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Published by Euronews (English) Pics: https://randomhouse.box.com/s/9yb9nzx9xyxlfeiuiis3wtmp6wvsy0r8 Eva Baltasar seems almost nonchalant when she talks about her nomination for the International Booker Prize. Already a well-known writer and poet in Spain, she seems unimpressed that she may be about to walk off with one of the literary world’s most prestigious awards for her novel Boulder. Baltasar’s second novel in a triptych is one of the finalists for the prize whose winner will be unveiled on May 23. When we meet she mentions, almost in passing, that the Oscar-winning Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar has said he wants to… Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Miley Cyrus has been undergoing eye movement therapy for a year. The ‘Wrecking Ball’ singer, 30, who is dating musician Maxx Morando, 24, after divorcing actor Liam Hemsworth, 33, in 2020, added she has been working with “amazing” healers as part of her counselling. She told British Vogue: “I did a lot of EMDR. It’s so helpful. Essentially, you delete the physical sensations associated with these painful memories. The EMDR really helped me.” EMDR is short for Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing and is said to help people come to terms with traumatic experiences. Miley added in the chat she is now “sober” and hasn’t been drinking, and only hangs around with “gay men” as part of her fitness obsession. She said: “I only hang out with, like, gay men. So they come over, and we do a whole class based off of Nicki Minaj or we have a Britney series. “I have a Madonna ‘Vogue’ series, which is doing the entire bow choreography with, like, our little weights.” She added about being asked for fitness advice: “I actually had this idea of doing kind of like a wellness comedy, which was me basically saying, ‘I’m Miley Cyrus and I’m a pop star and I can’t tell you what to eat or what supplements to take because I haven’t seen your lab work.’” The singer is also a big fan of journaling, and her British Vogue interviewer said she read out a recent entry from her phone during their interview. It said: “I make choices that I’m proud of that protect me… I put my mental and physical health before a paycheque… I freed up space for myself to be with friends and family doing what I love, which is working out, eating well, learning ways about how to enhance my life, staying dedicated to practices and protocols that are specifically designed for me.” The June 2023 issue of British Vogue is on newsstands from Tuesday 23 May and at https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/miley-cyrus-british-vogue-interview. View the full article

Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Senator Tim Scott, the sole Black Republican in the Senate, on Friday filed official paperwork launching his run for his party’s presidential nomination in 2024. The impoverished child of a single mother Scott of South Carolina often points to his personal story as proof that America remains a land of promise. He filed his declaration of candidacy with the Federal Election Committee on Friday. On the campaign trail, his sunny disposition presents a major contrast with other declared and prospective candidates, including former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. (Reporting by Jason Lange and Gram Slattery; Editing by Scott Malone) View the full article

Published by AlterNet MSNBC’s Emmy-award winning anchor and host Chris Hayes dissected then disintegrated Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and the Republican Party in general, for their authoritarian lunge and overall hypocrisy. For nearly eight minutes Thursday evening, Hayes explained to viewers how DeSantis peddles fake claims about freedom, while enacting some the most hypocritically “authoritarian” and “dystopian” laws in the country. Hayes says that “in Ron DeSantis’ Florida, the state will decide what books your child can or cannot leave their school library by threatening teachers and librarians with time in … Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Eric Andre has remained tight-lipped over his romance with Emily Ratajkowski. The 40-year-old comedian dated ‘Gone Girl’ actress Emily, 31, for a short period of time earlier this year and when pressed for details on the dalliance, quipped that “a gentleman never tells” but did joke that he would like to date former First Lady Michelle Obama and split her up from the former President. Speaking on SiriusXM’s ‘The Howard Stern Show’, he said “A gentleman never tells! I need to respect her privacy and boundaries. Michelle Obama is the one. I think if I can date Michelle and get her to break up with Barack!” The comedy show host went on to add that he thinks it is “time” to settle down and potentially have children, as he noted that his life is “out of balance” without a woman in it and teased that he is currently “hanging out” with a certain someone. He added: “I think it’s time. I’m getting the itch [to settle down], maybe have kids. Kids are a big responsibility. A woman in your life brings you balance though, your life is out of balance without that in your life. I’m hanging out with somebody.” On Valentine’s Day, a revealing photo of Andre that appeared to have been taken by Emily surfaced online but a source later claimed to E! News that the photo had been taken in the days before the annual romantic holiday and that she had in fact “broke up with Eric days before he posted that photo.” Just weeks later, Eric explained to Rolling Stone: “I was drinking wine, she started dying laughing, and she was like, ‘I have to take a picture of this. She took the picture, we both started cracking up, and she was like, ‘This is iconic’—she kept saying ‘iconic.’ We both agreed this was a beautiful image that we had to share with the world.” View the full article

Published by AFP Spore room: psilocybe cubsensis can now be commerically grown in Oregon Portland (AFP) – Tori Armbrust grows magic mushrooms. Not secretly or furtively, but commercially. Because in the western US state of Oregon, it’s legal. Anywhere else in the United States “I would get in big trouble for this, 1,000 percent,” she laughs. From this year, licensed growers like Armbrust have been able to sell what the Aztecs called the “flesh of the gods” to centers offering psychedelic therapy sessions, a legalization that proponents say could offer real help to people struggling with psychological problems. Hallucinogenic mushrooms have long been associated with America’s counterculture, most closely with Timothy Leary, whose phrase “Turn on, tune in, drop out” helped define the 1960s. After decades of being socially frowned upon, the active ingredient of such fungi, psilocybin, is now the subject of increasing research interest: a promising possible treatment for depression, addiction or post-traumatic stress. Oregon, a rugged, rural state with a distinctly liberal streak, is defying a federal ban to allow people over the age of 21 access to magic mushrooms without a prescription, as long as they are ingested under the auspices of a certified facilitator. A ‘shroom trip under these circumstances lasts about six hours and must be followed by at least one — non-trippy — session of counselling. Tool Certification requires the completion of a 160-hour training course, and appeals to mental health professionals like Tyler Case, who paid around $10,000 for the qualification in the hope of being able to offer an alternative to patients with personality disorders that are often considered incurable. Psilocybin is “a tool that can help people who… haven’t found help anywhere else,” the 44-year-old counsellor told AFP. “We use powerful psychotropic medications all the time, do things that will alter the way people’s brains function. Why not try this too?” Scientists are still studying how psilocybin works, and little is known about its long-term use. But research suggests that — in common with other psychedelics such as LSD (acid) or MDMA (ecstasy) — it increases neural connections, effectively re-formatting the brain and encouraging new ways of processing information that can help users resolve longstanding emotional or behavioral problems. Tobias Shea thinks this re-formatting helped pull him out of a deep depression. Two tours of Afghanistan with the US Army in which he lost comrades left Shea with debilitating anxiety that sometimes meant he was unable even to leave the house. Psychotherapy and antidepressants did not work for him, so more than a decade before Oregon’s legalization, he twice took mushrooms. “My experience in both sessions involved visual hallucinations that resembled a colorful prism, like a rainbow that covered everything in my visual field,” he said. “Emotionally, I felt an abundant joy, and also an overwhelming sense of awe at the vastness and complexity of the universe, and wonder at how I was connected to everything around me.” Working with a facilitator, he “unpacked that scary content in my head” and was able to process it in a way that he is now comfortable with. ‘Vulnerability’ Such off-the-books use of mushrooms has long existed on the fringes of psychotherapy. But operating in grey areas left patients open to abuse. Curbing bad behavior and establishing a legal framework is one of the main advantages of Oregon’s move, says Elizabeth Nielson, a psychologist and founder of Fluence, one of the companies approved to train new supervisors. In her workshops, trainers emphasize the “extreme vulnerability” of patients during their transcendental journeys. Would-be facilitators are taught to intervene as little as possible so as not to influence their clients. They must also agree beforehand which parts of the body can be touched, especially in cases where someone might be experiencing a bad trip. While Oregon is out in front, the experiment in legalization is gaining ground elsewhere in the United States. In November, Colorado voted to decriminalize hallucinogenic mushrooms and create “treatment centers.” A dozen other states, including New York and California, are considering similar measures. But beyond the therapeutic promises, there is another question: who will be able to afford such services? The $3,500 sessions offered by Oregon’s first licensed center, which has only just opened, are outrageous to some locals like Don, who runs a fungiculture shop in Portland. “You can grow your own for $40,” says the 49-year-old, who declined to give his last name. “I feel that it’s gonna be mainly towards the tourists.” View the full article

Published by AFP While US politicians voice concerns that China could get TikTok user data, the lack of national data privacy law leaves brokers free to gather and sell information about what people do online San Francisco (AFP) – A total ban of TikTok in the US state of Montana is set up to face an epic battle in the courts, but many experts wonder whether the law is even technically possible. Montana is the first US state to ban TikTok, with the law set to take effect next year as debate escalates over the impact and security of the popular video app that is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. “You would have to build a Great Fire Wall of Montana,” said Tarah Wheeler, chief of cyber security firm Red Queen Dynamics and a senior fellow for Global Cyber Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations. “Maintaining a ban in the state and remaining free of the kind of surveillance you are trying to escape is not possible,” she added. The prohibition will serve as a legal test for a national ban of the Chinese-owned platform, something that lawmakers in Washington are increasingly calling for. Five TikTok creators in the state have already filed a lawsuit in federal court arguing the ban is illegal and violates free speech rights. The app is accused by a wide swathe of US politicians of being under the tutelage of the Chinese government and a tool of espionage by Beijing, something TikTok furiously denies. Despite its immense popularity, TikTok faces an ultimatum by the White House that it split from its Chinese owners or stop operating in America. According to the law, which was signed on Wednesday by Governor Greg Gianforte, a violation takes place each time “a user accesses TikTok, is offered the ability to access TikTok, or is offered the ability to download TikTok.” Montana could not enforce the ban “without doing a whole bunch of other things we don’t want the governments of any level in the United States being able to do,” said Cyber Threat Alliance chief Michael Daniel. Causing further trouble, young TikTok fans are likely to take advantage of free virtual private network (VPN) software that lets people disguise where devices are. Technically adept teenagers in Montana will suddenly use VPNs to be seen logging from other states, Wheeler said, which also introduces vulnerabilities to spyware or malware, which are known to lurk in some VPNs. Teens being teens While the ban was passed under the auspices of protecting TikTok users in Montana from China snooping, no clear evidence of that has been shown, according to Jason Kelley, acting activism director at internet rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation. It is the lack of national data privacy law in the United States that leaves users vulnerable, with brokers free to gather and sell internet user information, Kelley noted. “If China wants data on users, they could just go buy it,” Kelley told AFP. The bill behind the ban mentioned TikTok pranks referred to as “challenges,” and one Montana legislator lamented his son taking part in one of those. “Reading between the lines, I think these legislators are angry that they don’t understand the culture of TikTok and how young people use it,” Kelley said. “Montana legislators wanted to do anything to push back on the negative impact of teenagers being teenagers and the influence of TikTok to do stupid things.” And, while the law bans Apple or Google from making TikTok available for download in Montana there are other places online to get apps for Android-powered smartphones. “There is no chance this law will work, even if it is implemented by TikTok to the extent possible,” Kelley said. The ban will take effect in 2024, but be voided if TikTok is acquired by a company incorporated in a country not designated by the United States as a foreign adversary, the law read. This was an invitation by Montana legislators for TikTok and the White House to come up with some sort of arrangement that would see the app divest from ByteDance. Lyrissa Lidsky, professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law, told AFP that the ban will easily be seen to violate fundamental free speech laws in the US where companies are afforded the same rights on speech as individuals. “The politicians think that this is a successful political strategy whether it’s constitutional or not,” she added. View the full article

Published by Raw Story A new report from The Daily Dot has revealed that North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, whom polls suggest is the frontrunner to be the North Carolina Republican Party’s nominee for governor, went on furious anti-LGBTQ rants in which he called transgender Americans “black-hearted haters of Christ.” In one particularly lengthy social media rant from 2017, for instance, Robinson declared that the goal of the LGBTQ rights movement was nothing less than “to turn God’s creation backward, and make it into a sickening image of rebellion to glorify Satan.” What’s more, Robinson argued that the push f… Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Prints of Madonna’s ‘SEX’ book photographs are set to be put up for auction. The 64-year-old pop icon released the coffee table book back in 1992, and Christie’s – the world-renowned auction house – has now confirmed that the snaps are poised to go under the hammer. Christie’s said in a statement: “Christie’s is pleased to announce its participation in the ongoing anniversary celebration initiated by Madonna and Saint Laurent’s re-issue of ‘SEX’, the boundary-pushing 1992 photography book by Madonna and Steven Meisel. “As part of the project, Christie’s will present Madonna x Meisel – The Sex Photographs an auction of over 40 works, as editions of one, in a live sale taking place in New York on 6 October 2023.” Madonna has also taken to Instagram to announce the news. The ‘Vogue’ hitmaker explained that proceeds from the auction will go to Raising Malawi, a non-profit organisation that is changing the lives of children in Malawi through “health, education and community support”. Madonna wrote on the photo-sharing platform: “It took us 4 Decades and several Provocative photo shoots to open people’s minds through ART! “It took @stevenmeiselofficial almost as long to join Instagram – just in time to announce our Christie’s auction, to benefit @raisingmalawi “Proof that great causes can move mountains. [winking and heart emojis] (sic)” Last year, Madonna described releasing ‘SEX’ as an “empowering” experience. The chart-topping star also slammed her critics for sex-shaming her at the time. She wrote on her Instagram Story: “Thirty years ago I published a book called S.E.X. in addition to photos of me naked. There were photos of men kissing men, woman kissing woman, and me kissing everyone. I also wrote about my sexual fantasies and shared my point of view about sexuality in an ironic way. “I spent the next few years being interviewed by narrow-minded people who tried to shame me for empowering myself as a woman. (sic)” View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Police have been criticised over plans to use live face recognition cameras on fans at Beyonce’s concert in Cardiff. South Wales Police had revealed plans to use the software to identify people wanted for “priority offences” after the cameras were used by law enforcement earlier this month at the coronation of King Charles. The facial recognition technology was set to be used at the Beyonce concert “to support policing in the identification of persons wanted for priority offences”. The decision was also made to “support law enforcement” and “ensure the safeguarding of children and vulnerable persons”. A spokesperson for South Wales Police told the BBC: “Facial Recognition is not a condition of entry and it will not be on the stadium footprint.” The camera uses artificial intelligence to compare faces with a “watch list”, which could be made up of people wanted for crimes. South Wales Police had said if someone wasn’t on a watch list, the biometric data would be immediately deleted rather than being stored. The CCTV footage is kept for up to 31 days. Human rights campaigners have criticised the move, including Surveillance Camera watchdog Fraser Sampson, who argued more work has to be done to ensure there is no bias, while he warned a planned new law could weaken the rules governing the process. Recently, European law-makers backed plans to effectively ban live face recognition cameras being used in public spaces. View the full article

Published by OK Magazine @ladygaga/tiktok Is that Lady Gaga? The “Shallow” singer took to TikTok on Wednesday, May 17, to share a clip promoting her makeup line. However, fans were alarmed, as they seemed to think it was not Gaga herself featured in the video. @ladygaga/tiktok “These NEUTRALS are HOT LIKE THIS RECORD @HausLabs (Grrrrrrr…I’m wearing maple matte ),” the pop sensation captioned the short clip of herself whirling around in a black tank top to the song “Princess Diana” by Ice Spice and Nicki Minaj. “This might not be lady gaga?? am i crazy,” one fan speculated, while a second person noted that she looked like another famous artist, “Miley Cyrus cosplaying as Lady Gaga.” A third user noted, “She looks like somebody who kinda looks like lady Gaga,” and another added, “My mind is fighting over deciding whether this is Miley Cyrus or Lady Gaga.” @ladygaga/tiktok ‘Sister Wives’ Star Christine Brown Reveals She Rocks Out To ‘Empowering’ Playlist Featuring Kelly Clarkson Oscars 2023: What You Didn’t See On TV — Lady Gaga To The Rescue, Cara Delevingne Hangs With Florence Pugh & More Lady Gaga & Michael Polansky Secretly Split After Butting Heads Over Marriage & Kids, Spills Source: They ‘Hit A Wall’ Despite the online chatter, one person pointed out that the American Horror Story actress’ appearance has changed for a new role. “She lost weight for her role in joker 2 and the video is mirrored, y’all are so quick to judge,” the user claimed. Gaga has been hard at work on the upcoming action film after nabbing the role from Margot Robbie — who was not thrilled about losing out on the project. “Lady Gaga playing Harley Quinn in the Joker sequel instead of Margot Robbie is a joke. Every real actor in Hollywood should be nervous that they are going to be replaced with some pop culture phenomenon who hasn’t paid their dues,” an insider spilled exclusively to OK!. @ladygaga/instagram Never miss a story — sign up for the OK! newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what OK! has to offer. It’s gossip too good to wait for! “Margot isn’t angry about the choice; she is insulted,” a source continued. “This isn’t about casting the most talented person for the role, but rather casting someone who get the most press attention.” Other Tinsletown insiders have not been thrilled with the casting decision either. “This might be a ‘happy’ day for Lady Gaga, but it isn’t for Hollywood,” one top publicist said. “Next Nicole Kidman will be replaced by Kim Kardashian.” View the full article

Published by City AM By Adam Bloodworth Brokeback Mountain play review and star rating: ★★★ Where was all the spine-tingling intimacy? The kissing scenes that show what two men together can be like, the caressing of a shoulder with the tuft of hair, the chin nuzzling into the armpit, the gazes of adoration? Brokeback Mountain, originally a 1997 short story published in the New Yorker, became a masterpiece of the big screen in 2005 when Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal played two closeted gay lovers who worked on a ranch and fell hopelessly in love. The film is singular in its beauty: it still retains its crown as … Read More View the full article

Published by AFP Penguin Random House and PEN America have sued a Florida school district over the removal of books that address race and LGBTQ issues Washington (AFP) – Publisher Penguin Random House and the writers’ group PEN America filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against a Florida school district over the removal of books from public school libraries that address race and LGBTQ issues. The book removals are unconstitutional and a violation of the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech, according to the suit against the Escambia County School District and the school board. “Books are being ordered removed from libraries, or subject to restricted access within those libraries, based on an ideologically driven campaign to push certain ideas out of schools,” the complaint said. “These restrictions and removals have disproportionately targeted books by or about people of color and/or LGBTQ people,” it added. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a potential candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has been a driving force behind a campaign in the southern state to restrict children’s access to certain books. Florida has been a leading battleground in the so-called “culture wars” in the United States and scores of books have been removed from library shelves in recent months, deemed inappropriate for children by conservative parents and school boards. Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America, denounced the book removals in a statement announcing the lawsuit. “Children in a democracy must not be taught that books are dangerous,” Nossel said. “In Escambia County, state censors are spiriting books off shelves in a deliberate attempt to suppress diverse voices. “In a nation built on free speech, this cannot stand.” Nihar Malaviya, CEO of Penguin Random House, said “books have the capacity to change lives for the better, and students in particular deserve equitable access to a wide range of perspectives. “We stand by our authors, their books, and the teachers, librarians, and parents who champion free expression.” Several authors who have had their books removed joined the lawsuit along with the parents of children who attend schools in Escambia County. According to the lawsuit, at least two books published by Penguin Random House — “The Bluest Eye” by Nobel Literature Prize-winning author Toni Morrison and “Push” by Sapphire — have been removed from some school district libraries and others are being targeted. They include “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini, “Two Boys Kissing” by David Levithan and “Slaughterhouse-Five” by Kurt Vonnegut. According to PEN America, 1,648 unique book titles were banned in 32 states during the 2021-22 school year, with the most occurring in Florida and Texas. View the full article

Published by NJ.com Editor’s Note: This post has been updated to include a response from the Hanover Township school board and the state’s largest teachers union. The New Jersey Attorney General filed a civil rights complaint Wednesday against the Hanover Township Board of Education and public schools, challenging a policy passed Tuesday requiring school staff to notify parents of their children’s gender identity and sexual orientation. Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin joined Sundeep Iyer, Director of the Division on Civil Rights, in filing an emergency motion in Superior Court to prevent the new policy from g… Read More View the full article

Published by The Spun By Andrew Gould The Los Angeles Dodgers uninvited the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence from their Pride Night following an anti-trans backlash. On Wednesday, the team said the non-profit charity organization, whose queer and trans members use drag and religious imagery to satire bigotry, will no longer attend their 10th annual event on June 16. “Given the strong feelings of people who have been offended by the sisters’ inclusion in our evening, and in an effort not to distract from the great benefits that we have seen over the years of Pride Night, we are deciding to remove them from this year’… Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Andy Cohen “could have some good threesomes” with Anderson Cooper. The 54-year-old star has been single since he split up with Broadway actor John Hill in 2020 but insisted that while he “loves” CNN co-host Anderson – who called time on his long-term relationship with Benjamin Maisani in 2018 – they are “truly just good friends” and he loves being able to team up with him for work. Speaking on US talk show ‘Sherri’, he said: “We could have some good threesomes, me and Anderson! But by the way, that is what it would take because we are truly just good friends. I love him to death. We have gotten so much closer over the years and it’s also so fun being part of a duo. We’ve toured the country, 50 plus cities and we’re on every New Year’s Eve. I love making him giggle, it makes me so happy!” Towards the end of last year Andy – who has four-year-old son Benjamin and 13-month-old Lucy whilst Anderson is father to three-year-old Wyatt and Sebastian, 13 months – explained that their friendship had strengthened since they had become gay dads and noted how “glad” he is that their children will get to grow up together. Speaking on the ‘Table for Two’ podcast, he said: “We are these geriatric patients hobbling around chasing our children, but look it’s another bonding thing. I think what is going to be really interesting to us, as it develops, is being gay dads and as our kids start realizing more and more ‘Oh I have gay dads.’ I am so glad that Ben [Cohen] will grow up with Wyatt [Cooper] and that Ben with grow up seeing Anderson and Benjamin [Maisani] raising Wyatt and Sebastian.” View the full article

Published by The Seattle Times SEATTLE — Brandy Clark has lived in Nashville, Tennessee, so long that most people outside her home state of Washington don’t realize the decorated singer-songwriter hails from the Pacific Northwest. But that’s about to change, thanks to her perfectly unvarnished new album, produced by another Washington star. Brandy Clark and Brandi Carlile have moved in overlapping circles for years, yet their first proper collaboration came through early-pandemic recording sessions that saw a Zoomed-in Carlile producing two songs for Clark, including their Grammy-nominated duet “Same Devil.” On paper (and a… Read More View the full article

Published by PsyPost In new research published in the journal Human Nature, researchers found that heterosexual men in romantic relationships who sought services from sex workers preferred a “variety experience” rather than a “relationship experience.” The study sought to examine male use of a dual mating strategy, a theory in evolutionary psychology that suggests humans often employ two different mating strategies to maximize their reproductive success. According to this theory, men seek short-term sexual encounters to maximize their chances of spreading their genes widely. This strategy is driven by the desire f… Read More View the full article

Published by OK Magazine mega;@artemislangford/facebook Caitlyn Jenner accused a fellow transwoman of being nothing more than a “sexually deviant male” in a scathing tirade during an interview with America Reports host Sandra Smith earlier this week. This shocking back-and-forth occurred after transgender college student Artemis Langford chose to join a sorority at the University of Wyoming, later resulting in several members of the group suing the organization because they allegedly felt uncomfortable with Langford’s presence. mega Jenner, who transitioned and legally changed her name herself back in 2015, slammed Langford for making the decision to join the women’s college group, insisting that “if you look at those pictures, what I have to say is, he is a perverted, sexually deviant male.” Added the 73-year-old, “I’m sorry, Artemis Langford, you are not a woman and you do not belong in women’s spaces. mega;@artemislangford/facebook “I was listening to Fox News the other night and Clay Travis, I think, put it just perfectly,” Jenner continued. “He says living in this world, equality really, really has become inequality, and it’s so true because the women are not being protected here, and that is a shame.” TheKeeping Up with the Kardashians alum noted she’s been “fighting this woke world” for a “long time,” specifically trying to “protect women’s sports.” “And you know, you got to fight back all this B.S. Every day, tooth and nail,” she continued. Caitlyn Jenner Admits She Doesn’t Know What Fox’s ‘Next Step’ Will Be After Tucker Carlson Firing Caitlyn Jenner Insists the United States Needs an ‘Alpha Male’ Like Donald Trump After Alleged Biden Administration Failures: ‘We Have Become a Joke’ ‘Whine, Whine, Whine’: Caitlyn Jenner Slams Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Over Claims They Were in ‘Near Catastrophic’ Car Chase With Paparazzi mega Jenner’s opinions appeared to echo those of the three women who filed a lawsuit against the University’s Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority for allowing Langford to join. “We’re fighting for the importance of women’s spaces and what it truly means to be a woman,” one of the women said. “We were promised from the beginning that we would have a sisterhood, meaning only females, and our national sorority has failed us.” “It’s a weird, gut-wrenching feeling that every time I leave my room there’s a possibility that I’ll walk past him in the hall,” another sorority sister named Hannah told Megyn Kelly in a recent podcast episode, going on to repeatedly misgender Langford throughout the interview. “It’s a weird feeling just to know that I could run into him anytime … (he has) full access to the house. But this just goes to show like we need women’s spaces for that reason,” she continued. “Like our house is our home. Just like anyone else’s home, like, you go home at the end of the day to feel comfortable and relaxed in your own skin. And you can’t do that knowing that this individual has full access to your house.” Never miss a story — sign up for the OK! newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what OK! has to offer. It’s gossip too good to wait for! Mediaite reported Jenner’s comments to Smith calling Langford a “deviant.” View the full article

Published by AlterNet U.S. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) is demanding the Dept. of Defense rescind a memo authorizing LGBTQ Pride celebrations on military installations, and says Congress should defund America’s Armed Forces if it refuses. “What’s next, rainbow uniforms during pride month?” Roy asked on social media and in a statement to Fox News. “The Air Force and Defense Department sanctions this ridiculous use of taxpayer dollars and then expects members of Congress who represent Americans who are livid about this stuff to green light an $800 billion plus DOD budget. If DOD doesn’t put a stop to these kinds of divisive … Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English David Archuleta thought there was “something wrong with [him]” when he started to realise he was gay. The 32-year-old pop singer grew up in a religious community and did not understand the heteronormative expectations laid out to him when it was “clear” to him that he had “strong feelings” towards other boys. He told People: “My sexuality has been a part of me. It’s something that I’ve felt. I can’t say I was fully aware of it, but I knew something was different about me, starting from when I was a little kid in elementary school. People would start talking about crushes. I started feeling that for girls, but then I started feeling it for guys. I was like, “Wait, I was always told that this was supposed to be for a girl, so why am I feeling it for boys?”‘ I felt really embarrassed. Like how Elsa [from ‘Frozen’] would say, conceal it, don’t let them in, try to hold it all inside. Growing up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, everything is about marriage, everything is about having a spouse and creating children with them. But each time that I was trying to date a girl, it was clear that my feelings were equal [to] if not even stronger for guys. I was like, ‘There must be something wrong with me.'” The former ‘American Idol’ star went on to explain that he felt “mad” about his sexuality until he turned 30 and even ended up “praying” in an effort to change things but eventually learned to “love and embrace” himself for who he is. He added: “I was still feeling mad until I was 30. I was like, ‘No matter what I do, I don’t know how to change this.’ It got to a point where I was praying and I’m just like, “God, if you are really there, please. I don’t know what else to do. Am I cursed? Am I supposed to be unhappy for the rest of my life?’ “Finally, I felt this huge flow of love and peace, and it just said, “David, you need to stop asking me this because you’re asking me the wrong thing. You’re asking me to change something that I don’t intend to change. I created you this way the way, the way you were supposed to be, and you need to understand this.” “That really changed my life because I thought I had to hate myself because there was this part of me that was wrong. When I learned to love that and embrace it and just allow it to be, I was like, “Wow, I feel this love I never felt for myself ever.” View the full article

Published by AFP Disney announced it is canceling a new campus for employees near Orlando's Disney World New York (AFP) – Disney canceled plans for a new employee campus in central Florida on Thursday in the latest ripple effect from its feud with Republican governor of the state Ron DeSantis. The entertainment giant will not move forward with the Lake Nona project due to “considerable changes” since the original announcement, “including new leadership and changing business conditions,” said a memo from parks chairman Josh D’Amaro. The project, first announced in July 2021, was expected to relocate 2,000 jobs from California to Lake Nona, which is about 20 miles (30 kilometers) east of the huge Disney World complex in Orlando. The staff was to have included workers in digital technology, finance and product development, with an average annual salary of $120,000, Orlando business groups said at the time of the announcement. The project was estimated as an $864 million investment, according to earlier press reports. But Disney has been embroiled in an increasingly pitched battle with DeSantis, who is reportedly planning to launch his bid for the Republican presidential nomination next week. The origin of the fight was Disney’s criticism of a DeSantis-backed law banning school lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity. In his challenge to former president Donald Trump, DeSantis has staked out far-right positions on myriad hot-button issues, restricting children’s access to certain books and blocking a new course on Black studies. Jerry Demings, mayor of Orange County, which comprises the tourism site, said Disney’s decision was “unfortunate,” according to a statement. “However, these are the consequences when there isn’t an inclusive and collaborative work environment between the state of Florida and the business community,” Demings said. “We will continue to work closely with our valued partners at Disney.” In February, DeSantis removed Disney’s control of its special self-governing district, which allowed the city-sized park to run its own zoning and infrastructure projects, exempt from state regulations. The Florida governor also floated the idea of building a new prison near the park, which is part of a sprawling tourism site employing 75,000 people and attracting 50 million visitors per year. But Disney, which reinstated longtime leader Bob Iger as chief executive last November, has fought back. In April, Disney sued DeSantis, characterizing the Florida governor’s actions as a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” that violates the company’s right to free speech. Earlier this week, Disney asked a judge to throw out a lawsuit filed by a DeSantis-aligned oversight board. Trump, for his part, has ridiculed DeSantis’s fight with Disney, predicting in April in a social media post the company would stop investing new money in Florida or “even announce a slow withdrawal.” In a statement on Thursday, Trump’s campaign charged that DeSantis’ feud with Disney has robbed the state of a huge investment and lucrative jobs “because he was too weak to fight for his state,” while hailing Trump as “the Jobs President.” “Ron DeSantis’ failed war on Disney has done little for his limping shadow campaign, and now is doing even less for Florida’s economy,” the campaign said. Disney’s D’Amaro said in Thursday’s memo that the company is “committed to our teams who call Central Florida home.” “We have plans to invest $17 billion and create 13,000 jobs over the next ten years,” D’Amaro said. “I hope we’re able to do so.” View the full article

Published by New York Daily News NEW YORK — U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman Thursday accused Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of promoting racist tropes about Black men after she claimed to have felt “threatened” by his “physical mannerisms” during an argument on the steps of the Capitol. Bowman, a Bronx Democrat who is Black, said Greene was spewing racist dog whistles when she claimed he should be monitored because she believes he acted “aggressively” during a verbal confrontation a day earlier. “Black men continue to be characterized as aggressive and threatening when we are passionate and outspoken,” Bowman tweeted. “They’re not just … Read More View the full article

Published by Raw Story A celebrity megachurch with a global reach accused of sexual abuse is the subject of a four-part FX docuseries “The Secrets of Hillsong,” Jezebel reports. Carl Lentz, the Hillsong Church’s “rockstar pastor” who was removed from his leadership role in 2020 over allegations of “breaches of trust” and a “recent revelation of moral failures,” was the subject of a 2021 Vanity Fair investigative series that is the basis of the docuseries. Lentz in his role as “celebrity pastor” enjoyed public relationships with Justin Bieber and the Kardashian-Jenner clan along with members of the New York Knicks an… Read More View the full article

Published by OK Magazine @coltonunderwood/instagram Colton Underwood is now a married man! The former Bachelor lead said “I Do” to Jordan C. Brown in a lavish wedding ceremony at the Carneros Resort and Spa in Napa Valley, Calif., on Saturday, May 13. mega The couple first met at a Los Angeles party in 2021 and got engaged the following year. “It was very natural and organic, how it progressed,” the reality star said of their connection with his new husband, adding, “We both just had a gut feeling.” “I’ve never been more sure about something,” Underwood — who previously dated Bachelor contestant Cassie Randolph — gushed about Brown. “He has the biggest heart and he’s such a good friend to all of the people in his life. He goes out of his way to take care of his friends and his family. That speaks volumes. It was one of the first things that I noticed about him.” @coltonunderwood/instagram Jennifer Aniston, Zac Efron, Demi Lovato, More: See Which Sexy Celebrities Are Single For The Summer Flaunting Their #Pride… And More! Wilson Cruz, Colton Underwood, Gus Kenworthy Are Some Of The Sexiest LGBTQ+ Male Celebs Out There Savannah Chrisley Insists She ‘Knew’ Colton Underwood was Gay After 2017 Date “I love the family that we’ve created already,” he continued of their happily ever after. “Having our two dogs and our home and this wedding, we’ve really created a life that feels so compatible and in sync.” The three-day event was attended by 200 people and kicked off with a family dinner and welcome party on Friday night, with the outdoor ceremony on Saturday morning. “We wanted trees around and sunshine,” Brown explained of their special day. “It was really important for us to get married outside.” mega Never miss a story — sign up for the OK! newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what OK! has to offer. It’s gossip too good to wait for! Underwood revealed to the world in 2021 that he was gay after appearing on theBachelor, The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise. “For me, I’ve ran from myself from a long time. I’m gay, and I came to terms with that earlier this year, and I’ve been processing it. The next step in all of this was letting people know. I’m still nervous, but yeah… It’s been a journey, for sure.” he explained during a sit-down with Good Morning America. “I’m the happiest I’ve been in my life, and that’s been the world to me.” People spoke with Underwood and Brown. View the full article