6 | QSALTLAKE MAGAZINE | NEWS
news The top national and world news since last issue you should know BY CRAIG OGAN
State Farm is no longer there Niche marketing during June Pride Month has riled some of State Farm’s good neighbors. Media reports and inquiries from customers and others about the company’s distribution of LGBTQ-themed books to teachers, community centers, and libraries, explicitly targeting children as young as kindergartners have forced the company to abandon the program. State Farm informed agents it was canceling a collaboration with GenderCool, an organization promoting LGBTQ teaching via speaking events, mentorship programs, DEI/HR consulting, and advising for parents of transgender children.
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gium. Some U.S. cases have been traced to a Mr. Leather Competition in Chicago. Two of the 50 cases reported in North America are in Salt Lake County, Utah. Might be hard to explain those cold sores at Elders Quorum.
Spacey can’t catch a break As some of the charges and civil actions about Kevin Spacey’s ill-mannered comeons in bars, at parties, and on movie sets are going away, British prosecutors just authorized several counts of sexual assault charges against the actor. The incidents, four counts of sexual assault against three men, as well as another count of “causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent,” is alleged to have taken place in Great Britain between March 2005 and April 2013. The U.S. charges, dating as far back as 1986, have been dropped, dismissed, or settled. Except for some self-flagellation on YouTube, Spacey has been absent from theatrical work. He has two projects showing at the Cannes Film Festival and two other streaming movies in the works. MeToo Karma may get these canceled, as well
Stop monkeying around Just when men who used to be called gay have started to lose the stigma of HIV-AIDS, here comes monkeypox. A small outbreak in Europe and an even smaller outbreak in North America may be spreading through sexual contact. The World Health Organization says cases have mainly been identified amongst “men who have sex with men.” Monkeypox is normally limited to West and Central Africa. The outbreak in Europe has been traced to “raves” in Barcelona and a “fetish” festival in Bel-
der figure. However, actress and LGBTQ rights activist Laverne Cox is officially the first transgender person to have a Barbie doll named after her. Cox was praised by Barbie maker Mattel for her ability to move “beyond societal expectations to live more authentically.” The Cox doll comes in a crimson corset worn over a gown and a silver jumpsuit. It is not an exact likeness of Cox but, in the tradition of Barbie’s bustline, is symbolically “monumental.” The Cox Barbie is currently among the best-selling dolls on Amazon. Incidentally, Ryan Gosling has been announced as Ken in an upcoming “Barbie” movie.
Many people, on personal inspection of the Ken Doll in the Barbie line, figured Ken was the first transgen-
JULY, 2022
gender identity. EV encouraged people to boycott the event, saying the Pride Month reception, announced 48 hours in advance, is offensive and opportunistic. James Millner, of Virginia Pride was invited to the reception but refused to attend. He says that while he’s suspicious of, God forbid, the governor playing politics, he’d be willing to engage with the Republicans if they made sincere overtures toward the community.
Hanks would be yanked from Philadelphia Actor Tom Hanks won an Oscar for his role in the 1993 movie “Philadelphia” as a gay man with AIDS. He told the New York Times that if the production were created today, a straight actor wouldn’t be cast in that role. Even one as good as him. Hanks looked back on his part in groundbreaking films. He called both “Philadelphia” and “Forrest Gump” (1994) “timely movies, at the time, that you might not be able to make now.” He did not opine on Antonio Banderas being cast as his romantic partner in the film.
Virginia Gov’s Pride spurned
We thought it was Ken
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Virginia’s governor has been accused of using “LGBTQ+ people during Pride Month as pawns in his political game” for hosting a Pride celebration. Equality Virginia says the governor does not support same-sex marriage, supported “license to discriminate” laws and opposes transgender kids competing in school sports on the teams that best fit their
Cheer squad mixes it up She said even her best friends didn’t know she was a transgender woman, but they all do now. The Carolina Panthers professional football team chose Justine Lindsay as a member of the “TopCats” cheerleading squad. She is the first openly transgender cheerleader in the NFL. She actually did the outing by announcing on social media. “This is a moment I will never forget and I cannot wait to show you all what this girl has to bring,” she wrote. The director of the cheerleading squad said that it was not niche marketing, but Lindsay’s skills that landed her place on the team.
