Restoring Tally

uncutting:

emeraldsunstone:

LGBTQ rights ftw. Warning: I don’t update nearly as often as I should, but I have a crapload of stuff in my drafts that I am considering queiung (yes I know I spelled that wrong) and I’m really curious about what genital integrity is.

Genital integrity refers to the belief that all people have the right to their intact genitals, and only they themselves have the right to alter them. In a nutshell: we’re against infant male circumcision, and that’s the main thing you’ll generally hear from the intactivist/genital integrity crowd. But naturally, we oppose female circumcision (genital mutilation) as well, and support intersex genital rights as well.

helvetebrann:

Some Tennessee lawmakers want to scale back the clock on equality and make it particularly difficult for LGBT residents in the Volunteer State. For proof, check out this Change.org petition from the Tennessee Equality Project. It talks to the “Special Access to Discriminate Act” (SB0630) currently on the table, which would prohibit local governments from enacting non-discrimination provisions for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees of government contractors.

        You see, Tennessee doesn’t want you to use the word “gay.” House Bill 225 and State Bill 49 — also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill — would prohibit kids from learning about LGBT people. Specifically, it states that “No public elementary or middle school shall provide any instruction or material that discusses sexual orientation other than heterosexuality.”

        The law would also prohibit any talk about LGBT topics. It does not matter if the person involved is gay themselves or the product of a gay home. It does not matter if they have a gay friend or family member. No talking about the pink triangle.

        “The Don’t Say Gay bill raises all kinds of issues about anti-gay bias, free speech and government overreach,” said Ben Byers from the Tennessee Equality Project. “It limits what teachers and students are able to discuss in the classroom,” Byers said. “It means they can’t talk about gay issues or sexuality even with students who may be gay or have gay family.”

    This also prevents educators from an extremely important job; stopping potential anti-GLBT bullying.  There have been several “teaching moments” (as we call them) where I have stopped the class to discuss something someone said as a “joke.”  It helps raise awareness that homosexuality is not weird, unusual, or unnatural and prevents a lot of bullying.  It’s moments like these, moments that promote tolerance and understanding, that this legislation is attempting to squash.

All our rights being stripped away at once. First amendment rights, fourth amendment rights… the most important of all our rights, and people think it’s OKAY to pull shit like this. I can’t tell you how pissed off I am. I see all this shit on my dashboard, one article after the other, about how legislators absolutely disregard the constitution and base any legislation based on their personal feelings, not on rationality or what’s right. America is in a sorry state of affairs.

Anybody who is not fucking pissed should be. We should be creating a STORM. The Middle East is fighting for the basic liberties that WE have… that are being taken away from us. It’s bullshit. Why are we letting it happen? Fuck. I don’t even know what to do. Protest? Write a letter? I’ll tell you what: I’m going to replace one of those motherfuckers one day and my constituents will not regret it.

(via skunkitty)