About Me

Creating LGBTQ Potato Head Families

Hasbro is introducing its new gender-neutral “Potato Head” toy dropping the “Mr.” from its name after almost 70 years. Starting this fall the gender-neutral Potato Head toy will be available as both a standalone toy & in boxed sets that allow children to create their own Potato Head families. Though Hasbro is officially renaming the Mr. Potato Head brand to Potato Head to better reflect the full line be rest assured the iconic Mr. & Mrs. Potato Head characters aren’t going anywhere & will remain Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head. Rich Ferraro, GLAAD’s Chief Communications Officer stated, “Hasbro’s decision to introduce Potato Head as a gender-neutral toy is the latest move in a larger movement towards greater diversity & inclusion in toys & media aimed at kids. By offering a toy that exists outside of the binary of male & female, Hasbro is helping kids to simply see toys as toys, which encourages them to be their authentic selves outside of the pressures of traditional gender norms.” The new Create Your Own Potato Head Family is a celebration of the many faces of families allowing kids to imagine & create their own Potato Head family with 2 large potato bodies, 1 small potato body & 42 accessories. The possibilities to create your own families are endless with mixing & mashing all the parts & pieces. Create Your Own Potato Head Family is compatible with most standard Potato Head offerings & is a great addition to your Potato Head collection for kids ages 2 & up. Potato Head has provided endless creative possibilities to preschoolers for almost 70 years & will continue to do so with the new Create Your Own Potato Head Family.
No comments:

Social Media Safety For LGBTQ People

GLAAD has announced plans for its newest initiative the GLAAD Social Media Safety Index. The report will rate social media platforms on how safe they are for LGBTQ users & provide recommendations for policy & product updates. The inaugural Index will launch in Spring 2021 & is supported by Craig Newmark Philanthropies & the Gill Foundation. The inaugural Social Media Safety Index an upcoming report will rate social media platforms on LGBTQ safety & kick-off broader advocacy efforts to hold social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter & YouTube accountable on LGBTQ content, advertising & policy. Tech leaders including Kara Swisher, Maria Ressa, & Liz Fong-Jones are advising on the Index. Sarah Kate Ellis GLAAD President & CEO stated, “Social media is a lifeline for LGBTQ people, but too often we face real harm that goes unchecked by the platforms. LGBTQ policies & product updates have long been low on priority lists, even as the tech industry is finally waking up to the issues that marginalized communities face on their platforms. Drawing on GLAAD’s proven track record of leveraging similar reports & programs to advance LGBTQ inclusion in Hollywood, our Social Media Safety Index will hold social media platforms accountable & provide a roadmap for creating safer & more inclusive online spaces.” The Social Media Safety Index will present a distillation of thought leadership in the field gleaned from conversations with leading tech experts. GLAAD has a long history of advocating for LGBTQ safety & inclusion across social media having consulted directly with social media platforms on some of the most significant policy & product updates. Plans for a launch panel event will be announced in coming weeks. For More Info... 

 

No comments:

LGBTQ Leaders On Equality Act Passage

With the U.S. House of Representatives again passing the Equality Act (H.R.5) in a vote of 224-206 LGBTQ Leaders applaud the importance of its protections for our LGBTQ community, women, people of faith, people of color, immigrants & people with disabilities. Sarah Kate Ellis GLAAD President & CEO stated, “The House passage of The Equality Act is a victory for all Americans & for our country’s core values of equal treatment under law. This landmark civil rights law secures those protections for every LGBTQ person, to live without fear of discrimination… It is time to move together to ensure LGBTQ people have the chance to belong, to participate & to succeed in all areas of American life.” Winnie Stachelberg, Center for American Progress added, “The ongoing pandemic has exposed & exacerbated the inequities that LGBTQ Americans have endured for decades. The continued absence of federal protections threatens to forestall economic recovery & delay the rollout of vaccines for millions of LGBTQ Americans who defer or altogether avoid medical care for fear of discrimination. The Senate must send the bill to President Biden’s desk for his signature as soon as possible.” Kierra P. Johnson National LGBTQ Task Force Executive Director National LGBTQ Task Force concluded, “We applaud the House vote on the Equality Act & we now look to the Senate & begin in earnest what should be a bipartisan effort to protect LGBTQ people. This is what we know: LGBTQ people in 29 states are not protected by anti-discrimination laws. This patchwork of equality is indefensible - the Equality Act must be passed by the Senate so all LGBTQ Americans will be protected from discrimination.” Recently I talked to Kierra Johnson about The Task Force's upcoming virtual events & her spin on our LGBTQ issues. LISTEN 
No comments:

Faith Leaders Support The Equality Act

With the U.S. House of Representatives about to vote on the Equality Act national religious leaders are speaking out in support of LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections. The Center for American Progress held a virtual conference on behalf of the Faith for Equality coalition, LGBTQ & faith leaders to discuss the importance of passing this crucial civil rights legislation. More than 100 faith groups have endorsed the Equality Act which would provide consistent & explicit nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ Americans including employment, housing, credit, education, public spaces & services, federally funded programs & jury service. Rabbi Jared Saks, of Congregation Bet Ha’am in South Portland, Maine stated, “The most central theme throughout Jewish scripture is equality—fair treatment of those who are at the greatest risk. In 29 states, we can still be evicted from our homes, thrown out of restaurants & denied loans, among other things, for who we are & who we love. For too long, we have lived without the critical protections that the Equality Act will provide—protections that should be secured for each one of us, regardless of where we live in this nation. The current patchwork of protections is insufficient.” Scott Simpson, Public Advocacy Director at Muslim Advocates concluded, “The scourge of discrimination against American Muslims of all backgrounds is happening nationwide. The scourge can be summed up in three words: ‘No Muslims allowed.’ … Muslims & people perceived to be Muslim are often discriminated against in public accommodations that will be newly covered by the Equality Act—airlines, taxis & ride shares, health care providers, food banks, shelters, gyms & rec centers & so many places where American Muslims just want to go about their day-to-day business free from discrimination.”
No comments:

LGBTQ Black History Virtual Events

Celebrating Black History Month & kicking off how our LGBTQ community is moving forward in these challenging times there are two virtual events this week to check out. The first event is entitled Honoring the Past, Making History Today LGBTQ Black History Month: Honor, Celebrate & Dream is on Thursday, February 25th at 7P EST/ 4P PST via Zoom. Richard A. Fowler, American Storyteller, Richard Media Company Cofounder & Fox News Contributor is moderating the event with panelists including Imani Rupert-Gordon, NCLR Executive Director, Dominique Morgan, Black & Pink Executive Director, David Johns, National Black Justice Coalition Executive Director & Kierra Johnson, National LGBTQ Task Force Executive Director This event is free & open to the public but you must register: To Register… The second event is entitled The State Of The LGBTQ Union takes place on Friday February 26th at 4P EST/ 1P PST also via Zoom. This discussion is co-presented by GLAD, the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition & the National LGBTQ Task Force & will cover some of the big issues our LGBTQ community faces. This event will address the intersecting local, state & national issues concerning to our communities & the opportunities we have to move forward toward equality & justice. Panelists will include Mary L. Bonauto GLAD Civil Rights Project Director, Tre’Andre Valentine Executive Director of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition & Kierra Johnson, National LGBTQ Task Force Executive Director. The event will be moderated by Jason Wu GLAD’s Executive Director. This event is also free & open to the public but you must register. To Register… Recently I talked to Kierra Johnson, National LGBTQ Task Force Executive Director in this exclusive audio interview about what she hopes to accomplish at The Task Force & her spin on our LGBTQ issues. LISTEN 
No comments:

LGBTQ TV Award Show Virtual Event

Free Queer TV network Revry has partnered with Q.Digital & Lexus for the first-ever television broadcast of Q.Digital’s Queerties, the annual award show produced by entertainment site Queerty celebrating the best in LGBTQ culture & media. The awards ceremony will stream live Wednesday February 24th at 6P PST / 9P EST on Revry including Revry’s third-party channels on Samsung TV Plus, Roku Channels, Xumo, Stirr, Apple TV as well as on Queerty’s homepage, Facebook & YouTube pages. Damian Pelliccione Revry CEO & Co Founder stated, “We couldn’t be more excited to broadcast the Queerties this year. To showcase such incredible, diverse queer talent across all our channels, over 250 million households & devices will allow everyone to tune-in & enjoy the fantastic show Q.Digital produces!” The show will be hosted by RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 12 Miss Congeniality Heidi N. Closet & Queerty Editor-in-Chief Dan Tracer & include an exciting musical performance by Bright Light Bright Light. This year Q.Digital & Lexus will present Angelica Ross with the Groundbreaker Award & Billy Eichner will receive the MVP Award. Heidi N. Closet added, “I’ve been voting for the Queerties as a fan for years, so it’s very exciting to not only be a nominee this year but the host of the show! I’m honored to help celebrate so many amazing & diverse members of our community & the incredible work they put out during such a challenging year.” The event will dawn a virtual red carpet with celebrity appearances by Nicco Annan, James Bland, Isis King, Jai Rodriguez, Cameron Esposito, Shangela, Jinkx Monsoon, BenDeLaCreme, Willam, Alaska, HBO’s Veneno star Isabel Torres, Netflix’s The Prom star Jo Ellen Pellman & many more. For More Info...

Hear Audio Chats w/ LGBTQ Leaders @OUTTAKE VOICES™
No comments:

Mayor Lori Lightfoot LPAC Virtual Event


Celebrating Black History Month, LPAC (Lesbian Political Action Committee) is hosting their first virtual event of 2021 with Mayor Lori Lightfoot of Chicago on Tuesday February 23rd from 7:30P to 8:30P EST via Zoom. Mayor Lightfoot will talk about her trailblazing role as the first LGBTQ person & first Black woman elected to lead Chicago & the first Black woman elected to serve as mayor of one of America’s ten largest cities. In addition to Mayor Lori Lightfoot LPAC’s newest endorsees will be joining the conversation including Darden J. Rice, Elisa Crespo, Crystal Hudson, Kristin Richardson Jordan & LaWana Slack-Mayfield who will talk about the importance of local politics & the 2021 election cycle. LPAC is the only organization whose mission is to build the political power of LGBTQ women. LPAC’s focus is on electing candidates particularly LGBTQ women who share our values: LGBTQ & women’s equality, women’s health & social justice while helping coalesce LGBTQ women as a concrete & powerful political demographic. LPAC was founded in 2012 by a group of LGBTQ women seeking to create a place & voice at the power table for our community. They do this by endorsing & investing in candidates directly & supporting them through independent expenditure campaigns. They’ve raised more than $6.3 million & endorsed more than 150 candidates. The LPAC Mayor Lori Lightfoot & 2021 Election Kickoff virtual event on Tuesday February 23rd from 7:30 to 8:30P EST & is sponsored by Laura Ricketts & hosted by Alix Ritchie. Tickets begin at $25. For More Info & Tix…

Hear Audio Chats w/ LGBTQ Leaders @OUTTAKE VOICES™
No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

Featured Post

Creating LGBTQ Potato Head Families

Hasbro is introducing its new gender-neutral “Potato Head” toy dropping the “Mr.” from its name after almost 70 years. Starting this fall t...

Popular Posts