metroweekly.com - 3 207 Showbiz News and Updates

Origin, starring as a celebrated writer diligently solving the puzzle that is her latest book, while also facing unfathomable personal adversity.The book she’s writing happens to be the nonfiction best-seller that inspired this film: Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent, by Isabel Wilkerson. In Caste, published in 2020, Wilkerson examines the racial hierarchy in America as a caste system, not unlike systems of oppression in India and in Nazi Germany that have enforced dynamics of superiority and inferiority based on characteristics other than race.“We call everything racism.

tracker developed by the American Civil Liberties Union.According to the ACLU, Oklahoma currently has the most proposed anti-LGBTQ bills with 36 — though many of them are redundant, with lawmakers introducing their own versions of nearly identical bills.The state with the next highest number of bills is Missouri, which has introduced 28, and South Carolina, which has introduced 26.Most of the bills target the transgender community, taking the form of efforts to either redefine transgender existence out of law or place restrictions on transgender people’s ability to self-identify, access spaces, or receive services that affirm their gender identity.More than 200 bills focus on educational matters, including proposed athlete bans, curriculum censorship bills, and at least 38 requiring LGBTQ-identifying students to be outed to their parents in the name of “parental rights.”Another 120 seek to restrict access to gender-affirming health care for trans-identifying minors, with some even seeking to require transgender adults to overcome a number of bureaucratic or regulatory obstacles to receive transition-related treatments, which critics say is an attempt to frighten medical providers into refusing to see transgender patients altogether.Already, 24 states have passed some form of restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors, resulting in a flood of legal challenges from families with transgender children and from doctors who are penalized for prescribing gender-affirming care under the laws.While most lower-level federal courts temporarily blocked such bans last year, only one statewide ban, in Arkansas, has been declared unconstitutional.Other bans in Indiana, Montana, and Florida remain blocked, although bans in states

A proposed bill in Iowa seeks to prosecute people accused of providing “obscene material” to minors could potentially be weaponized against book lenders throughout the state.Depending on one’s own biases, and how broadly the law is interpreted by prosecutors, the proposed law might be used to force librarians and bookstore owners to serve prison time and register as sex offenders if they allow minors to access LGBTQ-themed books that have been deemed “obscene.”The bill amends an existing obscenity law with harsher penalties.Under the proposed revision, “any person, other than the parent or guardian of the minor, who knowingly disseminates or exhibits obscene material to minor, including the exhibition of scene material so that it can be observed by a minor on or off the premises where it is displayed” will be considered guilty of an “aggravated misdemeanor.”Previously, the dissemination of so-called “obscene material” was considered a “serious misdemeanor,” punishable by up to a year in prison and a fine of at least $430 but not more than $2,560. But an aggravated misdemeanor is punishable by up to two years in prison, and much larger fine, ranging from $855 to $8,540.

petition demanding eHarmony pull the ad from the airwaves. “This eHarmony ad is an attempt to brainwash children and adults by desensitizing them and convincing them that homosexuality is natural,” the petition reads.

The New York Post that he had always wanted to donate sperm to help infertile couples conceive and joined a Facebook group helping couples find sperm donors.Through that group, he became aware of a lesbian couple in Queensland and was touched by their personal story. So he offered to help.The 37-year-old underwent months of genetic testing, medical tests, and in-person counseling sessions with his partner.

mass shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs, will plead guilty to 74 counts of federal hate crime and gun crime charges as part of a plea deal arranged with the U.S. Department of Justice.Aldrich is expected to receive “multiple concurrent life sentences plus additional consecutive sentences totaling 190 years imprisonment,” if a judge accepts the plea deal.According to a news release from the Department of Justice, both Aldrich’s lawyers and the department jointly filed a motion to schedule a change of plea hearing for Aldrich and the sentencing hearing on the same date.

Daily Mail.The sexual offense charge carries a maximum penalty of eight years in prison.Zmarzły is currently being held in prison ahead of his next court appearance.According to local media, Zmarzły, the pastor of the church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Angels, in Dabrowa Gornicza, Poland, allegedly hosted a small group “party and play” sex session in his apartment with two other men back in September. But one of the men collapsed after overdosing on erectile dysfunction pills.The third man reportedly called emergency services, but when paramedics arrived, they were denied entry to the apartment, according to witnesses.

GLAAD, the world’s most prominent LGBTQ media advocacy organization, announced nominees for its 35th Annual GLAAD Media Awards earlier today.Presented since 1990, the awards honor broadcast, digital and print media for “fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of LGBTQ people and issues.”On Monday night, at the 75th Annual Emmy Awards, the organization accepted the Governor’s Award Emmy for its tireless work on behalf of the LGBTQ community.“For all of us at GLAAD, this work is personal,” said Sarah Kate Ellis, the organization’s president and CEO since 2014, in a nationally televised acceptance speech. “For me, it’s about my wife and our kids, because what the world sees on TV directly influences how we treat each other and the decisions we make in our living rooms, schools, at work, and at the ballot box.”Ellis addressed the cultural and political hostility currently assailing the LGBTQ community, especially those who are transgender.“The world urgently needs culture-changing stories about transgender people,” she said.

previous ruling by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of the student, who is identified in court documents as A.C., will be allowed to remain in place while the case works its way through the courts.The 7th Circuit’s decision, issued in August, upheld a preliminary injunction issued by U.S.

bill asserts that claiming someone has discriminated against another person or group because of their identity will be considered “defamation per se” — meaning the accuser could find themselves facing costly legal bills for simply expressing their opinion.The bill does not appear to address what happens if the alleged discrimination is a matter of fact or public record — rather, just making an accusation of discriminatory behavior appears to be enough to land them in trouble legally.Under the bill:Under current defamation and libel laws, a subject must prove that a speaker or journalist acted with “actual malice.”This typically makes it harder for public figures, such as celebrities, to sue for defamation or libel, as they must prove the person they are suing either knew the information wasn’t true or demonstrated “reckless disregard” for its falsity.But now those in the public eye who find themselves accused of discrimination have nothing to fear — because the bill redefines what constitutes a “public figure.”The bill also eliminates the requirement that a person accused of discrimination prove their accuser acted with “actual malice” in cases where “the allegation does not relate to the reason for his or her public status.”Essentially, it means that it’s more likely that anyone making an accusation alleging discrimination will be found guilty and fined when the case goes to court.As reported by The New Republic, a person may not be considered a “public figure,” even in a limited context, if their fame or notoriety stems from:For example, if the bill becomes law, a podcaster who rants about gay marriage and calls LGBTQ people “diseased,” “perverse,” or makes other disparaging remarks could sue any person or entity

Boo, polling. Though it was a disastrous night for common sense, too.Then Covid caught us with our pants down — despite 2011’s Contagion conveniently giving us a very good idea of what a global pandemic out of China might look like.There have been predictions aplenty that we should be in a recession right now. We’re not.So, while it’s understandable for one to wonder what the year may have in store, any prediction comes with a grain of salt.

American Idol. While he didn’t win the reality series, it turned him into a household name and gave him a career. Soon, in an upcoming book, the singer will tell his full story for the first time in an upcoming book.According to The Hollywood Reporter, Archuleta has signed a deal to write his memoir.

As he frolicked in the snow, Mendes was wearing nothing more than black underwear. His bare chest and toned abs were on full display. Initially, the cold didn’t seem to bother him.you can take the boy outta Canada pic.twitter.com/oxZLr8rzad— Shawn Mendes (@ShawnMendes) January 7, 2024In a second video, Mendes appears to take his time outside in the freezing temperatures.

The News Tribune, a Tacoma-based newspaper.During their visit to New Orleans, Carter and Blagovich met with fellow entrepreneurs Jeff Hinson and Breanne Kostyk, owners of New Orleans-based Flour Moon Bagels.“Just after they landed, they sent us a message about how charming our city is,” Hinson told Nola.com. “You could hear the excitement they had about discovering this town, which makes it even more saddening.

more than 2800 books from school, including the American Heritage Children’s Dictionary, Webster’s Dictionary for Students, and Merriam-Webster’s Elementary Dictionary, and placed them into storage, reports Popular Information.The justification for the dictionary removals is that certain definitions or entries contained in the texts may violate “Don’t Say Gay,” the state’s “parental rights” law that prohibits students in grades K-12 from being exposed to LGBTQ-related content and “age-inappropriate” material. Under the law, residents of any county are empowered to demand the removal of any library book that “depicts or describes sexual conduct,” as defined under Florida law, regardless of whether or not the book is pornographic.Rather than consider individual complaints, the Escambia County School Board adopted an emergency rule last June that required the district’s librarians to review all library books and remove any works believed to contain such content.Because most dictionaries contain in-depth definitions of sex and sexual anatomy and define LGBTQ terms like “gay” and “lesbian,” they were flagged for removal.To purge the flagged books, school libraries in Escambia County were closed at the start of the school year.

Politico.Like Macron, Attal was aligned with the center-left Socialist Party before joining the more centrist Renaissance Party. Similarly, his politics often shift on various issues, as he’ll take the more conservative approach on some while staking out a more liberal position on others, reports CNN.

Despite some positive electoral victories as 2023 ended, last year was largely a rough one for members of the LGBTQ community, who found themselves targeted by various pieces of legislation, executive orders, and a resurgent right-wing political movement opposed to what it sees as “woke” ideas or values.It was also the year that the nation’s top LGBTQ advocacy group, the Human Rights Campaign, declared a national state of emergency, citing efforts to roll back LGBTQ rights or restrict LGBTQ visibility and various freedoms, with Republican-led state legislatures serving as the primary aggressors.The segment of the LGBTQ spectrum most under fire in 2023 was the transgender community, whose members saw legislation targeting them pushed into law, despite the intense lobbying of lawmakers and often over the advice of medical professionals and parents of transgender children. Even past battles once thought to have been won were reignited, as conservatives on Capitol Hill pledged to revive the now-defunct Trump-era ban prohibiting trans individuals from serving in the Armed Forces.

Florida Trident, the woman arranged to have another sexual encounter with the Zieglers on Oct. 2, but backed out after learning Bridget Ziegler had another engagement.The woman alleges that Christian Ziegler showed up at her residence, uninvited, bent her over a piece of furniture, and raped her.Ziegler, who has not been charged with a crime, has denied the rape allegations, insisting that the encounter was consensual. He reportedly told police he had recorded video of the encounter that proves his side of the story.Police obtained that video, as well as a second video, the latter of which allegedly depicted Bridget Ziegler engaged in sex with another woman, as part of their investigation.

The New York Times. “I think that if we find these kinds of people in Burundi, it is better to take them to a stadium and stone them.

Wicked movies, running her cosmetics business, and falling in love after her divorce. Somehow, in the middle of all that, she’s also found the time to write and record a new album. After weeks of teasing and hinting that something was coming, the pop superstar has officially announced her comeback single – and it’s set to arrive in just a few days.The Grammy winner took to social media to announce “Yes, And?,” posting the song’s cover to her Instagram, along with the track’s release date of Friday, January 12.

In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Manilow opened up about those days, clearing up some misconceptions about his time in the baths.“What do you think, they were fucking in front of us?” the singer asked the interviewer, perhaps joking. He went on to say that those in attendance were “just an audience. A great audience, too.”Why did Manilow decide to perform in such a sexualized venue? It’s simple – like so many other musicians trying to make it, he needed the money.

Meduza. However, reporting a homophobic attack to authorities, even as the victim, could be problematic in Russia, given the recent Supreme Court ruling that declared the international LGBTQ movement to be an “extremist” organization.Under Russian law, anyone who admits to being part of an extremist organization can be punished with up to 12 years in prison.According to RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty’s Russian Service, the Ministry of Justice for the Stavropol Territory recently responded to an inquiry about coming out by saying the act will be equated to “participation in the international extremist LGBT community” — showing how Russian authorities could potentially choose to prosecute LGBTQ people, even victims of hate-motivated crimes.

The Grammy winner shared both the song’s title and cover image on Monday, with the visual being quite striking. The artwork sees Lil Nas X impersonating Jesus Christ as he’s being crucified. He lies on the cross, covered in nothing but a small yellow cloth.

She captioned the picture, “ALL LOVE. This was hands down my favorite moment of 2023 ❤️. The Love.

Barbie soundtrack, which was met with widespread acclaim from fans and critics alike. As she continues to promote the tune and prepares for what may be a very exciting award season, the superstar is also hard at work on her next chapter.In an interview with Mr. Porter, Eilish’s brother Finneas shared some good news for fans of the Grammy and Oscar winner.

Seattle Times. Members of the LGBTQ community have said that Denny Blaine Park has been a safe haven for them for decades.Hundreds of people packed a public meeting last month, filling Seattle’s MLK FAME Community Center beyond capacity, with no attendees speaking in support of the plan.

Karsten Sollors all but grew up in the air.“My mother was a flight attendant, so I’ve been traveling since I was in her stomach,” as he puts it. Because of that, he didn’t think twice about effectively giving up his weekends to become a professional DJ, traveling to a different city, if not two, every weekend.“A lot of people, when I tell them my schedule, they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, how do you do that? That’s got to be so difficult,’” he says.

In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Manilow opened up about those days, making sure to clear up some misconceptions up about his time in the baths. “What do you think, they were fucking in front of us?” the singer asked the interviewer, perhaps joking. He went on to say that those in attendance were, “just an audience.

$100,000 in damages after a jury decided that the men were entitled to $50,000 each for being denied a marriage license by Davis after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned state-level bans on same-sex nuptials across the nation in mid-2015.Ermold and Moore sued Davis after she declined to issue the couple a marriage license three separate times, and refused to permit her deputies to issue a license bearing her official name or title.She argued that allowing the license to be issued would violate “God’s definition of marriage” and her personal beliefs opposing homosexuality as an Apostolic Christian.During the fall of 2015, Bunning sentenced Davis to five days in jail for contempt of court for refusing to allow marriage licenses to be issued — not only to Ermold and Moore, but to several other couples, gay and straight — lest she be accused of discriminating against same-sex couples.Following her release, she agreed not to block her deputy clerks from issuing licenses that had been edited to remove her name and title — although both she and her deputy raised concerns about the validity of such licenses.In a tacit show of support for Davis, Kentucky lawmakers later passed a law to change rules that removed county clerks’ names from marriage licenses.

Human Rights Watch, Lumumba had been sexually assaulted, hit on the head with a blunt object, and stabbed in the chest, face, neck, and eyes.From the start of the investigation into Lumumba’s murder, their family was critical of police response, accusing investigators of dragging their feet due to anti-LGBTQ animus.Lumumba’s cousin, Brenda Akinyi, told Human Rights Watch that the family began investigating the murder themselves after police failed to update the family on case developments. Additionally, after police claimed to have searched the crime scene, family members found a knife and razor blade in Lumumba’s bedroom.