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Friday, June 30, 2023

Reflections on Pride Month 2023

 Letters to the editor

Rand Hoch, West Palm Beach
Founder of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council.


The struggle continues

Rand Hock
Founder Palm Beach County HRC

As Pride Month draws to a close, this week’s editorial acknowledges that “the struggle against bigotry and hate continues.”

During the 2023 legislative session, Florida lawmakers passed six cruel and unnecessary anti-LGBTQ+ bills, including one to prevent trans Floridians from accessing gender-affirming care. While state politicians claimed to be focused on “protecting” young Floridians, the law also denied trans adults the right to make their own healthcare decisions – and the financial resources for care they have relied on for years.

The 9,000 transgender Floridians receiving healthcare through Medicaid received a temporary reprieve when U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle in Tallahassee issued a temporary injunction preventing the law (SB 254) from taking immediate effect. The judge let Gov. DeSantis and Republican legislators know unequivocally that gender identity is real.

However, Judge Hinkle does not have the last word. It is likely that the state will challenge his decision and waste tax dollars on litigation to once again harm trans Floridians.

This Pride Month has been marked by a culture of fear and repression in Florida. But the temporary injunction against the ban is a hopeful sign. As the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council celebrates our 35th year of advocating for the LGBTQ+ community, we will continue to work for a complete reversal of the ban.

Rand Hoch, West Palm Beach

_____________________


My Note: I proudly serve on the Board of The Palm Beach Human Rights Council (PBHRC) as Assistant Secretary.  Thank you Rand for your tireless support to all member of the Palm Beach LGBTQ+ community.  

Thursday, June 29, 2023

PBS - AMERICAN EXPERIENCE Casa Susanna

In the 1950s and ’60s, an underground network of transgender women and cross-dressing men found refuge at a house in the Catskills region of New York. Known as Casa Susanna, the house provided a safe place to express their true selves.




Watch on PBS

Wednesday, June 28, 2023

The 21 Most Historical Transgender Figures

Here’s a great video I found on YouTube of the 21 Most Historical Transgender Figures. It’s a really well done and respectful video that shows that transgender people have been around since the very beginning.






Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Don’t Be So Worried...


They won’t even see.

The Pink Femme Blog.


I would say that the single biggest feeling holding girls back from expressing just a bit more girliness than they currently are is worry/fear. Girls are worried that strangers that they have never met, nor will ever meet again will see the girliness and judge them for it.

The truth is that the vast majority of people that you encounter on a day-to-day basis are consumed by their own world behind the screen of their own worries and fears. As a result, they won’t even see the pink lip balm, nude eyeliner, or clear nail polish [feminine differentials] that you are too afraid to try out.

Girlfriend, here is my challenge to you. Make a list of three small/subtle girly things that you have avoided while going out into the world. If you are a new girl and can’t think of three things, then use my list in the paragraph above (pink lip balm, nude eyeliner, and clear nail polish). Next week you will pick 3 days and on each of those days do just one of those girly things that scares you.

I am sure that nobody will even notice or make any remark. After each of your outings, I want you to come back and share the girly thing you tried and what the response was so that other girls can see that they don’t have anything to worry about.

Much love to ya!

CandieHart 


 

Monday, June 26, 2023

A Real Father's Love

Learning to let love lead: A family’s journey to accept their transgender daughter

By Adrienne Broaddus, CNN
Updated 5:41 PM EDT, Wed June 21, 2023


CNN
 — 
As an ordained Christian minister, Ontay Johnson’s faith teaches love is patient and kind. After one of his children came out as a transgender woman, the husband and father of three has had to practice what he preaches.

“This hasn’t been an easy transition as a father,” Ontay told CNN of the experience of his 25-year-old daughter, Kiah Naomi Johnson.

“I told Kiah, ‘There’s a difference between agreement and acceptance.’ For me, nope, I don’t agree. I do accept because that is my baby.

“I had to really dig deep to understand love. I thought I knew but my baby has taught me to really reevaluate and reimagine love and what love is.”

As the nation celebrates Pride across the country, in a suburb of Indianapolis, Indiana, Ontay and his wife, Gina, are still working on accepting Kiah’s truth. At times, Ontay says the journey has been turbulent.


“But… the Lord spoke very audibly to me and said, ‘Ontay, you’ve got to let love lead.’ And I wrestled with that,” Ontay told CNN. “How would Jesus handle this? And so that’s really challenged my theology, my perspective, and my psychology around this. I’m still growing.”

“Jesus didn’t always agree with some decisions that I made and some things that I’ve done but he still accepts me just as I am. That has brought me peace. We have had some turbulent times, but we’re human and we’re walking this thing out.”


Ontay said this “let love lead” journey has revealed that love never gives up. He also expressed his concern for fathers who have walked away from their children who identify as LGBTQ.


    


Saturday, June 24, 2023

Friday, June 23, 2023

And Tango Makes Three

Florida School District Bans Book About Real-Life Same-Sex Penguin Couple



By Mary Papenfuss
Jan 5, 2023



In fighting the district’s decision, the lawsuit noted that the book is without offensive language or sexually explicit content and stays true to a biological fact that same-sex behavior is “a nearly universal phenomenon in the animal kingdom.
____________________

In a particularly bird-brained political move, a Florida school district [Lake County School District]h as reportedly banned books about an actual same-sex penguin couple from classrooms and school libraries.





The award-winning 2005 children’s book “And Tango Makes Three” features a real-life male chinstrap penguin couple — Roy and Silo — that built a nest together at the zoo in New York’s Central Park. The birds ended up “adopting” an orphan penguin chick (Tango) and raising it as their own. (Other same-sex penguin couples have since been discovered in other zoos.)


“Tango” is often a target of book banners. In 2015, The Daily Express named it on its list of surprising banned books — which also included “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “Where’s Waldo.” The newspaper called “Tango” a “delightful kiddies’ tale of two penguins who fall in love and adopt a baby” that “doesn’t exactly scream out controversy.”





Thursday, June 22, 2023

Musical Interlude - In The Summer Time

 Sometimes we just need a smile. Have a happy summer!




Mungo Jerry - In the Summertime (Official Lyrics Video)




Wednesday, June 21, 2023

It's never too late to explore your gender identity.

 Here's how to start



NPR: May 19, 2023
By Kyle Norris





Look, identity is intimate — especially when it comes to gender.

Some people have known since childhood that their identity falls outside of society's expectations.

For others, the idea of questioning their gender is relatively new.

Whatever the case, it's important to remember that it's never too late to explore your identity. In fact, doing so can be a great way to get to know yourself better — even if you aren't trans or nonbinary.

Life Kit spoke with Imara Jones, Alok Vaid-Menon and Matt Rice about their own processes for exploring gender identity, and they share a few tips on how to begin.


Tuesday, June 20, 2023

What She Wore - Mercedes Club Breakfast...

and Car Shopping


Talbots petite skirt (last season)
Talbots Roll Up Sleeve, Button Down, Chambray Denim Shirt
Talbots rope macrame bucket bag in cream. 
Vintage Coach Issy Signature Buckle Peep Toe Pumps


My Mercedes Club had our "End-of-the-Season" breakfast a few weeks back. The Breakfast at the Jupiter's Jersey Diner, was attended by our late season regulars; those that have not headed north. It is fun group and was my chance to show off my almost new '18 SL.

Which brings up an interesting story.  a few months back I visited my local Mercedes Dealer to confirm a club event to be held this coming fall. I was immediately drawn to a beautiful black '18 SL 550. The interior is a camel/tan and it has all the features of my previous SL, 4 years younger and very low mileage. If I had ordered one from the factory, this would have been my options of choice. 

The higher used car prices enhanced my trade-in value (equity) and this was a good age/trade point. My old car was detailed and went immediately to their front line-up.  I was told it sold in two days. 

Technical stuff: Mercedes has done a major refresh of the SL line from the R231 design (my car) to the R232 (2022).  Gone is the convertible folding origami hard-top replacing it with a cloth soft-top. There is  the addition of a miniature backseat (2+2) and AWD. Also AMG has taken over the line now badging the SL as AMG 55 and AMG 63. Starting at $137,400 and $178,100 MSRP respectively; a significant price increase. I am not sold on the soft-top nor the price differential, thus my preference for the older design. See how America influenced the 2022 Mercedes AMG SL.

As Rhonda, I worked with a Daniella, a kind and no-pressure sales person and ultimately we struck a mutual deal.  I was introduced around and had another no-pressure experience with the closing person, Barry. Deal done, Daniella insisted on the ribbon photo; "Oh must there be photos?" 

Of course all the paperwork was accomplished with my legal name, but no one blinked and there were many feminine type hugs at closing. This car-buying experience was likely my less stressful and best all around ever.     

Just another example of how visibility adds to our acceptance.   




Monday, June 19, 2023

Snatching Defeat From the Jaws of Victory...


The Victory 

Biden hosts Pride Month celebration at White House, voices LGBTQ+ support

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden welcomed hundreds to the White House on Saturday for a delayed Pride Month celebration aimed at showing LGBTQ+ people that his administration has their back at a time when advocates are warning of a spike in discriminatory legislation, particularly aimed at the transgender community, sweeping through statehouses.

The event, which the administration described as the largest Pride event hosted at the White House, was initially scheduled for Thursday, but was postponed because of poor air quality from hazardous air flowing in from Canadian wildfires. But the haze that blanketed a huge swath of the East Coast this past week had lifted over the nation’s capital, allowing the president and first lady Jill Biden to hold their South Lawn party.

“So today, I want to send a message to the entire community — especially to transgender children: You are loved. You are heard. You’re understood. And you belong,” Biden said.



The Defeat

Trans activist Rose Montoya apologizes for taking top off at the White House Pride event [Too Late] 

USA Today: Model Rose Montoya apologized for taking off her top at a White House LGBTQ Pride event in a new video shared online.

The White House announced Wednesday that the transgender activist would no longer be invited to future events for taking her top off at the celebration on the South Lawn over the weekend. Images and footage of a topless Montoya covering her breasts with her hands circled social media soon after the event.


"I alongside other powerful voices in the queer and trans communities were invited to be represented, seen and heard in a unique and very special way," the 27-year-old said. "In a quick moment of fleeting and overwhelming trans joy, I decided to do something unbecoming of a guest of the president."

 

Montoya added that she also did not intend for her moment of trans joy to be weaponized by "vile people of the opposition."

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned Montoya's action during a briefing Tuesday, calling the display inappropriate and disrespectful.

“The behavior was simply unacceptable. We’ve been very clear about that," Jean-Pierre said. “It was unfair to the hundreds of attendees who were there to celebrate their families." 

___________________

My Note: When President Biden has another opportunity to help the Transgender community what will come to mind?  The hundreds that came and respected him or the one the right-wing media has used to further embarrass him?   Lets be smart in our dress, words, and actions.  



Saturday, June 17, 2023

The Worst Father of The Year Award - Goes to...

Montana Governor, [Greg Gianforte] Whose Child Is Nonbinary, Signs Law Defining 'Sex' as Only Male or Female


My Note: This Fathers Day post goes along with my Mother's Day post "The Worst Mother of The Year Award - Goes to...". Putting politics above family and demeaning your child is just wrong on so many levels.     

Montana Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte

Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte has signed into law a bill that defines "sex" as a binary in Montana law, weeks after his child, who identifies as nonbinary, urged him not to.

Over the weekend, the Montana governor signed the controversial anti-LGBTQ+ measure — known as Senate Bill 458 — which will define the word “sex” in state law as only male or female. The law is scheduled to take effect Oct. 1.

In a statement, the governor’s press secretary, Kaitlin Price, said the law "codifies the long-recognized, commonsense, immutable, biologically-based definition of sex, male and female, while protecting people born intersex and not infringing on transgender individuals’ ability to identify with whatever gender, but not sex, they wish."

But opponents argue that it effectively erases those who are transgender, nonbinary, Two-Spirit or intersex from state law. In an April House floor debate on the measure, state Rep. SJ Howell, who is transgender and nonbinary, argued that many Montanans don't consider themselves "male" or "female."

“The reality is that there are people who are out living their lives, Montanans, our friends and community members, who who do not fit into these definitions just because of their medical and biological reality,” Howell said, per Montana's KTVQ.

Howell continued: "Imagine my dismay at discovering that a state like Montana, my state, my home, says the government knows better. There’s two boxes, you got to choose, end of story.”

Friday, June 16, 2023

Feminine Differential - Atteding An Afternoon Tea

Wimp Juice: America’s Long, Strange History of Gendering Tea

From the "TASTE" Blog 
By :REBECCA FLINT MARX

The outfit I wore to the Friday "Pink Retreat" ladies Tea and luncheon.


 
My Note: I have always seen "The Afternoon Tea" and "High Tea" as a feminine activity.  Women and girls retiring to the parlor to have Tea and what we Americans call snacks.  For my "Pink Retreat" last weekend, what could have been more fitting than a tea luncheon served in an elegant museum. So, is having Tea, my beverage of choice, a feminine activity. What do you think?  

I also attended one other "Elegant Lunch at a Tea Room" a few years back.  See that post from my Meetup Group lunch at The Hobe Sound Art Village Tea Room.  

__________________

In the U.S.
, tea [as a beverage] has been coded as feminine for the better part of the last 150 years, despite the fact that in just about every other part of the world where it is consumed, it’s simply another beverage to be enjoyed by men and women alike.  

Pink Retreat - Gilded Age-style Tea
Service in the Café des Beaux-Arts,
 Flagler Museum,
 
One theory behind the American gendering of tea lies in the early-20th-century proliferation of tea rooms, which were run by and largely for women, often sported doilies and pink decor, and served the kind of dainty, sugary foods that were likewise coded as feminine. Another theory points to the female-led temperance movement, which promoted coffee as an alternative to alcohol for working men, helping to brand it as masculine. Around the same time, during World War I, tea producers in India and Ceylon (now known as Sri Lanka) pushed for contracts to have tea served in schools and factories in different parts of the world; they weren’t successful in doing so in the U.S., but the coffee industry was.

If coffee in the U.S. became known as a working man’s drink, complete with the manly nickname of joe, then tea continued to be commonly associated with tea parties, the English, and gossiping women, no matter its complexity or, for that matter, the comparative strength of its flavor or caffeine content.


Thursday, June 15, 2023

I Love A Success Story - Historic Night for Nonbinary Performers

J. Harrison Ghee and Alex Newell Win Tony Awards

Ghee became the first out nonbinary performer to win a Tony for best leading actor in a musical, for ‘Some Like It Hot.’


By Michael Paulson
June 11, 2023

J. Harrison Ghee accepting the Tony Award

J. Harrison Ghee, whose portrayal of a gender-questioning musician fleeing the mob in “Some Like It Hot” has charmed critics and audiences, won a Tony Award for best leading actor in a musical Sunday night, becoming the first out nonbinary actor to win that award.

Ghee’s victory came shortly after Alex Newell, who is also nonbinary, won a Tony Award for best featured actor in a musical, becoming the first out nonbinary performer to win a Tony.

The wins come at a time when gender identity has become a central element of America’s culture wars, as conservatives in multiple states press for legislation on a variety of L.G.B.T.Q.-related issues, including gender-affirming medical care for transgender children and teenagers, bathroom access, sports participation and, in some states, performances.

Alex Newell acceptance Speech: 

...I love you all. Thank you for seeing me. Broadway, I should not be up here as a queer, nonbinary, fat, Black little baby from Massachusetts. And to anyone that thinks that they can’t do it, I’m going to look you dead in your face and tell you that you can do anything you put your mind to.”

The Tony Awards, like the Oscars, have only gendered categories for performers, and Ghee and Newell agreed to be considered eligible for awards as actors. (Another nonbinary performer this season, Justin David Sullivan of “& Juliet,” opted not to be considered for awards rather than compete in a gendered category.)

Asked in a recent interview with The New York Times about having been nominated in a gendered category, Ghee said: “Wherever I am, I will show up as who I am. Someone’s compartmentalization of me doesn’t limit me in any way.

“I hope for the industry we can remove the gender of it,” they added, “because we are creators and we should free ourselves beyond so many labels and let the work speak for itself.”

Alex Newell accepting the Tony Award

At least two performers who later came out as nonbinary have previously won Tony Awards as best featured actress in a musical: Sara Ramirez, who won in 2005 for “Spamalot,” and Karen Olivo (also known as K O), who won in 2009 for a revival of “West Side Story.” Also: Last year, the Tony Award for best score went to Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss for “Six,” and Marlow is nonbinary.

Ghee’s depiction of a main character in “Some Like It Hot” reflects the way views on gender have evolved since 1959, when the Billy Wilder film it was based on was released. In the movie Jack Lemmon plays a musician named Jerry who dresses as a woman named Daphne to flee the mob; in the musical Ghee plays the same character, but Jerry’s path to becoming Daphne becomes one of self-discovery, not disguise.

The performance earned critical praise. Jesse Green, The Times’s chief theater critic, wrote that Ghee “carefully traces Jerry’s transformation into Daphne, and then the merging of the two identities into a third that takes us into territory that’s far more complex than jokey drag.”

Ghee, 33, worked as a drag performer before finding success in musical theater, with key roles on Broadway in “Kinky Boots” and “Mrs. Doubtfire” before “Some Like It Hot.”

Wednesday, June 14, 2023

Feminine Differential - Wearing Resortwear

The Friday afternoon Tea in the Pavilion at the Palm Beach Flagler Museum


Not all are fans of Pulitzer’s clothes and its cult like followers.  The Atlantic Magazine stated: "Pulitzer’s clothes evoke not just wealth, but class. Lilly wear is not just “resortwear” gone mainstream. It invokes the ease of living enjoyed by those who can use the term 'resortwear' unironically. These are clothes that are worn by people for whom life is, in relative terms, a permanent vacation."

So for four days we all got to pretend.  I am sure maybe some there had "scrapbook notions of ancient family trees, summer compounds, boarding school uniforms, and large, granite buildings inscribed with some great-great-grandfather’s name." However, no one cared. That is what a girls retreat is all about. Having fun. 

Lilly wear to me represents something that money cannot buy. An escape into the land of femininity and be socially like all the "other" women in attendance. For that retreat I looked like the preppie I wanted to be in high school. I am sure that I was not the only latent preppy there.  

The uniform was consistent, for the young, middle and grandmothers. Skirts and dresses were short and long. Regardless of ethnicity, bright colors fit the occasion with the surrounding palm trees, sea breeze and a pool party. 

Yes, for a glorious four day retreat, Lilly Pulitzer fashion was not just a clothing style. It was a life style brand that represented my Palm Beach "Escape" beautifully.   








Tuesday, June 13, 2023

The Pink Retreat - Welcome Reception

 


The "Pink Retreat" welcome party was held at the Palm Beach Gardens Mall and had well over 400 in attendance. There was music, passed hors d'oeuvres, free drinks, live models, vendors, a photo area with a Lilly backdrop, and gift bags.  It was a rucas sponsored, private party with some of the mall stores participating with discounts and staying open late. The mall's Lilly store was the prime sponsor and was a very busy place that evening. Like we did not already have enough Lilly outfits to get through the weekend?  

I had a wonderful time and I made many new friends.  To my surprise a good number of the attendees were local.   


At Retreat Registration 
Earlier the First Day 







 

Monday, June 12, 2023

Palm Beach Turns Pink and Green...

Pink Retreat: Ladies who love Lilly gather in Palm Beach to celebrate iconic brand


Carol Rose Palm Beach Daily News
June 9, 2023


My Note: Of course I attended.  I love Lilly, all things Palm Beach and all dressed up (in pink and green) with someplace to go.  More of my photos and observations coming up.  Stay tuned... 

Photo from Palm Beach Daily News. = Pink Retreat
Rhonda's Table at The Flagler Museum Luncheon / Tea

The ladies who love Lilly — and all things pink — are back!

Some 400 Lilly Pulitzer aficionados from around the United States have descended on Palm Beach County to pay homage to the birthplace of the iconic brand.

The Pink Retreat, which is co-hosted by Discover The Palm Beaches and creator Tosha Williams, features events throughout the county.

The retreat, which opened Thursday and runs through Sunday, includes tours of Worth Avenue; tea at the Flagler Museum; bike tours that include stops at many of the island's landmarked homes; a trolley tour that starts at the historic Seagull Cottage; and a Saturday brunch with the Orrico sisters, owners of C. Orrico, according to a release from Discover The Palm Beaches.


Off-island events include a workout session and The Pink Party at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens [Saturday night], and boat rides on the Hakuna Matata Catamaran out of West Palm Beach.

Longtime Lilly lover and Pink Retreat creator Tosha Williams said the event, which began in 2018, was the result of moving an online group offline. She was part of a very active online community, she said, "where we buy, sell and trade Lilly clothing and I wanted to find a way to get us offline and decided to create a Lilly convention, hence the Pink Retreat."

Kelly Cavers, chief sales officer for Discover The Palm Beaches, said the retreat has evolved into more than a love for all things Lilly. It has become a celebration of bright colors and diverse opportunities "to engage with other women, uplift one another and be very positive," she said.

Her organization partnered with Williams because its focus is to grow the tourist economy and the event continues to grow, she said, noting that participants are being housed at seven hotels in the county.

Many of the activities, Cavers said, are representative of Discover The Palm Beaches' brand, including the area's history as "America's first resort destination."

What the ladies are saying:

I encouraged my mother and sister to come because I love Lilly, I love the print, and it’s very feminine.” Tiffany Joyner, Maryland




My Photo of Table Group Friday 




Sunday, June 11, 2023

Political Week In Review 6-11-2023

 
















What Trump has said in the past about the handling of classified documents

Saturday, June 10, 2023

Never Give Up...


 

Stana had a wonderful post yesterday, "Gender on My Mind" that fits perfectly with my today's post.  Be sure to read her post. 

Friday, June 9, 2023

Stunt Queens

RuPaul Condemns GOP 'Stunt Queens' Imposing Drag Bans: 'Bullies Are Incompetent at Solving Real Issues'

RuPaul




The drag icon's remarks come after Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed into law a bill restricting "adult cabaret performances" — which it defines to include "male or female impersonators"

RuPaul, the world's most famous drag queen, is speaking out one week after Tennessee's governor signed a controversial anti-drag bill into law.

In a video released on Wednesday, the creator and longtime host of RuPaul's Drag Race called far-right calls for drag bans a "classic distraction technique," positing that they are meant to remove the focus from "real issues that they were voted into office to focus on."

"They look for easy targets so they can give the impression of being effective," he said. "They think our love, our light, our laughter and our joy are signs of weakness. But they're wrong, because that is our strength."

He ended the video with a call for followers to register to vote and "get these stunt queens out of office," adding that "a social media post has never been as powerful as a registered vote."


Read More...


Thursday, June 8, 2023

Hate Amplified

Right-wing media figures are waging an anti-LGBTQ war on businesses over Pride Month



Analysis by Oliver Darcy, CNN
Fri June 2, 2023

CNN
 — 
Prepare yourself for a Pride Month imbued with callous intolerance.

Fueled by right-wing media personalities and institutions like Fox News, conservatives are waging a ferocious war on companies that express support for the LGBTQ community, with hostilities against the celebration of gay rights swelling to levels not seen in many years. In effect, the supposedly anti-cancel culture crowd is leading the summer’s biggest cancel culture campaign.

In recent weeks, right-wing media has smeared and incited boycotts against Bud Light and Target, two jumbo American brands that have been thrust into the center of the toxic culture wars. Both companies have been relentlessly attacked over their show of public support for the LGBTQ community. In recent days, The North Face, Kohl’s, and Chick-fil-A have also come under assault in the expanding war. And Disney, of course, has been an endless punching bag since it spoke out against the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill in Florida last year.

In the right-wing media universe, in which millions of Americans firmly reside, these companies have been portrayed as “woke” and evil corporations seeking to groom children with radical — even Satantic — gender ideology that will corrupt their brains and ultimately lead to the destruction of society.


The attacks have put companies in the uncomfortable position of standing up for the values of their own employees and the public writ large against a relentless volley of threats of mass boycotts, lost revenue, and ultimately, long-term brand harm. With each offensive — and claimed victories — the activists wielding the pitchforks have become more emboldened and the business atmosphere more chilled.

Written in black and white, the attacks look deranged. But it is precisely what some of the loudest and most influential right-wing media figures are promoting to their large followings, with new self-generated outrage cycles generated daily. It isn’t quite QAnon, but it’s close — and it is being fed to the GOP base in broad daylight. You don’t have to go to the dark corners of the internet to find this style of crazed commentary; it’s available each day via mainstream right-wing outlets.

In many cases, prominent personalities are not even trying to be secretive about their end goal as they perhaps would have been done in years past. In fact, they are saying the quiet part aloud. The Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh, one of the leading purveyors of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric in the US, has explicitly stated that the aim is to make the open embrace of the LGBTQ community harmful to brands.

“The goal is to make ‘pride’ toxic for brands,” Walsh tweeted. “If they decide to shove this garbage in our face, they should know that they’ll pay a price. It won’t be worth whatever they think they’ll gain. First Bud Light and now Target. Our campaign is making progress. Let’s keep it going.”

It is important to remember that a not-so-insignificant portion of the American populace takes this rhetoric to heart. For the conservative news organizations and businesses that promote it, the rhetoric is profitable because it resonates with and excites their audiences. The articles generate clicks, videos attract eyeballs, and the content in general prompts significant engagement — the lifeblood of the internet.

Which is to say that this burgeoning facet of the culture wars, which is now unquestionably the most dominant strain, is not going away any time soon. In fact, with Pride Month about to get underway, and more brands showing their support for the LGBTQ community, expect more fronts to open up. As the right-wing media personalities leading this campaign have said: Bud Light and Target were just the beginning.

The Human Rights Campaign released a statement Wednesday, signed by more than 100 advocacy organizations and allies, condemning the right’s use of the “extremist playbook of attacks.”

“Their goal is clear: to prevent LGBTQ+ inclusion and representation, silence our allies and make our community invisible,” the coalition said. “These attacks fuel hate against LGBTQ+ people, just as we’ve seen this year with more than 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills that restrict basic freedoms and aim to erase LGBTQ+ people.”

Wednesday, June 7, 2023

Feminin Differential - The Versatility of White Jeans

 


I have worn white jeans many times when I was not going for a feminine differential.There is the possibility that they generated a few second looks.

 However, white jeans can be as feminine as you like by adding tops, shoes, purse, or just a bracelet / feminine watch. Many jeans have a dinstict feminine cut and provide a unmistaken look as to the department they were purchased. Especially when the derrière is tight and legs are slim cut.  I love the look!  

The jeans above are Macy's  "LEVI'S Women's Classic Straight-Leg Jeans" and have a beautiful feminine cut. The Venus and Banana Republic tops are from many seasons ago but are timeless in style. There are so many variations that can go with white jeans, the possibilities are endless.    

One can dress "over the edge" with a heels or a heeled thong sandal. However for every day comfort, a platform sneaker adds another dimension; (sorry for the pun).  The above "Adidas Originals Women's platform sneaker" are my everyday work shoes.  

See also "21 Ways to Wear White Jeans" or "7 ways to wear white jeans this summer".

Enjoy this "Feminin Differentials" and dress how you please.  Life is short.




Here is Susan's (SusanAfter60) take on white jeans
A beautiful look.