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Featured Editorials

Rural California town models support

Submitted by Robyn on Fri, 10/30/2015 - 2:08pm

I'm sure that very few of you have ever heard of Denair, CA. It's a "census designated place" in Stanislaus County, CA. Not enough of a hint? It's near Turlock. Doesn't help? That's between Modesto and Merced. Central Valley.

Population was 4404 in 2010. The town encloses a grand total of 2 square miles.

It really epitomizes the phrase "small town." Except the part about the government not thinking it is large enough to be called a town.

Denair calls itself "The Oasis of the San Joaquin Valley."

In 2010 Denair had 10 same-sex married couples/domestic partnerships. 22% of the residences were rentals. 32% of the residents identify as Hispanic or Latino. In 2000 16% of the population lived below the poverty line.

As the Wikipedia entry for Stanislaus County says,

Stanislaus County is not a great place, it's just a place in the Central Valley.

photo anry-fuentes-x750_zpswls1aeat.jpgAnry Fuentes lives in Denair. She is a transgender teen. When she she told her mother last year that she was going to come out, her mother kicked her out of their home.

Well my mom kicked me out. I’m not mad at her or hate her. I understand where she’s coming from. She was raised differently, and I can’t judge her for that. If I did regret [coming out] then I wouldn’t be this happy. It's much harder to hide than to come out as yourself.

--Anry

A Bright, Flashing Warning Sign

Submitted by gjohnsit on Thu, 10/29/2015 - 2:07pm

Imagine for a moment that some salesman offered you a deal.
They are willing to let you loan them money, and would only charge you a nominal fee plus a small rate of interest for the transaction.

In a sane world your answer would either be either, "Uh, no" or you would laugh in their face, depending on your mood at the time.
Pay to loan money?!? That's insane. Not just insane, illogical.

DoE, DoJ step up for Gavin Grimm in 4th Circuit

Submitted by Robyn on Thu, 10/29/2015 - 2:03pm

photo Gavin_zpsuoaqpjow.jpgWhen last we encountered Gavin Grimm, Gloucester County Schools were still preventing the trans teen from using the boys room and the district had received the blessing of District Court Judge Robert Doumar in Norfolk.

Gavin's ACLU attorneys have asked an appeals court to replace Doumar, who denied his request for a preliminary injunction, because Doumar has made statements that he is "suspicious of modern medical science regarding gender identity." The lawyers say that Doumar has repeatedly referenced Gavin's "mental disorder" and accused him and them of just seeking publicity.

Yesterday the Department of Educations Office of the General Council and the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division filed a 40-page friend-of-the-court brief with the 4th US Circuit Court on behalf of Grimm.

GLAAD: too few transgender characters on TV

Submitted by Robyn on Wed, 10/28/2015 - 2:19pm

GLAAD has released its yearly report analyzing the quantity and quality of LGBT character portrayals on television. Where We Are on TV 2015 found that of the 881 regular characters on broadcast primetime programming in the coming year, 35 are identified as LGB. That's 4%. Not one of the regular or recurring characters is transgender.

I guess that means we are not to expect Mrs. Hudson to pop up on Elementary this season.

The number of regular LGBT characters counted on cable increased from 64 to 84, while recurring characters increased from 41 to 58.

What is We The People's answer to the Powell memo?

Submitted by lotlizard on Wed, 10/28/2015 - 5:35am

The Powell memorandum told the Republicans to go forth and use ownership of media and industry by the super-rich to change American popular culture from top to bottom — in order to put a stop to the social and political ferment of the Sixties and Seventies, crush the so-called counterculture, and try to make any revival of such developments impossible once and for all.

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