiana-lgbtq-protections-just-declared-illegal-wait-20161214

 

[HotBulge]

Gay life in America is not over because of the Trump administration (yet). The LGBT community has every legitimate reason to be in a state of alarm because the mounting attacks on LGBT protections and equality are clear. This is a time to fight back intelligently the attacks and to fight on multiple fronts - legal and cultural. Th,is reality may be new for younger members of the LGBT community, but now is the time to stand up rather than be trampled over. Radical Republicans are actively planning to return the LGBT community to its former second class citizenship status.

The ink of LGBT protections and Civil Rights is barely dry in many cases, including Federal non-discrimination protections and marriage equality. To refresh our memory about .some issues at stake:

• Protections involving the Federal and state governments, both within the government and doing business with it... 1) With an executive order, Trump has the power to reverse gays serving openly in the military. Less than 10 years ago, gay servicemen/women could be discharged dishonorably because of homosexual activity. That's a loss of a military career and all earned, life-time benefits. 2) The LGBT can lose bids for lucrative federal contracts if Trump waives executive order protections within the Federal Gov. 3) Public School teachers - LGBT teachers could face termination as a result of "morality clauses" in their contracts
  
• Hate Crimes against the LGBT community. Let' not forget the Orlando night club massacre of August 2016. Let' snot forget about Matthew Shepherd. If states remove LGBT protections against discrimination, the next time a crazy person decides to shoot up an LGBT nightclub, his crime could avoid prosecution as a hate crime.
• As Brodie888 pointed out, Marriage Equality is under threat if Trump can appoint the next two SC justices if/when vacancies open up. Marriage equality just isn't about the ability for the LGBT to hold hands and skip down the wedding isle. Without those legal protections, LGBT couples go back to facing serious legal hurdles for the same privileges that traditional couples take advantage of.

1. The classic " my LGBT partner is sick in the hospital" scenario - without marriage protections, the spouse can not automatically invoke Power of Attorney privileges to make life/death decisions for the hospitalized spouse.
2. Custody of children - without marriage, LGBT couples have to go through the expensive legal process of granting the non-custodial parent custody rights or legal adoption.
3. Death and the transfer of benefits - Unless an LGBT couple again spends $$ thousands to set up a legal trust, if one partner dies, the other cannot inherit the other's property and retirement benefits w/o incuring a tax penalty
4. Before Marriage Equality, LGBT couples who wanted to approximate the same legal protections as straight couples can end up spending tens fo thousands of dollars on legal fees- drawing up power of attorney, establishing trusts, legal documents for surragacy to hav,e children, adoption etc. Estimate a lifetime "surcharge" of $40K in legal fees to approximate teh protections which straight couples get for free.. Even then, those legal protections are guaranteed b/c of differences in laws among states.

I am sure I am leaving additional concerns off the list; the current threats are dizzying enough. I've just listed concerns for the LGBT community. Women and other minority groups have their specific list of concerns, as well, about the Trump administration. IF the LGBT community does not stand up to preserve hard-fought rights and promote equality, there are several Republicans who are more than willing to return the community to a second class status. For those of us who have life experiences under a system of second class citizenship, it's not a position we wish to return to.

So, Titanomachina, it is reasonable for the LGBT to be afraid and to be angry. Industrialisize has very legitimate rational and emotional reasons to be concerned. The post-election 2016 reality just means that the LGBT community has more work/fighting to do to prevent legalized discrimination.

 

[Titanomachina]

Titanomachina,

Industrialsize has been a member of LPSG for a decade, and if you look over his long history of posts, it is unfair to characterize his concerns as dramatic. In fact, in Trump's America, there is legitimate reason to panic actually; Trump's administration represents a potential role back of progress made over the last 60 years - hard fought Civil Rights, specifically.

• Both in 2004 and (partially) in 2016, Republican strategists have been successful in using "Gay Marriage" as a wedge issue for voting. The Trump-Pence administration can do a lot of damage to LGBT federal and employment protections. Marriage Equality may be more difficult to dismantle, but a lot of damage can be leading up to a possible judicial reversal of marriage equality.
• Women who are pro-Choice face the biggest challenge to reversing or curtailing Roe vs. Wade since the 1972 ruling.
• As governor of Indiana, Pence went against the advice of state health officials and epidemiologists and allowed HIV and Hepatitis C outbreaks to explode, simply because he prejudiced religious views made him closed-minded to needle exchange programs.
• Trump campaigned on creating a Muslim registry -- using Japanese internment camps from WWII as a justification. Whether you believe the campaign rhetoric or not, he's tacitly given bigots permission to put a target on the backs of Muslim Americans.
• Look at Trump's cabinet picks, especially for the EPA and NASA. The majority of Trump's cabinet picks were chosen for their ideology and desire to dismantle the very agency they are to be in charge of.

Basically, there are several legitimate reasons to be concerned/fearful of the potential damage Trump's administration can do.
Despite the potential DOOM of a Truminp administration, I DO believe LGBT have a special role to play in the resistance. We have the social latitude (or nothing to lose) by speaking truth to power because of our historical oppression. Also, as a community, we have the creativity and drive to influence American culture.

No. That's history. So unless you know for a fact what he is GOING to do and HOW, and WHEN then you've got nothing. Now stop panicking like the rest of the crowd when he got elected.

Your "panic" isn't legitimate, it's overblown.

 

[Titanomachina]

Gay life in America is not over because of the Trump administration (yet). The LGBT community has every legitimate reason to be in a state of alarm because the mounting attacks on LGBT protections and equality are clear. This is a time to fight back intelligently the attacks and to fight on multiple fronts - legal and cultural. Th,is reality may be new for younger members of the LGBT community, but now is the time to stand up rather than be trampled over. Radical Republicans are actively planning to return the LGBT community to its former second class citizenship status.

The ink of LGBT protections and Civil Rights is barely dry in many cases, including Federal non-discrimination protections and marriage equality. To refresh our memory about .some issues at stake:

• Protections involving the Federal and state governments, both within the government and doing business with it... 1) With an executive order, Trump has the power to reverse gays serving openly in the military. Less than 10 years ago, gay servicemen/women could be discharged dishonorably because of homosexual activity. That's a loss of a military career and all earned, life-time benefits. 2) The LGBT can lose bids for lucrative federal contracts if Trump waives executive order protections within the Federal Gov. 3) Public School teachers - LGBT teachers could face termination as a result of "morality clauses" in their contracts
  
• Hate Crimes against the LGBT community. Let' not forget the Orlando night club massacre of August 2016. Let' snot forget about Matthew Shepherd. If states remove LGBT protections against discrimination, the next time a crazy person decides to shoot up an LGBT nightclub, his crime could avoid prosecution as a hate crime.
• As Brodie888 pointed out, Marriage Equality is under threat if Trump can appoint the next two SC justices if/when vacancies open up. Marriage equality just isn't about the ability for the LGBT to hold hands and skip down the wedding isle. Without those legal protections, LGBT couples go back to facing serious legal hurdles for the same privileges that traditional couples take advantage of.

1. The classic " my LGBT partner is sick in the hospital" scenario - without marriage protections, the spouse can not automatically invoke Power of Attorney privileges to make life/death decisions for the hospitalized spouse.
2. Custody of children - without marriage, LGBT couples have to go through the expensive legal process of granting the non-custodial parent custody rights or legal adoption.
3. Death and the transfer of benefits - Unless an LGBT couple again spends $$ thousands to set up a legal trust, if one partner dies, the other cannot inherit the other's property and retirement benefits w/o incuring a tax penalty
4. Before Marriage Equality, LGBT couples who wanted to approximate the same legal protections as straight couples can end up spending tens fo thousands of dollars on legal fees- drawing up power of attorney, establishing trusts, legal documents for surragacy to hav,e children, adoption etc. Estimate a lifetime "surcharge" of $40K in legal fees to approximate teh protections which straight couples get for free.. Even then, those legal protections are guaranteed b/c of differences in laws among states.

I am sure I am leaving additional concerns off the list; the current threats are dizzying enough. I've just listed concerns for the LGBT community. Women and other minority groups have their specific list of concerns, as well, about the Trump administration. IF the LGBT community does not stand up to preserve hard-fought rights and promote equality, there are several Republicans who are more than willing to return the community to a second class status. For those of us who have life experiences under a system of second class citizenship, it's not a position we wish to return to.

So, Titanomachina, it is reasonable for the LGBT to be afraid and to be angry. Industrialisize has very legitimate rational and emotional reasons to be concerned. The post-election 2016 reality just means that the LGBT community has more work/fighting to do to prevent legalized discrimination.

No it's not legitimate. Fear of an unseen future is irrational. You and everyone else is being dramatic fearing what might be.

Stop acting like chickens with their heads cut off.

 

[Titanomachina]

Fuck you, don't tell me how to feel.

I tell people to get a grip, so yeah I can tell people how to feel when they're being irrational.

 

[Industrialsize]

I tell people to get a grip, so yeah I can tell people how to feel when they're being irrational.

Fuck you, Don't call me irrational.

 

[Industrialsize]

No. That's history. So unless you know for a fact what he is GOING to do and HOW, and WHEN then you've got nothing. Now stop panicking like the rest of the crowd when he got elected.

Your "panic" isn't legitimate, it's overblown.

EVERY SINGLE ONE of his Cabinet pics are actively anti-lgbt. They are all against YOU. Get a grip.

 

[Industrialsize]

LGBT movement back on defense as Trump era arrives
“I believe that combined momentum-slash-angst that our community may be feeling because of how vehemently anti-LGBTQ the Trump administration is shaping up to be could actually put us in a position to come together in alignment with other movements that are similarly dealing with high rates of profiling, hate crime attacks, assaults on our personhood and violations of privacy,” Long Simmons said.

Prior to the election, the Human Rights Campaign had reportedly prepared a memo calling for the next administration to enhance LGBT rights further after progress under the Obama administration. Among the requests was the appointment of the first-ever openly LGBT Cabinet member and eliminating the ban on HIV-positive people serving in the U.S. armed forces. It’s hard to see how that could happen under the Trump administration.

Jay Brown, a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, said his organization is bracing for the fight ahead in the new administration.

“In the days since the election, President-elect Trump has created a team that includes Jeff Sessions, Ben Carsons and Tom Price, among others,” Brown said. “Personnel is policy and these appointees will play a huge role in leading agencies that are charged with protecting LGBTQ people. We are going to be aggressive in blocking any attempt to roll back or undermine our rights. The reality is the vast majority of Americans still support LGBTQ rights and we are going to fight to ensure our voices are heard loud and clear these next four years.”
http://www.washingtonblade.com/2016/12/14/lgbt-movement-on-defense-as-trump-era-arrives/?utm_source=MadMimi&utm_medium=email&utm_content=BladeBlast: LGBT Movement Back, Comet Gunman, Exxon Bias Lawsuit&utm_campaign=20161215_m136264597_161215 BladeBlast&utm_term=READ MORE

 

[winesthel945]

No. That's history. So unless you know for a fact what he is GOING to do and HOW, and WHEN then you've got nothing. Now stop panicking like the rest of the crowd when he got elected. Your "panic" isn't legitimate, it's overblown.

No one can predict the future. But one can look at past performance as an indicator of future expectations. You seem to be saying that unless you can psychically know the future with 100% accuracy, using the past as a predictor is somehow not legitimate.

If you feel the past doesn't matter, that's your prerogative. It's naive, willfully ignorant and maybe a touch insane, but it's your prerogative.

For the rest of us here on planet Earth and without your psychic powers, the rabidly anti-gay past behavior of many of Trump's appointees and advisors suggest that LGBT people should be very concerned.

 

[Titanomachina]

No one can predict the future. But one can look at past performance as an indicator of future expectations. You seem to be saying that unless you can psychically know the future with 100% accuracy, using the past as a predictor is somehow not legitimate.

If you feel the past doesn't matter, that's your prerogative. It's naive, willfully ignorant and maybe a touch insane, but it's your prerogative.

For the rest of us here on planet Earth and without your psychic powers, the rabidly anti-gay past behavior of many of Trump's appointees and advisors suggest that LGBT people should be very concerned.

I find that worry doesn't do anything to solve a problem.

 

[Titanomachina]

EVERY SINGLE ONE of his Cabinet pics are actively anti-lgbt. They are all against YOU. Get a grip.

No they're against YOU, I'm fine either way. But you'd make a great doomsayer

 

[Industrialsize]

No they're against YOU, I'm fine either way. But you'd make a great doomsayer

Whether you like it or not, you are part of the LGBTQ community and these people do not have your best interest at heart. I'm going to guess you're quite a bit younger than me. I came of age in the late 70's/80's. Things were NOT good for Gay people. You should be thanking my generation.We organized and got shit done to make life better for the LGBTQ community. We have just finished 8 years of expansion of our rights. Trump and his cabinet want us to go backwards. But you don't seem to give a rat's ass.

 

[HotBulge]

I second WinesThe1945 assessment of the situation. Titanomachina, you are being arrogant by being dismissive of other's legitimate reactions, and you are being willfully ignorant. We are alarmed because Trump's cabinet is filled with reactionary Republicans who have demonstrated anti-LGBT political actions in the (near) past. The only difference between a few years ago and now is that these reactionary Republicans were more on the fringe; now these unqualified political hacks are in the White House at the Executive Cabinet table where they CAN and WILL do harm.

Allow me to provide a simplified and exaggerated, yet apt analogy -- just to let you know the gravity of the situation. If we were in the "Harry Potter" movie series, we would be at the moment before the Battle of Hogwarts. (Click on the previous hyperlink to refresh your memory). Voldemort and his Death Eaters, people who were once on the fringes of society, are at the gates of Hogwarts (i.e. the White House). Now is the time to put aside the school boy bubble and arrogance; the fight is at your doorstep.

 

[deleted37010]

Whether you like it or not, you are part of the LGBTQ community and these people do not have your best interest at heart. I'm going to guess you're quite a bit younger than me. I came of age in the late 70's/80's. Things were NOT good for Gay people. You should be thanking my generation.We organized and got shit done to make life better for the LGBTQ community. We have just finished 8 years of expansion of our rights. Trump and his cabinet want us to go backwards. But you don't seem to give a rat's ass.

my professional teaching contract in florida contained a morality clause.... i was formally reprimanded and written up for openly stating i was gay.... it was 2001/2002........i kept that reprimand and treasure it more than any diploma