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Eminem’s Child Published by BANG Showbiz English Eminem’s adopted child has come out as non-binary. The ‘Real Slim Shady’ hitmaker’s 19 year old has changed their name from Whitney to Stevie Laine and though the rapper – who adopted the teenager in 2005 when he reconciled with their biological mother, his ex-wife, Kim Scott – has yet to comment on the news, other members of the family have shown their support. In one post, they wrote out their pronouns, telling fans:”call me Stevie (they/she/he)” The social media post was liked by Stevie’s sister Hailie, who is Eminem and Kim’s biological child. Stevie also shared a video on TikTok of their transformation over the years, including recently cropping their hair short, along with the words: “Watch me become more comfortable with myself.” They added: “Forever growing and changing.” Stevie – who has wiped all old Instagram posts from their account since coming out – used hashtags including #genderfluid #bi and #nonbinary in several posts. The teenager’s new name was mentioned in an obituary for their grandmother Kathleen Sluck last month. It stated: “Kathleen was a exceptional mom to her two daughters; Kim and Dawn; and was overjoyed to become a grandmother to her grandchildren; Alaina, Adam, Hailie, Stevie, P.J., and Parker.” Stevie’s biological dad, Eric Hartter, died last year aged 40 after reportedly battling drug addiction. As well as Stevie and Hailie, 25, Eminem also has adopted daughter Alaina, whose mother was Kim’s late twin sister Dawn, who died from an overdose in 2016. A day after Kathy’s funeral, Kim was taken to hospital following a reported suicide attempt. Police attended her home in Michigan on 30 July after receiving reports of a suicidal person and allegedly found the 46 year old to be “combative” and had to be restrained. She was found with cuts on the back of her leg and was transported to hospital for medical and psychological evaluation before returning home to recover. Eminem Child Comes Out Previously on Towleroad Sinéad O’Connor’s open letter to Prince Harry August 19, 2021 Read More Police surround man with possible explosives near U.S. Capitol August 19, 2021 Read More Possible HIV Treatment OK’d To expand Phase 1 Human Trials After Stopping HIV in Lab; August 18, 2021 Read More Britney Spears Topless Photos Are Being Posted By the Singer Herself. She Says It’s Strong, Not Sleazy and Reveals Rationale August 18, 2021 Read More Buttigieg Baby On Board: Pete and Chasten ‘Overjoyed….Have Wanted to Grow Our Family’; Announce First Child August 17, 2021 Read More Andy Cohen Dates: Now, An Endgame “Are You Going To Be a Good Stepfather?’; Curious How His Exes Would Score Him… August 17, 2021 Read More View the full article

Published by Reuters KABUL (Reuters) -Taliban insurgents were returning to power in Kabul on Monday after a military advance across Afghanistan as U.S-led forces departed, and Western nations stepped up efforts to evacuate their citizens from the capital. President Ashraf Ghani fled the country on Sunday as the Islamist militants entered the city, saying he wanted to avoid bloodshed. A Taliban spokesman said the war is over and the Afghan people will soon learn what form the new regime will take. In Washington, opponents of President Joe Biden’s decision to end America’s longest war, launched after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, said the chaos was caused by a failure of leadership as more U.S. troops were deployed to help rescue U.S. civilians. Overnight, the focus was Kabul airport, where hundreds of desperate Afghans seeking to flee the country were waiting for flights, some dragging luggage across runways in the dark. A source at the airport said some scuffles broke out among people unable to get a place as departures were halted. Local television 1TV reported that multiple explosions were heard in the capital after dark, but the city was largely quiet during the day on Sunday. Aid group Emergency said 80 wounded people had been brought to its hospital in Kabul, which was at capacity, and that it was only admitting people with life-threatening injuries. It was not yet clear where Ghani was headed or how exactly power would be transferred following the Taliban’s lightning sweep https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/talibans-rapid-advance-across-afghanistan-2021-08-10 across Afghanistan. The spokesman for the Taliban’s political office told Al Jazeera television that the group wants good relations with the international community. Al Jazeera earlier showed footage of what it said were Taliban commanders in the presidential palace with dozens of armed fighters. In a Facebook post, Ghani said he had left the country to avoid clashes with the Taliban that would endanger millions of residents of Kabul. He did not say where he was. Some local social media users in Kabul branded Ghani a coward for leaving them in chaos. American diplomats were flown by helicopter to the airport from their embassy in the fortified Wazir Akbar Khan district as Afghan forces https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/taliban-surge-exposes-failure-us-efforts-build-afghan-army-2021-08-15, trained for years and equipped by the United States and others at a cost of billions of dollars, melted away. SHARIA Many Afghans fear the Taliban will return to past harsh practices in their imposition of sharia, or Islamic religious law. During their 1996-2001 rule, women could not work and punishments such as stoning, whipping and hanging were administered. The militants sought to project a more moderate face https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/taliban-seek-present-moderate-face-they-take-control-afghanistan-2021-08-15, promising to respect women’s rights and protect both foreigners and Afghans. The Pentagon authorized another 1,000 troops to help evacuate U.S. citizens and Afghans who worked for them, a U.S. official said. A senior U.S. defense official told Reuters on Sunday evening in Washington that about 500 people, mostly Americans, had so far been evacuated, and that the number would rise to 5,000 a day when all planned U.S. forces are in Kabul. European nations, including France, Germany and the Netherlands, also said they were working to get citizens as well as some Afghan employees out of the country. Russia said it saw no need to evacuate its embassy for the time being. Turkey said its embassy would continue operations. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged the Taliban and all other parties to exercise the utmost restraint, and expressed particular concern about the future of women and girls in Afghanistan. AMERICAN EVACUATION Asked if images of helicopters ferrying personnel were evocative of the United States’ departure from Vietnam in 1975, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told ABC News: “Let’s take a step back. This is manifestly not Saigon.” Biden has faced rising domestic criticism after sticking to a plan, initiated by his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump, to end the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan by Aug. 31. In a statement on Sunday, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell blamed Biden for what he called a “shameful failure of American leadership”. “Terrorists and major competitors like China are watching the embarrassment of a superpower laid low,” McConnell said. Also on Sunday, the Taliban captured the eastern city of Jalalabad without a fight, giving them control of one of the main highways into landlocked Afghanistan. They also took the nearby Torkham border post with Pakistan, leaving Kabul airport the only way out of Afghanistan still in government hands. A video clip distributed by the Taliban showed people cheering and shouting: “Allahu Akbar” – God is greatest – as a convoy of pickup trucks entered Jalalabad with fighters brandishing machine guns and the white Taliban flag. (Reporting by Kabul and Washington bureaus; Writing by Andrew Cawthorne, Philippa Fletcher and Daniel Wallis; Editing by Frances Kerry, Timothy Heritage and Peter Cooney) View the full article

Published by Reuters BUCHAREST (Reuters) – Thousands of people joined an LGBTQ pride march in Bucharest on Saturday for the first time since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, ahead of planned legislation that would chip away at minority rights. Socially conservative Romania, which decriminalised homosexuality in 2001, still bars marriage and civil partnerships for same-sex couples. Lawmakers from two different parties – the junior ruling coalition ethnic Hungarian party UDMR and the opposition ultra-nationalist Alliance for Uniting Romanians (AUR) – said they plan to introduce legislation to ban so-called gay propaganda in schools when parliament reconvenes in September. An estimated 8,000 people joined the march on Saturday, dancing and waving rainbow flags. Riot police fined the organisers for exceeding the number of participants allowed at civic protests. The organisers will challenge the fine. “We have a long way to go as a country until we come to accept everyone,” said Daria, 16, at her second pride parade. (Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by David Holmes) View the full article

Lizzo Rumors and recent tunes and trailers: the latest lil Nas X, Billie Ellish, Bruno Mars, Megan Thee Stallion, Beyonce and JAY Z, Tiesto and Karol G, Elton and Dua Lipa get animated. Some top gay teases and trailers for Tv and movies. The Other Two; The White Lotus; American Crime Story Clinton; [This post contains video, click to play] Of all the songs of the summer, Is Rumors from Lizzo featuring Cardi B the all true Big Gay Song of the Really Strange and somewhat F’d Up Summer? Lizzo Rumors Cardi B and Lizzo Rumors All True. A Late Summer Bop Fantasia And 10 More Recently Dropped Trailers and Tunes: Watch Now August 14, 2021 Read More Moderna HIV Vaccine Phase 1 Human Trials to Start as Early as Next Week. Hope to Build on mRNA Learnings August 13, 2021 Read More Cook at Applebee’s Complaint When Told to Ignore A Toxic Mix of Workplace Slurs and Confederate Paraphernalia Spurs Federal Lawsuit August 13, 2021 Read More ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars’ Season 6 Serves Up Hot Tots Casserole August 13, 2021 Read More Caitlyn Jenner California Homeless Visit in Venice Beach: Will Talk “About” but not “To” the Unhoused at Political Launch August 13, 2021 Read More Kabul evacuations — echoes of US exit from Saigon? August 13, 2021 Read More View the full article

Minnesota AIDS ProjectHuman Trials To Start With 56 participants. The Moderna HIV vaccine is set to enter human trials as early as next week, marking a monumental step in the treatment of one of the most devastating health crises worldwide. According to the National Institutes of Health’s clinical trials registry, the biotech company is prepping to test its mRNA-1644 and mRNA-1644v2-Core vaccines after both passed phase one testing earlier this year. The study will divide its 56 participants, all of which have not previously tested positive for HIV, into four groups that will be administered both or either vaccine in various combinations. Building the vaccine from an mRNA foundation differs from previous vaccine constructions and functionality, essentially providing instructions for cells to build immune responses through specific protein production. This process teaches the body how to defend itself on the cellular level rather than having human immune systems learn through combatting weakened forms of a virus. Earlier this year on Towleroad: HIV vaccine: Why Are We Incapable of Making a Shot for AIDS 37-years Later, When We Had Several for COVID-19 In a Few Months? Moderna HIV Vaccine Benefits From Covid mRNA Experience mRNA vaccines also respond better to variants of a virus – a fact that is vital and addressing HIV mutations that have emerged since the virus surfaced 40 years ago. “The mRNA platform makes it easy to develop vaccines against variants because it just requires an update to the coding sequences in the mRNA that code for the variant,” Dr. Rajesh Ghandi, HIV Medicine Association chair, told Verywell. Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine, which is built of an mRNA base, has been a success in showing the aptitude of mRNA vaccines in building up immuno-response to the base strain of Covid-19 and its more dangerous variants. The trial is estimated to start on Aug. 19, 2021, though the timetable could alter depending on response to Moderna’s call for volunteers, though it is expected to begin before the end of the year. It is scheduled to wrap and deliver findings by May 1, 2023. 2021 has been a landmark year in the development of HIV vaccines. As Moderna prepares its human trials in the U.S., the University of Oxford launched trials of its HIVconsvX vaccine in Europe and multiple African nations, including Kenya and Tanzania, are testing the HIVconsvX vaccine as well. Moderna HIV: Previously on Towleroad Moderna HIV Vaccine Phase 1 Human Trials to Start as Early as Next Week. Hope to Build on mRNA Learnings Brian Bell August 13, 2021 Read More Covid Booster Shots Likely Offered Soon To People With Compromised Immune Systems — Fauci ; Priority Include People With HIV Towleroad August 5, 2021 Read More AIDS Groups Release Open Letter to DaBaby; Denver Cancels Festival He Was to Headline; IHeartRadio, Austin City Limits Also Drop; WednesDababy Update Brian Bell August 4, 2021 Read More Grounded by Festivals, DaBaby Apologizes; Blames Victims For Not Just Taking His Abuse While He Explained How Much Harder It is Being DaBaby Brian Bell August 2, 2021 Read More DaBaby Homophobia Week Spirals : Madonna, Questlove, Lovato Call Out Rapper. U.K. Festival Removes Him From Lineup Brian Bell July 30, 2021 Read More Rapper Dababy Delivers Homophobic, Anti-AIDS Interlude at Rolling Loud, Doubles Down on Comments; T.I. Comes to His Defense Brian Bell July 27, 2021 Read More Photo courtesy of Tony Webster/Creative Commons View the full article

Applebee’sApplebee’s Sued By EEOC for Sexual Orientation Discrimination Based on a complaint by a gay Black line cook at an Applebee’s franchise in Plant City, FL the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit against the parent company of a Florida Applebee’s franchise location on Thursday alleging that it subjected an employee to “race and sexual orientation discrimination” to the point that he was forced to quit his job. The complaint alleges that the cook brought concerns about the workplace being “permeated with racial and homophobic slurs” and fellow employees wearing “Confederate flag paraphernalia” while working. The cook was told to “ignore” the discriminatory actions he experienced by management and saw his hours massively cut. He ultimately left his job due to the toxicity and loss of hours and income. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, claims Neighborhood Restaurant Partners Florida, LLC violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by allowing discrimination to continue unimpeded and retaliating against an employee who complained about being the subject of said discrimination. “When an employer learns about discrimination in the workplace, it must take prompt action designed to stop the behavior,” said EEOC Tampa Field Office director Evangeline Hawthorne. “All too often, however, we see employers making a bad situation worse by retaliating against the victim rather than taking steps to stop the harassment. The EEOC will hold employers accountable for their actions.” EEOC Regional Attorney Robert E. Weisberg compared the case against the owners of the restaurant to the historic Supreme Court decision Bostock v. Clayton County, which established protections against employment and workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation. “While the EEOC recently celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Bostock decision, this case demonstrates that the work is not over. The EEOC will aggressively investigate, and, if necessary, prosecute employers that violate the rights of their LGBTQ employees,” said Weisberg. Thursday’s filing is the latest signal toward the heightened levels of workplace discrimination experienced by Black LGBTQ communities. According to a 2020 Center for American Progress report, 78% of Black LGBTQ individuals reported that discrimination against their identities affected their ability to be hired to some degree. 56% of Black LGBTQ people stated that similar discrimination impacted their ability to retain employment and 40% of respondents reported that the chance of experiencing discrimination influenced their decision on where to seek employment. The lawsuit marks the most recent instance of the EEOC taking Applebee’s franchise owners to task for workplace discrimination in recent years. A North Carolina Applebee’s franchisee paid a $75,000 settlement to the EEOC in 2018 after two sisters who worked at a South Carolina Applebee’s location owned by the franchisee reported being subjected to sexual comments and physical groping in view of management. A separate 2018 case in New York garnered a $100,000 settlement over allegations that an Applebee’s franchisee fired a transgender employee after she reported multiple co-workers for deliberately misgendering her and referring to her trans identity in “crude and derogatory” fashion. Applebee’s franchisees have seen legal issues arise out of allegations of improper retaliation to discriminatory actions beyond the scope of the EEOC as well. A former Applebee’s supervisor in New Jersey filed suit against her former employer in 2020 alleging she was unjustly fired after asking a patron who repeatedly made racist and Islamophobic statements to leave. She also claimed that management at the Middletown, N.J. location cultivated and participated in “a hostile work environment where racism and bigotry were commonplace.” Applebee’s: Previously on Towleroad ‘Frat Boy’ Culture at Activision Blizzard: Groping, Junk-Grab ‘Gay Chicken’ Game, ‘The Cosby Suite,’ Cited in California Suit. Employees Walk Out Brian Bell July 28, 2021 Read More New poll shows both Republicans and Democrats oppose demoralizing trans sports bills Brian Bell April 20, 2021 Read More HUD Begins Implementation of ‘Fair Housing Act’ to Prohibit Discrimination Against LGBTQ People Andy Towle February 11, 2021 Read More In Discrimination Complaint, Gay Black CBS News Reporter Says Network Execs Told Him to ‘Butch It Up’ and Stop ‘Queening Out’ Towleroad February 8, 2021 Read More Biden Signs ‘Most Substantive, Wide-Ranging’ LGBTQ Rights Executive Order in U.S. History Andy Towle January 21, 2021 Read More North Carolina Wedding Venue Tells Gay Couple to Find Somewhere Else to Get Married: WATCH Andy Towle December 23, 2020 Read More Photo courtesy of Mike Mozart from Funny YouTube, USA/Creative Commons View the full article

The Drag Tots visit RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars.It just goes to show that not all the good episodes of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars are the most eventful. The final stretch of the race is in sight, we just got to get up this last hill. But even in the absence of any true gags, the episode flexed some of my favorite Drag Race muscles. The main challenge is a full-body-ody-ody workout, testing the queens’ creative, sewing, acting and branding skills. There’s a mini-challenge that is low-key savage, and, of course, there’s Ru serving cross-platform synergy boots the house down, yas gawd. Queens struggle with time, Ru’s walkthrough rattles and the elimination vote is our tensest yet. Was it a perfect, or even GREAT episode? Nah. (That lip sync really ended the episode on a womp-womp.) The plus side is, down to the final five, it feels like we’ve got nothing but real contenders left. (Sorry, Pandora.) I could see any one of these gals taking the crown and feeling justified. But how do they feel about each other? That’s the conceit of this week’s mini-challenge. It’s a kind of Degrassi-style classroom set up for the ladies to vote each other for a set of superlatives. The trick is, you get a point if you vote with the popular girls. So, you’re playing the game on a couple levels. You want to be mindful of the message you send to potential allies and rivals, but you also want to think how the group will vote so you stay in the game (and potentially win a small cash prize.) Kylie is head of the class on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. It’s kept very fun and light, but some hard truths are revealed. Kylie snags all the most low-key flattering superlatives that basically just affirm that she is unquestionably hot and people can’t resist her. Trinity is voted most moody, a surprise to no one but TKB herself. Eureka bears the brunt of the harsher critiques, snatching the top title of messiest, shadiest, gassiest and most likely to go home next. The damage is done, and everyone is feeling a little rattled going into the next challenge. Ru intros the Drag Tots, an animated entry into the Drag Race Cinematic Universe starring several popular Drag Race alums. This week, the queens must create their own Drag Tots character, with name and backstory, design and create a costume from scratch that brings the character to life AND sell it all on the runway. In addition to all of that, the usual whims of Ru that are always coursing under the surface and made explicit. Ru wants to see subversion and wordplay and inspiration, but also, make it fun! My head’s spinning just trying to keep up. The result is a challenge that really pushes each queen creatively. Trinity originally comes in a little message-heavy and sincere, but Ru convinces her to loosen up and embrace Bugs Bunny’s irreverence. Her character, Furleasha, is a hot-pink pussycat by way of Burning Man, and I am living. As a catwalk coach (cute!), she still manages to incorporate an empowering element, and TKB fills the performance with physicality and bounce. Trinity K. Bonet on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. Ginger’s tot is the most ready for primetime. Already looking straight out of the Drag Tots world, Ginger comes in with a fully fleshed-out character based on a Southern belle who tempers her tart personality using the Parasol of Poise. It’s absolutely chocked full of wordplay and dynamism, and the lewk is polished perfection. No notes! The edit this week gives reason to worry about Ra’Jah, who immediately gets in her own head. Ru doesn’t help on the walkthrough. Ra’Jah presents “Queen See Me,” and Ru HATES the name. He’s got a point. It doesn’t quite roll off the tongue, unlike Ru’s favorite word, “mexicatassen,” which is undeniably fun to say. Ra’Jah smartly takes Ru’s words to heart (much like last week’s Drag Race All Stars Snatch Game of Love), and she rebrands as “I See You Queen.” She spins a nice little story about how she gives people new perspective, and she reinforces the idea by covering her outfit in eyeballs, like something out of a Guillermo del Toro flick. She’s embracing her signature purple color, covering her hair, skin and clothes in various violet hues. I’ve come to understand Ra’Jah’s style a bit more. It’s sexy and slinky, but it’s also simple. Not in craft, mind you, (she constructs garments masterfully), but her lewks have an effortlessness about them that feels glamorous without the fussiness. Here it’s a purple, metallic, galactic fantasy head-to-toe, a disco dress over a catsuit. Everything works. And the piece de resistance, she has a line about being made fun for dancing off beat, suggesting to tell them they just can’t hear your song. Can I get an Amen? The judges eat it up, and she’s declared the winner. Coming out of the superlative mini-challenge, all eyes (even all I See You Queen’s) were on Eureka. Smartly flipping a negative into a positive (is there nothing Ru likes more?), Eureka incorporates all the negative attributes she was assigned into an evil queen character. It’s the right idea, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired. The narrative just never comes together for me, and the crassness does a disservice to the kind of excellent children’s programming that deftly wields humor even within the confines of appropriateness. Her act-out presentation of the character is also lacking (likely due in part to the shaky character definition.) The outfit, though, is a stunner. She whips together a knockout gown with massive cowl neck and a huge castle headpiece, all in a delicious royal blue, all-over sequin print. Mama. Eureka has nothing to be ashamed of tonight. Finally, we’ve got the obligatory “Will she finish in time?” storyline no design challenge would be complete without. This time, the focus is on Kylie, but it never feels like we’re truly in any real danger. Kylie herself reminds us, “I am a showgirl. I know how to rig up the gig.” (Which is now my new favorite mantra in times of stress!) She’s not lying! Despite sewing up to the last minute, the result is literally bewitching. Like a fashion-forward Margaret Hamilton, Kylie dons a black pointed hat and black sequin dress that casts a spell on the runway. The construction of the skirt gives the illusion of floating down the runway. There’s a beautiful little moment that deserves more praise when Kylie comes with a delightful little trick, rigging her broom to stand on its own on the stage. For a cherry on top, she has the most perfect bow on her back that gives the whole thing a 360 degree wow factor. Outside the obvious occult, there’s not much of a clear identity to Miss Behave. The lewk is great, but the character isn’t nearly as spellbinding. Down to the wire, with Ra’Jah as this week’s winner, all the other queens are up for elimination. Barring a savage swerve to takeout the biggest competition, Eureka and Trinity feel the most in the danger on this vote. We’re at the point in the season where the numbers don’t add up cleanly enough for objective analysis. Does a win cancel out a bottom performance? Do we factor in mini-challenges? Lip-sync wins? There’s no formula here. After a pot-stirring mini-challenge, a multidimension maxi and a high-stakes vote, I’m disappointed to say this week’s lip sync left A LOT to be desired. I don’t blame performers Ra’Jah and this week’s assassin Kameron Michaels, but rather the track. Look, I love Charli XCX like every other red-blooded, millennial homosexual, but “Boom Clap” is hardly a banger. The resulting lip sync feels below even the laziest local drag. There’s a lot of walking, pointing, etc. We get a glimpse of Kameron doing a cartwheel at one point, but it doesn’t feel in sync with the music and it’s a just a quick cutaway. Usually I’m watching these lip syncs fighting back the instinctual urge to throw my whole wallet at these queens. Not this week. Kameron wins, sure, whatever, and the queens vote to send Eureka home. But don’t mourn the elephant queen, my friends. Next week, finally, we see the game within a game, and perhaps Eureka will once again make a triumphant return, like a phoenix from the ashes. Where do we stand now? Ginger and Trinity have been neck-and-neck for weeks now, but after TKB’s sloppy Snatch and merely fine showing this week, Ginger has crept into the lead. Her character could be the star of her own show tomorrow, and, if there was a real Tara Belle doll available wearing that runway outfit, I would buy it! And I’m not even one of those people into dolls! Is there anything Ginger can’t do?She may be down, but she is in no way out. Trinity still has the crown within reach, but these haven’t been her best weeks. Still, Trin is light-years ahead of where we last left her in season six. I really hope she becomes as ubiquitous of Bianca and Alaska and Trixie. Hopefully, these are just her struggle weeks, so she can overcome this hurdle for an even more satisfying conclusion.It’s a great time for Ra’Jah to be peaking. What a savvy queen! She listens so well, and she knows exactly her strengths. I love the buoyant, disco boogie energy she brings to the stage. I wasn’t a big fan during her original season, but now I’m a full convert. I do worry her taste level may be a problem at some point. Can Ra’Jah bring finale-level DRAMA and ELEGANZA? We will see.A fourth-place spot for Kylie is in no way meant to imply she’s so much further from the crown. This is a very tight race still, and Kylie has defied all expectations across all categories this season. Even Snatch Game, which many (including myself) predicted would be her Achilles’ heel, was a smashing success. She keeps surprising, which makes her a thrill to watch.Eureka‘s languishing finally caught up with her. I had more faith in the judges’/producers’ love of Eureka to keep her around until the end, but I definitely can see how this was her time. With no wins, she was the obvious choice. The fact next week is already the eliminated queens’ potential chance for redemption, this may be a way for everyone to have their cake and eat it, too.What did you think of the episode? Catch up on our RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars coverage. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Gabriella Borter and Sharon Bernstein (Reuters) -The cities of San Francisco and New Orleans on Thursday ordered patrons to show proof of COVID-19 vaccinations to enter restaurants, gyms and other venues, joining New York in a severe step designed to contain the fast-spreading Delta variant. The move by the two liberal cities came on the same day that school board members in Houston voted to support a mandate by the district superintendent to require students to wear masks in classrooms and on school buses. One Houston school board member, Judith Cruz, said she would also support requiring children to be vaccinated. That suggestion was not formally considered on Thursday. The Houston mask order sets up a potential clash between local officials and Republican Governor Greg Abbott, who has banned such mandates. As the start of the academic year coincides with a rise in COVID-19 infections linked to the Delta variant, schools have become the flashpoint in a national debate over the authority of state, federal and local governments to order masks and vaccines. The number of daily nationwide infections has doubled in the last two weeks, according to a Reuters tally, reaching a six-month peak. The average number of daily deaths has increased 85% in that same time span. In Virginia, where some school district officials have said they would not require students to wear masks, Governor Ralph Northam, a Democrat, issued an order on Thursday requiring them. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican, has threatened to withhold the salaries of school officials who require students to cover their faces, defying the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat. The White House is considering reimbursing Florida school officials if DeSantis, who is considered a possible presidential candidate in 2024, follows through with his threat. The Delta variant appears to be slowing the pace of a U.S. economic recovery after an upswing in the first half of 2021, according to Oxford Economics U.S. Recovery Tracker. ‘PHYSICAL AND MENTAL EXHAUSTION’ “Sharply deteriorating health conditions are the main reason why the South’s recovery is now losing momentum,” Oxford’s lead U.S. economist Oren Klachkin said. The worst of the U.S. COVID outbreak is concentrated in the South, including Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, where intensive care units have been stretched to capacity. Florida has asked Washington to send more ventilators to the state while at the same time flouting federal mask recommendations. “Our frontline health care heroes are finding themselves stretched thin and physical and mental exhaustion is taking its toll,” Florida Hospital Association President Mary Mayhew said in a statement on Tuesday. San Francisco’s new vaccine mandate for indoor businesses extends to employees as well as patrons. Employees of restaurants, gyms and other venues have until Oct. 13 to show proof of full vaccination, the order says. Proof of vaccination will also be required for attendees at indoor events of 1,000 people or more. San Francisco’s mandate, which begins Aug. 20, requires proof of full vaccination. The New York and New Orleans health orders require only one dose. Both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses several weeks apart. Johnson and Johnson has a one-dose vaccine. California, Illinois, Kentucky and New Jersey, all led by Democratic governors, have required masks in all schools. On Thursday, the National Education Association President Becky Pringle, who leads the largest teachers’ union in the country, said she supported vaccine mandates for teachers. Her statement followed a similar endorsement from the American Federation of Teachers’ president earlier this week. (Reporting by Gabriella Borter and Manas Mishra in Washington, Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, Peter Szekely and Dan Burns in New York and Dan Whitcomb in Los AngelesEditing by Lisa Shumaker and Raju Gopalakrishnan) /new Gym Vaccine Mandates Taliban return to power as president and diplomats flee Kabul August 15, 2021 Read More Thousands march in Bucharest Gay Pride Parade; Shadow of Planned Legislation That Will Chip At Rights Gained in 2001 August 15, 2021 Read More Cardi B and Lizzo Rumors All True. A Late Summer Bop Fantasia And 10 More Recently Dropped Trailers and Tunes: Watch Now August 14, 2021 Read More Moderna HIV Vaccine Phase 1 Human Trials to Start as Early as Next Week. Hope to Build on mRNA Learnings August 13, 2021 Read More Cook at Applebee’s Complaint When Told to Ignore A Toxic Mix of Workplace Slurs and Confederate Paraphernalia Spurs Federal Lawsuit August 13, 2021 Read More ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars’ Season 6 Serves Up Hot Tots Casserole August 13, 2021 Read More View the full article

Published by AFP Caitlyn Jenner launched her campaign to become California governor on Thursday with walkabouts in Venice, a part of Los Angeles with lots of homeless people Los Angeles (AFP) – Olympic athlete, transgender reality TV star and now wannabe politician; Caitlyn Jenner kicked off her campaign to become California’s next governor on Thursday. It was a low-key and scrappy launch for the Republican, who is among a crowded field looking to unseat incumbent Democrat Gavin Newsom. Jenner, a wealthy socialite and step-parent to Kim Kardashian, chose the Venice area of Los Angeles, where the tarp-covered tents of hundreds of homeless people line the streets, and drug deals take place in plain sight. “Today, we’re here about this homeless issue,” she told an assortment of journalists in the garden of an apartment building. “We have to solve this issue because it’s a very, very complicated issue….And it’s not going to be easy.” The solution, Jenner suggested, was not just to “throw money at it.” “We need boots on the ground,” she said. It was a phrase she repeated several times during the 30-minute stand-up, but not one that got fleshed out. During an earlier walkabout, wearing skinny jeans and a white polo shirt, she was variously cheered, harangued and gawked at by bemused passers-by. “I didn’t even know she was running for governor,” one twenty-something skater told reporters. Another man muttered darkly about there being a “dead body” a few streets away. Recall The 1976 Montreal Olympics gold medallist — as Bruce Jenner the decathlete — is trailing opponents in the September 14 vote, triggered after Newsom’s opponents collected enough signatures to try to recall him. Newsom, a suave and well-manicured former mayor of San Francisco, has governed California since 2019, mostly riding high in the polls. But his initial response to the Covid-19 pandemic — where some derided him as too quick to lock down, and others said he was too slow to reverse those lockdowns — finally gave opponents their in. Voters will be asked two questions next month: should Newsom be ejected, and who should replace him. The second question is only relevant if the first one passes. But in that case, whichever candidate garners the most votes — however small their percentage of the total — wins. While there have been dozens of attempts in the past, the only successful recall in California’s gubernatorial history brought cigar-chomping action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger to power. Team Newsom is campaigning solely on the first question, urging a “no” vote, and no big-name Democrats have put themselves forward for the second. (Newsom himself cannot be a candidate.) Jenner is one of a large handful of Republicans, and Republican-leaning, contenders, in a field led by conservative talkshow host Larry Elder. But despite her national profile, spanning cereal boxes in the 1970s to a role in “Keeping up with the Kardashians”, she has so far failed to sparkle, and began her campaign Thursday only after returning from a trip to Australia, where she said she had been fulfilling television commitments. Jenner deflected questions over whether her dalliance with politics was related to a reality TV show or a book deal, insisting she was motivated by a desire to fix the state she has lived in for 48 years. “If you don’t like what’s going on, not only in this state, but around the nation: stand up. “We have to break the cycle of what I call that political club that runs our state, runs our nation.” Trash On the streets of Venice, where flies swarmed around piles of trash, the media pack meandered with Jenner on a tour that appeared to have no real destination. It didn’t stop at the tent of 53-year-old Albert Martinez, who said he has lived rough in the town for more than 20 years. He worries not about the recall, but about keeping his diabetes medicine cool enough in the hot sun, and whether he will be able to find a bathroom. Not that she asked him as he sat in an old office chair outside his tent, but Jenner’s candidacy is irrelevant to Martinez. “We’re worried they are going to throw us out,” he said. Nor did she ask Colin McCabe, a 64-year-old Scot who has been in California since 1978 but became homeless a few years ago. “If you’re interested in solving problems, you should be over there (asking the police) if they have a court order” for moving on the homeless, he said, gesturing to an area he said had recently been cleared. But Jenner had already moved on. View the full article

Published by AFP US troops are being sent to evacuate embassy staff from Kabul as the Taliban press a lightning offensive that has seen much of the country fall from government hands Washington (AFP) – Thousands of American soldiers being sent to Afghanistan to evacuate embassy staff from Kabul as the Taliban push towards the city has revived painful US memories of the fall of Saigon. A photo that immortalized America’s defeat in Vietnam, showing evacuees boarding a helicopter on the roof of a building, spread fast on social networks after the United States announced the emergency deployment on Thursday. “The latest news of a further drawdown at our Embassy and a hasty deployment of military forces seem like preparations for the fall of Kabul,” leading Republican lawmaker Mitch McConnell said. “President (Joe) Biden’s decisions have us hurtling toward an even worse sequel to the humiliating fall of Saigon in 1975.” Back in June, as the Taliban advance built momentum, Biden himself addressed the Saigon parallels — and dismissed them out of hand. “There’s going to be no circumstance where you’ll see people being lifted off the roof of an embassy of the United States from Afghanistan,” he said. The same month — since when the Taliban’s lightning offensive has surprised many US military officials — the chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff General Mark Milley also rejected comparisons to the desperate exit from Saigon. “I do not see that unfolding,” Milley said. “I may be wrong, who knows, you can’t predict the future, but I don’t see Saigon 1975 in Afghanistan. The Taliban just aren’t the North Vietnamese Army. It’s not that kind of situation.” ‘Not walking away’ To carry out the evacuation of American staff from its embassy in Kabul, 3,000 US troops will secure the airport, 1,000 will be sent to Qatar for technical and logistical support, while 3,500 to 4,000 will be positioned in Kuwait to deploy if needed. On Thursday, US officials scrambled to answer questions about the mission, with Pentagon spokesman John Kirby declining to describe it as a NOE (Noncombatant Evacuation Operation). He indicated it had no name, and avoided talking about evacuations. The most famous “NOE” mission was Operation Frequent Wind, during which more than 7,000 Vietnamese civilians were evacuated from Saigon on April 29 and 30, 1975 by helicopter. Asked about the image of American diplomats departing under military protection and the inevitable comparisons with the fall of Saigon, Kirby tried to underline the differences. “We are not completely eliminating our diplomatic presence on the ground,” he said. “Nobody is abandoning Afghanistan, it’s not walking away from it. It’s doing the right thing at the right time to protect our people.” The Taliban on Friday claimed they had captured Afghanistan’s second city Kandahar, capping an eight-day blitz that has left only the capital and pockets of other territory in government hands. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jill Serjeant LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -Jamie Spears has agreed to step down from his 13-year role as conservator of his daughter Britney’s estate, in what the pop star’s attorney on Thursday called a major victory. “We are pleased that Mr Spears and his lawyer have today conceded in a filing that he must be removed,” the singer’s lawyer Mathew Rosengart said in a statement. Spears, who has controlled much of his daughter’s affairs since she suffered a mental health breakdown in 2008, agreed to step aside in court documents filed on Thursday. The “Toxic” pop star has been seeking for months to remove her father from any say in her life. A court hearing to discuss the matter had been set for late September in Los Angeles. Rosengart called the decision by Jamie Spears “a major victory for Britney Spears and another step toward justice.” Thursday’s court document did not say when Jamie Spears would step down from his role in handling his daughter’s $60 million estate and said that he felt there were no grounds for immediately removing or suspending him. But it added: “Even as Mr Spears is the unremitting target of unjustified attacks, he does not believe that a public battle with his daughter over his continuing service as her conservator would be in her best interests.” “Mr Spears intends to work with the court and his daughter’s new attorney to prepare for an orderly transition to a new conservator,” the court filing added. Britney Spears, 39, remains under the care of professional Jodi Montgomery, who mangers her medical and personal affairs. The nature of the singer’s mental health issues have never been publicly revealed. Spears spoke out emotionally in June and July against the court-appointed conservatorship, calling it humiliating and abusive and accusing her father of ruining her life. Spears has not performed since 2018 and has said she will not return to the stage while her father retains control over her career. The singer, who posts frequently on social media, made no immediate reference on Thursday to her father’s decision to step aside. Thursday’s court document said Jamie Spears has always had his daughter’s best interests at heart and has not coerced her to do anything. “By her own admission, Ms Spears is strong and stands up for what she wants. Mr Spears has tried to do everything in his power to accommodate Ms Spears’ wishes, whether regarding her personal life, family, or career, while fulfilling his duties and obligations as conservator (and) protecting her from others seeking to take advantage of her,” the document said. (Reporting by Jill Serjeant;Editing by Dan Grebler and Stephen Coates) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Manas Mishra and Michael Erman (Reuters) -The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized a third dose of COVID-19 vaccines by Pfizer Inc-BioNTech and Moderna Inc for people with compromised immune systems. The amended https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-additional-vaccine-dose-certain-immunocompromised emergency use authorization on Thursday paves the way for people who have had an organ transplant, or those with a similar level of weakened immune system, to get an extra dose of the same shot they have initially received. Mixing of mRNA vaccines is permitted for the third shot if their original vaccine is not available. Patients will not need a prescription or the sign off of a health care provider in order to prove they are immunocompromised and receive the additional dose, according to an official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) speaking before a panel of advisers that will vote on the extra doses later on Friday. Patients can attest to their status themselves. “After a thorough review of the available data, the FDA determined that this small, vulnerable group may benefit from a third dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines,” Janet Woodcock, U.S. FDA’s acting commissioner, said in a tweet https://twitter.com/DrWoodcockFDA/status/1426019820445868033 on Thursday. “Others who are fully vaccinated are adequately protected & do not need an additional dose of COVID-19 vaccine at this time.” The vulnerable group makes up less than 3% of U.S. adults, Rochelle Walensky, director of the CDC, had said before the authorization. The FDA’s decision does not apply to people who received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the CDC said, because there is not enough data to support additional doses yet. “We think that at least this is a solution for the very large majority of immunocompromised individuals, and we believe that we’ll probably have a solution for the remainder in the not-too-distant future,” FDA official Peter Marks told the CDC panel. The FDA and the CDC are working to ensure that immunocompromised recipients of the J&J vaccine have optimal protection, the CDC said. Supporting the move to approve an additional shot, Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, said it would be important for the CDC to provide clear recommendations about who should receive it. “Most clinicians are not going to know what an equivalent level of compromise is for solid organ transplant patients,” Offit said. “Hopefully the CDC will be more specific about that.” BOOSTERS FOR YOUNG, HEALTHY Scientists are still divided over the broad use of COVID-19 vaccine boosters among those without underlying problems as benefits of the boosters remain undetermined. Pfizer has previously said the efficacy of the vaccine it developed with partner BioNTech drops over time, citing a study that showed 84% effectiveness from a peak of 96% four months after a second dose. Moderna has also said it sees the eventual need for booster doses, especially since the Delta variant has caused “breakthrough” infections in fully vaccinated people. Reports of infections among vaccinated people and concerns about diminishing protection have galvanized wealthy nations to distribute booster shots, even as many countries struggle to access first vaccine doses. The World Health Organization last week called for a moratorium on COVID-19 vaccine booster shots until at least the end of September. Still, Americans have already started getting additional shots, even before the FDA has authorized them. According to the CDC, more than 1.2 million people have already received one or more additional doses of a COVID-19 vaccine already. Wall Street analysts expect the authorization of a booster dose for a broad population to bolster profits of COVID-19 vaccine makers. Shares of Pfizer, Moderna and U.S.-listed shares of BioNTech rose between 1% and 2% in early trading. (Reporting by Manas Mishra in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta, Shinjini Ganguli and Aurora Ellis) View the full article

Rev. Junia JoplinA Canada transgender pastor is suing her former church for wrongful termination on the basis of discrimination after being fired shortly after coming out publicly as transgender last year. Rev. Junia Joplin was fired from her position as head pastor at Lorne Park Baptist Church in Mississauga, Ontario, a suburb of Toronto, roughly one month after coming out as transgender while conducting a virtual sermon during Pride month 2020. She had served in her role at the church since 2014, years before she began socially transitioning. Though she didn’t come out until 2020, Joplin approached ministry at the church from an LGBTQ-inclusive perspective from day one. According to the filing, the church suspended her indefinitely from her job despite multiple members of the congregation and other Baptist organizations offering her support. The following month saw Joplin be subjected to multiple virtual town halls with members of Lorne Park Baptist Church in what she deemed an “unfair process” of asking prying personal questions and determining her future at the church. Joplin was subject to questions on topics ranging from her transition to how it might impact the church and its members. “Those were very much my first steps into social transition. That’s a hard place to be. I think just about any trans person will tell you that can feel frightening, feel vulnerable,” Joplin said in an interview with the CBC. “It’s a time when support is so essential and, unfortunately, for a lot of us we don’t get it in places like our workplace.” Those meetings ultimately resulting in the congregation voting to fire her in July 2020. The majority of those who voted in favor of ousting Joplin said they did so “fully or in part” out of adherence to a religious belief. The decision left Joplin feeling “isolated” from her own faith. “For that to happen within that context of a caring community – I think one of the toughest things for me was knowing that I’m going through one of the most consequential and difficult seasons that I’ll ever go through in my life and I’m pretty much isolated from my faith community, from the place that I would most naturally go to for support,” she said. Joplin’s lawsuit claims that her termination was a violation of the Ontario Human Rights Code, which prohibits employment discrimination based on gender identity and gender expression. Members of Joplin’s former church argue that an exemption in the law that allows religious organizations to show preference in employment if candidates are of a “similar creed,” defined as one’s religious beliefs, negates Joplin’s claim. The pastor’s filing argues that such an exemption only applies when creed is an “occupational qualification.” “LPBC did not perform a close and careful examination of the nature and essential duties of lead pastor or demonstrate an honest, good faith, and sincere belief that Rev. Joplin lacked a qualification that was reasonably necessary in relation to those duties,” reads Joplin’s filing. The claim further argues that if the court does find that the exemption applies to Joplin’s case, then it should be deemed unconstitutional as it violates the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The charter prevents the unreasonable and unjustifiable limiting of “the right of equality.” According to the CBC, Joplin is seeking $200,000 Canadian in damages, but this fight is about much more than financial compensation. “I don’t want other people to go through that, I don’t want other queer people to connect to faith communities that don’t really welcome them unequivocally, without caveat or qualification,” Joplin said. Canada Trans: Previously on Towleroad Canada Transgender Pastor Sues Former Church For Being Fired After Coming Out During Pride Month Sermon Brian Bell August 12, 2021 Read More In Parts of Africa Gay Arrests, Inappropriate Probes, Detainment, Belief in ‘Demonic Spirit’, Murder Keep LGBTQ Lives At Risk Brian Bell June 9, 2021 Read More As Japan Olympics Begin, Local Groups Say Anti-Trans, Anti-Gay Remarks ‘Less-than-Equality’ Bill Violate Games’ Charter Brian Bell May 25, 2021 Read More Texas Democrat Revives Anti-Trans Sports Bill ‘as a Consequence’ of His Own Bill Being Blocked Brian Bell May 7, 2021 Read More Does JK Rowling Have A History Of Transphobic Tweets? Savas Abadsidis January 10, 2019 Read More Former Navy Sailor Stabbed Woman 119 Times After Discovering She Was Transgender Luis Damian Veron July 26, 2017 Read More Screenshot via YouTube View the full article

Progress Pride FlagThe removal of LGBTQ Pride flags and confederate flags being hung in their place on the campus of Virginia Tech University is under investigation for anti-LGBTQ intimidation. The incident took place outside the office of the Wesley Center at Virginia Tech, a United Methodist Church campus ministry. According to a Facebook post from the Wesley Center, the flags were switched out in the early morning hours of August 7 in multiple locations outside of the building. This apparently was the third time in the last two weeks that the Pride flags outside Wesley, which “have flown for years,” have been torn down, but it is the first time the hate symbol of the confederacy was hung in their place. “This active display of hate is unacceptable and malicious … We strive to make Wesley a safe and affirming place for all people,” read the Wesley Center’s statement. “This hate crime goes against all that we believe, and we want our LGBTQ+ community to know that we will always love, support and embrace you with open arms.” The Wesley Center’s Facebook post included pictures of the building’s exterior where the Pride flags once flew with the confederate flags blurred out. The act may also hold direct racist overtones as the Pride flag that was stolen was the updated Philadelphia design which added a black and brown stripe to the rainbow in an effort to be more inclusive to LGBTQ people of color. Campus minister Bret Gresham described Saturday’s events as an “escalation” of the previous acts of vandalism at the Wesley Center. “My No. 1 concern is the students and making sure they feel they have a safe environment to come, to live out their faith and be affirmed in who they are,” Gresham told NBC News. Blacksburg, VA police launched an investigation into the matter the same day, categorizing it as an act of intimidation. “The Blacksburg Police Department takes all matter involving intimidation seriously,” said Blacksburg PD in a statement. Law enforcement is also investigating the incident as an act of larceny. In a statement to local news outlet WFXR Thursday, Virginia Tech condemned the act, saying it “does not reflect who we are at Virginia Tech and the Principles of Community that guide us.” “Virginia Tech strongly rejects all forms of prejudice and discrimination and condemns deliberate, hateful actions. We were personally deeply saddened to learn about an act of vandalism against a ministry in our community,” the university’s statement continued. “Virginia Tech has made tremendous progress over the last several years in building a more thoroughly diverse and inclusive university. Our belief in the inherent dignity and value of every person has never been stronger. Yet incidents like this remind us that the journey to equity and social justice – whether in our community or others across the country – will be long and hard-fought.” The LGBTQ+ community at the university is responding with strength in the face of the hateful display. “Hate won’t win,” Virginia Tech sophomore Crystal Stewart told USA Today. Stewart, who identifies as queer, added, “They can tear down the Pride flag all they want but we belong. We belong in the church, in the world, everywhere and The Wesley Center supports that. Bringing down the flag won’t bring us down too.” Wesley Center officials are asking anyone with information about the events on August 7 or anyone involved to contact the Blacksburg Police Department. The university echoed those calls, saying, “We fully support Blacksburg Police in their effort to investigate this matter and encourage anyone in the community with information to come forward.” Virginia Tech: Previously on Towleroad Virginia Tech Pride Flags Torn Down, Confederate Flags Put Up in Place in Act of ‘Intimidation’ Brian Bell August 12, 2021 Read More Lil Nas X Scared Commenting on Homophobia in Rap; More Confident, Authentic Because ‘People Pleasers …never become legends’ Towleroad August 12, 2021 Read More AIDS Groups Release Open Letter to DaBaby; Denver Cancels Festival He Was to Headline; IHeartRadio, Austin City Limits Also Drop; WednesDababy Update Brian Bell August 4, 2021 Read More Grounded by Festivals, DaBaby Apologizes; Blames Victims For Not Just Taking His Abuse While He Explained How Much Harder It is Being DaBaby Brian Bell August 2, 2021 Read More DaBaby Homophobia Week Spirals : Madonna, Questlove, Lovato Call Out Rapper. U.K. Festival Removes Him From Lineup Brian Bell July 30, 2021 Read More Elton, Dua, Usher, GLAAD Try to Set Da Baby Straight; Rapper Claims Hateful Comments are Living his ‘Truth’ Just as Queers Come Out to Live Theirs. Brian Bell July 29, 2021 Read More Photo by Just Jack on Unsplash View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Dolly Parton is releasing her first novel. The ‘9 to 5’ singer has teamed up with author James Patterson on ‘Run Rose Run’ and the book – which will be released on 7 March 2022 – will be accompanied by a new album from the 75-year-old country legend. She said: “All-new songs were written based on the characters and situations in the book. “I hope you enjoy the book and the songs as much as we’ve enjoyed putting it all together.” The book will also incorporate lyrics from the 12-song album in a story which follows a young woman who moves to Nashville, Tennessee in a bid to make her musical dreams come true. The ‘Alex Cross’ author – who has previously co-written two books with former US President Bill Clinton – hailed teaming up with Dolly “an honour” and promised the book and music collaboration will be a hit with fans. He said: “It’s an honour – and a hell of a lot of fun – to work with the inimitable Dolly Parton, whom I’ve long admired for her music, her storytelling, and her enormous generosity. “The mind-blowing thing about this project is that reading the novel is enhanced by listening to the album and vice versa. “It’s a really unique experience that I know readers (and listeners) will love”. Dolly had hinted she may have a book on the way earlier this week when she told her fans on Twitter that writing a novel was a “dream” of hers alongside a winking emoji while promoting her non-profit organisation The Imagination Library – which gifts free books to children from birth until they reach five years of age to encourage early reading – on Book Lovers’ Day. She wrote: “The seeds of dreams are often found in books, and the seeds you help plant in your community can grow across the world. I dream of writing my own novel one day [wink emoji] #BookLoversDay http://imaginationlibrary.com (sic)” View the full article

Published by AFP Up to half a million bike enthusiasts are expected in South Dakota for the 2021 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Washington (AFP) – Tens of thousands of leather-clad bikers roared into a small town in South Dakota this week for a mass motorcycle rally, despite a renewed surge in coronavirus cases across the United States. Health officials have warned that the annual rally — set to draw as many as half a million people — could turn into a Covid-19 “superspreader” event, as was the case last year, with the more infectious Delta variant heightening concerns. But organizers said the 10-day event, held in Sturgis for the 81st time, was too important for the local community and economy to pass up. Asked about health concerns, town spokeswoman Christina Steele emphasized the ready availability of vaccines and the fact most events are being held outdoors — with the city letting bikers consume alcohol outside to avoid crowding in bars. “This year people are just happy to be out and to be traveling again and having fun and meeting up with their friends they haven’t seen in a while,” Steele told AFP. “People are not concerned about Covid right now,” she said. The rally has no vaccine, testing or masking requirements — but it is providing visitors with free tests and vaccines, even though it takes several weeks for immunity to kick in. Sanitizer and face masks were available on request, though most participants were choosing to stay mask-free. “There are free masks available, but I don’t think anybody is coming to get one,” Steele said. Last year, the rally drew 445,000 visitors from around the country and was blamed for a large outbreak of the virus. According to a study published in the Southern Economic Journal in December, the event may have been responsible for more than 260,000 new Covid cases in the United States. While South Dakota has stabilized infections in recent weeks, there are fears that attendees coming from out-of-state will bring the virus with them. This year, authorities expect even more visitors and Steele said the crowd already looks bigger than in 2020. As motorcycles hummed through the streets of Sturgis, Kristi Noem, South Dakota’s Republican governor donned a black leather jacket, got on a bike and joined the rally. In the Midwestern state’s Meade County, where Sturgis, a town of 6,600 people, is located, only 37 percent of the population is fully vaccinated, compared to some 50 percent nationwide. President Joe Biden’s top infectious disease advisor Anthony Fauci warned last week that holding the rally was too risky given the surge in Covid cases. “This could be a superspreader. We don’t want it to be but that’s the reality,” Dr Shankar Kurra, vice president of medical affairs at Monument Health Rapid City Hospital, told CBS News. Kurra said his entire hospital team would be staying in place through the rally, with vacations put on hold and extra staff hired in anticipation of a rise in Covid cases. View the full article

Published by AFP A photo of the asteroid Bennu taken by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft Washington (AFP) – An asteroid known as Bennu will pass within half the distance of the Earth to the Moon in the year 2135 but the probability of an impact with our planet in the coming centuries is very slight, scientists said Wednesday. OSIRIS-REx, a NASA spacecraft, spent two years near Bennu, an asteroid that is about 1,650 feet (500 meters) wide, observing its size, shape, mass and composition and monitoring its orbital trajectory around the sun. Using its robotic arm, the spacecraft also collected a sample from the surface of the asteroid that will help researchers determine the future trajectory of Bennu. The rocks and dust collected by OSIRIS-REx are scheduled to return to Earth on September 24, 2023. Bennu was discovered in 1999 and is classified as a potentially hazardous asteroid. It will make a close approach with Earth in September 2135. Scientists want to figure out how Earth’s gravity and a phenomenon known as the Yarkovsky effect will affect its future trajectory and the potential for an impact on a subsequent orbit. “The OSIRIS-REx data give us so much more precise information, we can test the limits of our models and calculate the future trajectory of Bennu to a very high degree of certainty through 2135,” said Davide Farnocchia, a scientist with the Center for Near Earth Object Studies at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. “We’ve never modeled an asteroid’s trajectory to this precision before,” said Farnocchia, lead author of a study published in the journal Icarus. “The impact probability overall is very small,” he stressed. “We shouldn’t be worried about it too much.” Farnocchia said the risk from Bennu “is smaller than from the undiscovered population of objects of similar size.” Researchers determined Bennu’s total impact probability between now and the year 2300 at about one in 1,750, or 0.057 percent. “We are still looking for what we don’t know out there — the objects that haven’t been found yet,” said Lindley Johnson of NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office. Johnson said researchers were studying ways to redirect the orbit of an asteroid should it ever become necessary to do so. He said an asteroid impacting Earth would cause a crater about 10 to 20 times the size of the object and spawn an area of devastation about 100 times the size of the crater. But, Johnson added, “We really don’t think we need to do anything about Bennu.” View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Karamo Brown met his new boyfriend after “accidentally” liking an Instagram post. The ‘Queer Eye’ star – who split from fiance Ian Jordan in summer 2020 – has found love with Carlos Medel and revealed they connected after he was browsing the photographer’s work and mistakenly clicked on one of his pictures, prompting the 29-year-old art director to get in touch. He explained: “Let me tell you something. The day I deleted Tinder, I went to Instagram and was looking at beauty things. I like to watch makeup and hair things because they relax me, even though I’m bald and he’s a beauty photographer. “So he shoots the make-up for Kylie Cosmetics, all these big brands. I saw his and it was like, these are some beautiful shots and I accidentally clicked a photo. “He saw it and said, thank you for liking my work and that’s how we met.” The 41-year-old star had been an avid Tinder user when he first split from Ian. He admitted: “I was on Tinder swiping. I was on a date every single day while I was in Austin. I went on at least 40 dates with 40 guys in a matter of time, I’m not joking.” The culture expert also opened up on his split from Ian and admitted the couple’s therapy they had been undergoing made him realise they weren’t “aligned”. Speaking to Catt Sadler on her virtual talk show ‘A Drink With Live!’, he said: “The break-up with my ex, luckily he and I are still friends. We were together for nine years. We were planning our wedding. Our engagement got drawn out for two years, and the reason I would tell people like, oh, all these things. “The reason that was, was because he didn’t want me to tell that we were going through therapy because there was a lot of things that I was just like, before I walked down this aisle, we have to figure out. “We have to figure out, are we in line for the next 40 years? Are we in line with our values of how we are going to raise our family, our grandkids, if we have them? How are we going to align with what do we want to do with our finances, even more? “But in the therapy, it just became abundantly clear to me that we weren’t aligned.” Although his relationship with Ian didn’t work out, Karamo found therapy was still helpful for his future as it helped him determine what he wants and deserves in a relationship. He said: “Because I’d already did the work on myself. I was like, let me go out there and find someone.” Karamo Brown previously on Towleroad View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Lil Nas X thinks it is “dangerous” for him to speak about homophobia within rap. The ‘Montero (Call Me By Your Name)’ hitmaker is one of very few openly LGBTQ artists working within the genre and he admitted he has to be careful about criticising others for anti-gay remarks – including DaBaby, who was recently embroiled in a scandal over remarks he made on stage at Rolling Loud Miami – because he’s concerned about his safety. Asked about such comments, he told Variety: “The honest truth is, I don’t want to speak on a lot of the homophobia within rap because I feel like this is a very dangerous playing field. It’s more for my own safety rather than anything else.” And pressed as to whether the comments made him feel unsafe, the 22-year-old star said “absolutely” and admitted he’s had to hire security because of a backlash to his ‘Montero’ video. He said: “[There was] literally someone who chased my car a few days after that video came out, yelling, ‘F*** you!’ or something. And that’s when I actually started getting security.” The ‘Industry Baby’ singer – whose real name is Montero Lamar Hill – had a crisis of confidence during lockdown but is in a much better place now and has vowed to be “even more authentic” than ever. He said: “Honestly, I believe the pandemic helped me get out of the idea of trying to please everybody, and the idea of ‘He’s a cool gay person; he’s an acceptable gay person. “I used to see things like that as a compliment, but it’s not. It just means you’re a people pleaser, and they never become legends. I wanted to be even more authentic in my music and let people into my life. I’m much more confident now — in my music, myself, my sexuality, the things that I believe that I stand for.” Lil Nas x relationship previously on Towleroad View the full article

Published by AFP An American flag endorsing QAnon, one of the conspiracy theories cited by a father who confessed to killing his children because he believed it would save the world from Los Angeles (AFP) – An American father charged with killing his two children with a spear fishing gun claims he was “enlightened” by QAnon and other conspiracy theories and was saving the world from “monsters” who had “serpent DNA,” a federal complaint said. Matthew Taylor Coleman, 40, told authorities in California he knew he was doing wrong, but that “it was the only course of action that would save the world,” the complaint prepared by federal agents said. Coleman was charged Wednesday with taking his children, aged two years and 10 months, to Mexico and killing them there before returning to the United States, where he was arrested. The children’s mother first raised the alarm on August 7 when Coleman took them from the home they shared. He had said he was taking them camping, but refused to tell her where and did not answer calls or text messages. He also did not have a child car seat with him. A day later police tracked him using the Find My iPhone app, which showed his last known location as being in Rosarito, Mexico. When he crossed back in to the United States the next day he was detained by the FBI at the border. Coleman confessed to shooting both his children with the spear fishing gun and leaving their bodies in Mexico, where they were found by Mexican authorities. He “stated that he believed his children were going to grow into monsters so he had to kill them,” according to the complaint. He told agents that he was “enlightened by QAnon and Illuminati conspiracy theories and was receiving visions and signs revealing that his wife … possessed serpent DNA and had passed it on to his children,” it continued. He told federal law enforcement he believed he was “saving the world from monsters,” the complaint said. Coleman was charged with the foreign murder of US nationals. View the full article

Playlist: Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin [This post contains video, click to play] Franklin’s Site Published by AFP Actress/singer Jennifer Hudson was hand-picked by Aretha Franklin to play her in musical biopic Los Angeles (AFP) – Aretha Franklin decided Jennifer Hudson was the natural woman to play her in musical biopic “Respect,” personally hand-picking the singer-actress a few years before her death in 2018. The late “Queen of Soul” shared not just a phenomenal vocal ability with the “Dreamgirls” star, but also a deep vein of personal tragedy. As the movie shows, Franklin’s childhood was shattered at just nine years old by her mother’s death, and her own pregnancy at the age of 12. She later battled a controlling father, a violent husband and alcohol addiction. Hudson, who rose to fame on “American Idol” and won an Oscar at age 25, dealt with her own horrors when her mother, brother and nephew were murdered by her sister’s estranged husband in 2008. “I needed to be in a certain place, and to have gone through what I’ve experienced in life, to be able to portray her,” Hudson told a Los Angeles screening ahead of the film’s release this Friday. “At least at this point that’s how I feel.” Hudson’s own tragedy had not yet struck when she first nervously met with her idol Franklin to discuss the nascent film project some 15 years ago. Eight years would pass before Franklin — having considered other contenders including Halle Berry — called and told Hudson she had the part. “To play the Queen of Soul is nothing you’re ever going to get used to. I’m still taking it in doses,” said Hudson. The choice of Hudson has been a hit, with her soaring performance already tipped for awards recognition, even if the film itself has drawn lukewarm early reviews. In a departure from most musical biopics, Hudson sang and recorded live on set Franklin’s hits such as “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and of course “Respect.” Hudson also learned to play piano for the part, which involved 83 costume changes and 11 different wigs — including Franklin’s signature beehive look. ‘Translate her pain’ The movie spans two decades of Franklin’s life, beginning with her childhood and then chronicling the years spent working on her first nine albums, each of which failed to land a single hit. Franklin was dropped by Columbia Records before finding her gospel-inflected voice through sessions at a remote Alabama recording studio during which she drew on her own dark past. “I think it was her ability to translate her pain for an audience of millions,” the film’s screenwriter Tracey Scott Wilson told AFP at its Los Angeles premiere. “She was able to take her own personal pain and sing all types of songs about it — songs of empowerment, sexy-romantic songs. She was always able to live her life through her music.” The movie also covers Franklin’s long involvement with the civil rights movement, having grown up the daughter of an influential Baptist minister (played by Forest Whitaker) who counted Martin Luther King Jr among his family friends. Franklin often sang at political rallies, and performed at King’s 1968 funeral — just as Hudson would ultimately perform at the diva’s own memorial. “Being in her position at a time like that — being a Black woman, and then being as close as she was to Dr King — and then having to get out there and still lift everyone else up… think about the pain she was going through in that moment,” said Hudson. “I think of moments like that,” added Hudson, who — like Franklin — began singing in gospel choirs, and has credited her faith with helping her get through tragedy. “Because too often people forget icons and legends are human beings too and they have a life.” Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin previously on Towleroad Lil Nas X Industry Cred Rises: 5 VMA Nominations for ‘Montero’ including ‘Best Video’; 100 Million Streams tops DaBaby August 11, 2021 Read More World of Batman Now Even More Queer; Longtime Robin Comes Out as Questioning in DC Comics Anthology Series August 11, 2021 Read More Cuomo Excuses: Call it Generational shift or feigned ignorance? #MeToo’s ‘redrawn lines’Make Clear Ignorance of the Law is No Excuse. August 11, 2021 Read More U.S. Senate to try again to pass voting rights in September, Schumer says August 11, 2021 Read More U.S. judge says some Trump records should be turned over to House panel August 11, 2021 Read More Elliot Page Awarded for Prejudice-busting Work and Life On And Off Screen; Sheds Light on Dark Prejudices; Shares Unseen Prides and Joys August 11, 2021 Read More Raven Saunders’ ‘X’ Protest Gesture Did Not Violate Rules, Says USOPC August 10, 2021 Read More Beyonce building hemp and honey farms. . ‘I’ve even got hives on my roof!’ August 10, 2021 Read More Load More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Lil Nas X is in a relationship with “someone special”. The 22-year-old musician has revealed he has a new boyfriend after dating several “emotionally unavailable” men in the past, and now believes he has found “the one” in his new mystery man. He said: “I’ve had some good boyfriends and some bad ones. A lot of them were emotionally unavailable or had a lot of insecurity and whatnot. I’ve found someone special now. I think this is the one. I can’t explain it – it’s just a feeling.” Nas also opened up on discovering he was gay when he was five, after he realised he had a crush on his half-sister’s cousin. He added: “I had feelings for my sister’s cousin – we have different dads. I was like, ‘Oh, my God, he’s really cute,’ and thought that about a lot of other boys my age.” But the ‘Montero (Call Me By Your Name)’ singer didn’t get into his first committed relationship until he turned 18. Speaking to Variety magazine’s Power of Young Hollywood issue: “I was 18, I believe. Before that, there was a guy who wasn’t my boyfriend, but we met in middle school and we talked, after we both found out that each other were gay. But I didn’t act on anything until high school – well, middle school, but then high school. “Once I was 17 or 18, I finally accepted [I was gay] – like, for sure accepted it, slowly, more and more – and now I’ve grown into a person that is 100 percent open with it.” The ‘Industry Baby’ hitmaker previously revealed he was dating someone in October last year, but it is unclear if the mystery man is the same person as his current partner. He explained at the time: “I’m dating someone right now. We’re not in a relationship yet, but it’s been on and off for the past few months. I’m maybe going to try to go steady this time.” Karamo Brown previously on Towleroad Lil Nas X Scared Commenting on Homophobia in Rap; More Confident, Authentic Because ‘People Pleasers …never become legends’ August 12, 2021 Read More US QAnon dad killed his children over ‘serpent DNA’: FBI August 12, 2021 Read More Jennifer Hudson As Aretha Franklin in ‘Respect’ Gives All of Herself; Her Own Intense Traumas Gave Entree to Franklin’s: WATCH the GMA Medley August 12, 2021 Read More Lil Nas X Industry Cred Rises: 5 VMA Nominations for ‘Montero’ including ‘Best Video’; 100 Million Streams tops DaBaby August 11, 2021 Read More World of Batman Now Even More Queer; Longtime Robin Comes Out as Questioning in DC Comics Anthology Series August 11, 2021 Read More Cuomo Excuses: Call it Generational shift or feigned ignorance? #MeToo’s ‘redrawn lines’ Make Clear Ignorance of the Law is No Excuse. August 11, 2021 Read More U.S. Senate to try again to pass voting rights in September, Schumer says August 11, 2021 Read More U.S. judge says some Trump records should be turned over to House panel August 11, 2021 Read More Load More Lil Nas X Scared Commenting on Homophobia in Rap; More Confident, Authentic Because ‘People Pleasers …never become legends’ August 12, 2021 Read More US QAnon dad killed his children over ‘serpent DNA’: FBI August 12, 2021 Read More Jennifer Hudson As Aretha Franklin in ‘Respect’ Gives All of Herself; Her Own Intense Traumas Gave Entree to Franklin’s: WATCH the GMA Medley August 12, 2021 Read More Lil Nas X Industry Cred Rises: 5 VMA Nominations for ‘Montero’ including ‘Best Video’; 100 Million Streams tops DaBaby August 11, 2021 Read More World of Batman Now Even More Queer; Longtime Robin Comes Out as Questioning in DC Comics Anthology Series August 11, 2021 Read More Cuomo Excuses: Call it Generational shift or feigned ignorance? #MeToo’s ‘redrawn lines’ Make Clear Ignorance of the Law is No Excuse. August 11, 2021 Read More U.S. Senate to try again to pass voting rights in September, Schumer says August 11, 2021 Read More U.S. judge says some Trump records should be turned over to House panel August 11, 2021 Read More Load More View the full article