WEEKEND RECAP. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia passed away on Saturday at 79, reportedly of a heart attack. Read Ari Ezra Waldman’s post on what’s next for the Supreme Court as Republicans vow to block ANY Obama nominee. And recap Scalia’s 7 most hateful and homophobic remarks.
SENATE. Speaking of Scalia, Sen. Elizabeth Warren is not having it with the GOP’s obstructionism.
PRIDE. Republican congressional candidate comes under fire for running in Air Force Gay Pride Run: “In addition to publishing several photos of Starr participating in LGBT Pride runs at Dyess AFB, Breitbart cited a 2015 newspaper article in which a Pride Alliance member praised the colonel’s support for the group, as well as a 2014 press release from the 7th Bomb Wing titled, ‘Progression, acceptance and our LGBT Airmen.'”
SMS. Indonesian government has demanded all messaging apps remove same-sex emojis: “The emojis – which are available on the popular apps LINE and Whatsapp as well as Facebook and Twitter – depict same-sex couples holding hands and the rainbow flag, commonly used to symbolize the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.”
CANADA. Ontario trans teen becomes school’s first trans cheerleader: “I used to hate being in front of crowds but cheerleading helps my confidence and gave me a place to take out any anger. It makes me feel good.”
FLASHBACK. So far the world has not ended. So that’s good news.
PUERTO RICO. Governor nominates gay judge to be first openly gay Supreme Court chief justice in the U.S.: “Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla announced the nomination on Friday afternoon calling it a “new time” for Puerto Rico’s judicial branch. At 39, [Maite] Oronoz Rodriguez is also the youngest member of the Puerto Rico Supreme Court.”
NON DISCRIMINATION. Florida lawmakers kill LGBT discrimination ban: “It failed on a 5-5 vote Monday in the Senate Judiciary Committee before senators briefly resurrected it, giving sponsor Sen. Joe Abruzzo, D-Wellington, one day to salvage the proposal. By Tuesday, no additional senators had signed on, and the committee refused to reconsider the vote.”
LOVE STORY. A true life gay love story of men who met in the Iraq war.
HOMOPHOBIA. Stephen Fry says meeting with anti-gay Ugandan politician almost drove him to suicide: “In a BBC1 programme to be shown on 15 February, Fry, who is bipolar, says he was prompted to attempt suicide after conducting a television interview with Uganda’s minister for Ethics and Integrity, Simon Lokodo, in 2012. ‘[He] was a foaming, frothing homophobe of the worst kind [and] behind the bill in Uganda that was supposed to make homosexuality a capital offence, in other words a death sentence,’ says Fry, in The Not Do Secret Life of a Manic Depressive: 10 Years On.”
CANDICE BERGEN. The legendary actress talks about the time she went on a date with Donald Trump: “It was a very short evening.”
EYE CANDY. Simon Dunn wants you to be his Valentine.
