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04/19/2007


Busta Rhymes Unleashes Homophobic Tirade Over Hamburger: REPORT

Rapper Busta Rhymes reportedly unleashed a tirade of homophobic slurs at employees at a Miami Beach restaurant this morning after he wasn't allowed to cut in line and then became angry that his condiments were not properly dressing his burger, the HuffPost reports:

RhymesStephanie Vitori, the owner of local late-night favorite Cheeseburger Baby, told The Huffington Post the rapper's party became belligerent when the restaurant refused to take their order before others waiting in line -- then Rhymes flew into a rage when condiments were served on the side, calling one server a "fag" and Vitori a "bitch."

"It's degrading," said Vitori, who is gay. "Thirteen years and every celebrity in there, and I've never had a problem."

The restaurant told him it was first come first served, but served him promptly, they say:

But despite being served his to-go bag within 10 minutes, Vitori said Rhymes became enraged that his mayonaise, ketchup, salt and pepper were included on the side -- something she said Cheeseburger Baby does as a rule to prevent soggy buns.

According to Vitori, after an employee explained the policy to the 40-year-old rapper, he allegedly screamed, "F*** you, fag! I'm not leaving until I get ketchup, mayo, salt and pepper on my burger," and he began coming over the counter. "F*** you, bitch," he said, turning to Vitori.

Vitori filed a police report.

It's not the first homophobic incident Rhymes has had at a Miami Beach restaurant.

In 2006, Towleroad reported on an incident he had with a fan at the 11th Street Diner during the Winter Music Conference in which a fan tapped him on the shoulder to compliment him and Rhymes allegedly replied:'Why the [bleep] you touchin' me, man? Get the [bleep] away from me' . . . his two huge bodyguards then caused an even larger scene by pushing the kid away . . . Busta quietly whispered to his bodyguards, 'I hate [bleeping] faggots, man.'"

The HuffPost notes that Rhymes spoke out in support of Frank Ocean when he came out, saying, “I don't know if it's just about hip-hop being willing to accept it, I think the whole world is ready to accept whatever people choose to be in life.”


Adam Lambert to Headline Miami Beach Gay Pride

Adam Lambert will be headlining this year's Miami Beach Gay Pride on April 14, according to organizers:

LambertAs one of the first Pride events of the year, Miami Beach Gay Pride is extremely excited to have Lambert as part of the fifth annual celebration, said Babak Movahedi, chair of the Pride board of directors.  “In five short years, Miami Beach Gay Pride has gone from a neighborhood event to an event on the global stage. The fact that someone of Adam Lambert’s caliber is enthusiastic about performing at Miami Beach Gay Pride speaks volumes about the significance of our events,” he said.
 
In addition to Lambert’s participation, Movahedi said the diverse, week-long line-up of Pride activities speaks to the rising popularity of the event.  “Pride is a celebration for the whole community,” Movahedi said.  “It’s gratifying to realize that Miami Beach Gay Pride has grown so exponentially and attracts not only locals but also visitors who travel here to experience our Pride.”

Lambert is scheduled to take the Main Stage in Lummus Park just off Ocean Drive between 11th and 12th Streets. His performance is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m.


NEWS: Nazis, Mega Millions, Nick Cage, John Cage, God, Surveys, Science

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Road Armed neo-Nazis patroling Sanford, FL:

Neo-Nazis are currently conducting heavily armed patrols in and around Sanford, Florida and are "prepared" for violence in the case of a race riot. The patrols are to protect "white citizens in the area who are concerned for their safety" in the wake of the Trayvon Martin shooting last month, says Commander Jeff Schoep of the National Socialist Movement. "We are not advocating any type of violence or attacks on anybody, but we are prepared for it," he says. "We are not the type of white people who are going to be walked all over."

Because nothing diffuses racial tension like gun-toting racial separatists patrolling an already on-edge community.

Road Some pro-equality activists don't like what other pro-equality activists do with their money.

Road A survey for your mothers. (HT: Joe.My.God.)

CageCage Road Only dubiously witty, but unexpectedly fun: Nicholas Cage does John Cage.

Road Apparently, Los Angeles isn't superficial, New York drives aren't that bad, and Miami isn't full of fit people.

Road PinkIsTheNewBlog has a pic of Zac Efron's bum.

Road Andrew Sullivan on America's bad religion:

"When I go and see young people, their image of Christianity these days is one of judgment, intolerance and to some extent bigotry and politics," Sullivan said. "They associate it with one political party in this country, because of the fusion of evangelical and ultra-orthodox Catholics with the Republican Party. They don't see it as the message of Jesus, they don't see it any more as a message of love and forgiveness. They see it as a bunch of people trying to control their lives through political mechanisms.

Road Gallup probes American religiosity:

... it’s no surprise that all of the “top” ten [religious] states are in the south save Utah and Oklahoma, which, as Abbie Smith will attest, may as well be in the south. It’s also no surprise that the least religious states are in New England, with the proportion of “very religious” being 23% in New Hampshire and Vermont, 25% in Maine, and 28% in Massachusetts ...

What did surprise me was the 32% of Americans who see themselves as “nonreligious" ... Since roughly 10% of Americans don’t believe in God, and only about 1.5% go so far as to describe themselves as “atheists” or “agnostics,” I wonder how many of these 32% of “nonreligious” Americans are secret atheists who just don’t like the label, or are unwilling to confess to an interviewer that—horrors!—they don’t believe in God.

Road Teen sells kidney for Apple products:

He received 220,000 yuan ($35,000) for the transplant, gave the student 22,000 yuan ($3,500) and shared the remaining money with the other defendants and several medical staff involved in the operation, Xinhua said.

When the student returned home, he was asked how he could afford a new iPhone and an iPad and he told his mother that he sold one of his kidneys

Road High up in Chile's Atacama desert -- at almost 17,000 feet above sea level, where heads ache, noses bleed, and "dizziness overcomes the researchers toiling in the shadow of the Licancabur volcano" -- scientists are turning Chile into one of the world's elite destinations for astronomical research. But for how long? From the Times:

At the same time, the financial crisis in rich industrialized countries has raised concerns that funding for some ambitious astronomy projects could face constraints. In the United States, a Congressional panel last year proposed killing NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope before a compromise spending plan saved the project.

“It would be very sad for humankind if we were so spiritually decadent to forgo the pleasures of consciousness and of knowledge,” said Mr. Mosterín, reflecting on the funding choices political leaders need to make. “These things make human beings a very interesting animal indeed.”


Madonna Visits Ultra Music Festival: VIDEO

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Madonna took a break last night from sparring with Russian homophobes to put in an apparently spontaneous appearance at Miami's Ultra Music Festival. She looked fantastic. She did no singing. She swore her lifelong fealty to electronic music and asked if everyone present had "seen Molly." (Madge's new album is called MDNA, and "Molly's" the street name for MDMA. Wit!) Then she introduced the DJ Avicii, and proceeded to dance to a remix of her own song. Watch AFTER THE JUMP ...

Continue reading "Madonna Visits Ultra Music Festival: VIDEO" »


Miami Beach Cops Accused in Beating of Gay Man Want Jobs Back

Back in February 2010, I posted about Miami Beach police harassing and arresting a gay man after he witnessed them abusing a suspect. The gay man, Harold Strickland (pictured), was on the phone with 911 reporting their assault when the cops came after him. The ACLU filed suit against the Miami Beach police last November.

Strickland In late July, the two officers involved were fired and in early August, the ACLU settled its case with the City of Miami Beach.

Now, the two officers want their jobs back, the Miami Herald reports:

Frankly Forte and Eliut Hazzi filed grievances last week with the city, demanding they be reinstated with back pay. "The investigation was unfair and tainted with bias from the outset," both men wrote in city documents filed Aug. 17-18.

The officers take issue with the victim's account:

Sgt. Alejandro Bello, president of the city's police union, said Strickland's story of what happened that night is full of holes. He said Mendoza's mug shot shows that he had no injuries to his face. He also questioned Strickland's story that he wanted to see his old home and Mendoza's statements that he was searching for his dog's missing collar after a quick walk. Bello also said Miami Beach politicians influenced the officers' firings and noted that both Strickland and Mendoza have been arrested near Flamingo Park in the past and accused of involvement in illegal sex acts.

Ex-Beach cops accused in 2009 beating seek jobs back [miami herald]


ACLU Settles Case with Miami Beach Police Over Assault on Gay Man

Back in February 2010, I posted about Miami Beach police harassing and arresting a gay man after he witnessed them abusing a suspect. The gay man, Harold Strickland (pictured), was on the phone with 911 reporting their assault when the cops came after him. The ACLU filed suit against the Miami Beach police last November.

Strickland Last week the two officers involved in the incident were fired.

Yesterday, the ACLU reported that they had settled their case:

The settlement reached today requires the City of Miami Beach to pay Harold Strickland $75,000 which includes attorneys’ fees, as well as enact new policies regarding the reporting of police misconduct. The city will also implement specific trainings for new police officers addressing the harassment of gay men by police in and around Flamingo Park, as well as the rights of citizens to document police behavior.

***

Among the changes mandated by today’s settlement is the inclusion of new training language for Miami Beach police officers, including the following: “Improperly prohibiting or punishing a citizen from observing, documenting, or reporting a police officer’s conduct violates the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.”

“The most important thing to me since that night has been that someone had to be held responsible for what was happening in the city that used to be my home,” stated Strickland. “It’s sad that it took someone going through what happened to me for the city to start taking this problem seriously, but I’m hopeful that after today’s settlement it will never happen to anyone again.”

Previously...
Miami Beach Police Accused of Assaulting Gay Man to Be Fired [tr]





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