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French Open Honors Billie Jean King

Tennis legend & LGBTQ icon Billie Jean King received the Legion of Honor France’s highest civilian honor at the French Open. King who was in attendance received the award in recognition of her contributions to women’s sports, gender equality & the rights of LGBTQ people in athletics. She accepted the award at the presidential Elysee Palace where French President Emmanuel Macron was in attendance. King then returned to the main clay court at the Paris tennis complex that hosts the French Open for a ceremony celebrating the 50th anniversary of winning the 1972 tournament title. However there was a bit of controversy at the tournament which King addressed claiming that women tennis players were treated as ‘second-class citizens’ in the scheduling at the 2022 French Open. King stated, "You want to make everyone feel important. They should have the same amount of women's matches as they do men's. Real easy. If they keep treating us like second-class citizens we will stay second-class citizens. We should have more matches, but I think Amelie will take care of that next year. Knowing her, she's a winner." Referring to two-time Grand Slam winner Amelie Mauresmo who is the current tournament director at the French Open & had to apologize for describing women’s matches as ‘less appealing’ than men’s. King has continued to be a champion of women especially transgender women. In 2020 King was one of 174 other female athletes who signed an amicus brief in support of transgender girls & women playing sports as their gender identity. Remembering King’s famous quote, “No one changes the world who isn’t obsessed.”
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National LGBTQ Wall Of Honor 2022

The National LGBTQ Task Force & the International Imperial Courts of the U.S.A., Canada & Mexico will once again come together to honor LGBTQ pioneers, trailblazers & heroes at the National LGBTQ Wall of Honor at the historic Stonewall Inn on June 23rd. The 2022 honorees are James Hormel, a philanthropist & the first openly LGBTQ person to represent the United States as an ambassador, Urvashi Vaid pioneering LGBTQ leader, attorney & author, Stephen Sondheim iconic composer & lyricist, Tyler Clementi who’s suicide moved his family to create the Tyler Clementi Foundation dedicated to creating a safe environment for all individuals to thrive & lesbian reporter & feminist Dolores Alexander. Murray Ramirez, Americas for the International Imperial Courts stated, Our goal with the Wall of Honor wall is to ensure the inductees are remembered. There are great LGBTQ individuals who have contributed to our movement, our culture & our world. We should never forget them & it is our responsibility to create a space to honor their lives & their legacies. My hope is that anyone who see the wall & does not know who these individuals are take the time to learn about the pioneers and icons on whose shoulders we stand.” Kierra Johnson, Executive Director of the National LGBTQ Task Force concluded “The Task Force is humbled & moved to partner with the Imperial Court & recognize the extraordinary contributions of this year’s inductees, including our own Urvashi Vaid, whose brilliance shaped our organization & the queer movement. As we fight back against attempts to erase the contributions of LGBTQ people in schools & elsewhere, a partnership like this can help ensure the world never forgets the contributions of these individuals.” For More Info…
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LGBTQ Leaders Protecting Abortions

 

The National Center for Lesbian Rights released an open letter signed by 91 organizations representing our LGBTQ+ community voicing their strong support for the right to abortion. Joining the outrage & alarm being felt across our nation at the prospect that the U.S. Supreme Court may betray its role as the guardian of civil liberties & reverse Roe v. Wade. The letter calls on policymakers at all levels & in all branches of government to do everything in their power to protect access to abortion care. Julianna S. Gonen, NCLR Federal Policy Director stated, “The LGBTQI+ community stands shoulder to shoulder with advocates in the reproductive health, rights & justice movements & all who cherish true liberty, in condemning this impending retrenchment around our fundamental rights. It is imperative that those with the privilege of holding public office use all tools available to them – legislative, administrative, financial & other – to preserve & expand access to abortion care whenever & wherever possible. Anyone who cares about personal freedom & gender equality should be rising up in opposition to what the United States Supreme Court seems poised to do: rule that our Constitution’s guarantee of liberty is a hollow promise. If the Court overrules Roe v. Wade & Planned Parenthood v. Casey, allowing states to outlaw abortion, the fundamental right to bodily autonomy & the ability to determine one’s own destiny will vary wildly depending on the state in which someone lives. While this patchwork has been present to some degree in the past, it will grow far worse as some states rush to pass new laws to make abortion inaccessible or outright illegal.” For More Info…
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Provincetown Int'l Film Festival (AUDIO)

This week I talked with Anne Hubbell, Executive Director of the Provincetown International Film Festival that runs in person from June 15th to June 19th in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Celebrating its 24th year the opening night film will be Sophie Hyde’s “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande” starring Emma Thompson & Daryl McCormack. The 2022 “Filmmaker on the Edge” is Academy Award nominated filmmaker Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name). Guadagnino will be in attendance to accept the award in conversation with resident artist John Waters on Sunday June 19th. Actress Dale Dickey will receive the festival’s Excellence in Acting Award & will accept the award on Sunday June 19th in conversation with journalist & novelist Thelma Adams at Provincetown Town Hall. The recipients of this year’s “Next Wave Award” will be presented to Jenny Slate & Bowen Yang on June 16th. Yang will also be in attendance to support his film “Fire Island” which is playing at the festival. This year’s fest will also welcome past honorees Parker Posey & John Cameron Mitchell’s return to PIFF. Posey will be presenting Christopher Guest’s timeless classic 1996 mockumentary comedy “Waiting For Guffman” which will screen free to the public on MacMillan Pier on June 17th. Cameron Mitchell will be presenting the New 4K Criterion Collection digital restoration of “Shortbus” at Town Hall on June 18th. There will also be lots of fabulous special events & premiers. I talked to Anne about what she hopes to accomplish at PIFF this year & as an ally her spin on our LGBTQ issues. LISTEN  
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Port Authority & LGBTQ Settlement

The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey has settled a lawsuit filed in 2017 for their discriminatory practice of using plainclothes officers to arrest gay, bisexual & gender nonconforming people & falsely accusing them of public lewdness & exposure in the Port Authority Bus Terminal men’s restrooms. In the case of Holden et al. v. The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey et al the parties reached the settlement to avoid a trial. The settlement also requires the PAPD to end their discriminatory practices. Plaintiff Miguel Mejia stated, “I’m proud of the difference we’ve made by standing up against the PAPD’s bias-based policing. As a commuter who passes through Port Authority facilities on a daily basis, I will feel safer knowing that the reforms we fought for have been put in place, making it so that people like me aren’t arrested just because of who we are or what we look like.” Plaintiff Cornell Holden added, “No one should have to go through what I went through & I hope that the PAPD will change as a result of this lawsuit & settlement. Now that the case is settled, I’m eager to put it behind me & focus on growing my cake-baking business.” The plaintiffs were represented by the Legal Aid Society & Winston & Strawn LLP. Seth E. Spitzer Winston & Strawn Partner concluded, “We are elated for our clients & the public at large that the PAPD has finally embraced reforms that will bring an end to these discriminatory practices. This settlement caps many years of tireless litigation that has achieved a just outcome for which we simply should not have had to fight so hard.”
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Utah Trans Girls Sports Ban Challenged

Two Utah families have filed a legal challenge in Utah state court against House Bill 11 which prohibits transgender girls from competing in school sports. The law was enacted by the legislature over Gov. Spencer Cox’s veto & singles out transgender girls from participating in girls’ sports. It bars every transgender girl from competing on a girls’ team regardless of her medical care or individual circumstances. The plaintiffs are represented by the ACLU of Utah, the National Center for Lesbian Rights & the firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Jenny Roe a 16-year-old junior in high school who wants to play volleyball her senior year stated, “My last season playing volleyball was one of the best times of my life. I loved my teammates, felt part of something bigger than myself & finally had a way to socialize with friends after being cooped up during the pandemic. This law devastated me. I just want to play on a team like any other kid.” Jenny’s mother, Debbie Roe added, “It feels like an attack on our family. Parents want their kids to be happy & to be surrounded by people who love & nurture them. This law does the opposite—it tells my daughter that she doesn’t belong & that she is unworthy of having the same opportunities as other students at her school.” Justice Christine Durham, former Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court & senior of counsel at Wilson Sonsini concluded, "This law bans transgender girls from competing with other girls in every sport, at every grade level & regardless of each girl's individual circumstances. It cannot survive constitutional scrutiny & it endangers transgender children." For More Info…
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LGBTQ Work Pride Virtual Conference

Work Pride 2022 returns on June 20th with an action-packed five-day global conference to promote LGBTQ inclusion & equality at work for all presented by myGwork via Zoom. The conference will bring experts from around the world with 70 events spread across five days focusing on allyship, networks, careers, business & wellbeing in both English & Spanish for the third consecutive year. Last year’s event attracted over 20,000 participants from around the world wanting to learn more about workplace inclusion & inclusive employers. Adrien (CMO) & Pierre Gaubert (CEO) myGwork Co-founders stated, “We’re delighted to return with an action-packed WorkPride this year. Our diverse agenda provides a brilliant opportunity for LGBTQ+ professionals, allies & inclusive employers to network, share best practice & learn strategies that will help to create inclusive workspaces for all. It’s a must-attend event for every leader & manager who wants to learn more about the tremendous role that LGBTQ+ professionals play across all industries & how to be a better ally to promote much-needed inclusion & ultimately retain this valuable & vibrant talent. It’s also an ideal event for LGBTQ+ graduates & professionals looking for their next role to find out more about opportunities at inclusive companies attending the event.” This must-attend five-day event is completely free for professionals, graduates, inclusive employers, allies & anyone who believes in workplace equality. WorkPride 2022 provides a unique opportunity to share best practice & mingle with thousands of like-minded – yet diverse – people across the globe on LGBTQ+ inclusion matters. Additionally myGwork’s virtual WorkPride conference includes diverse & ethnicity-specific panels to provide an opportunity to deep dive into different intersectional LGBTQ+ community needs & issues, covering disability, generational/age, race/culture (Latinx, South Asian, Black, etc) & more. For Info & Registration…
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