Dolly Parton has been a long-time supporter of (and an icon for) the gay community. In honor of pride month, let’s take a look at an interview the “Jolene” singer did back in 2014 about her LGBTQ fans. In the interview, she reveals her drag name, and it’s perfect.
Dolly Parton | Harry Langdon/Getty Images
Dolly Parton lost a Dolly Parton look-alike contest in Santa Monica, CA
Parton has always gotten a big kick out of Dolly Parton look-alike contests. One time, she entered one for the fun of it. She lost.
“I entered one of the Dolly look-alike contests down on Santa Monica at one of the gay clubs down there – I lived right up the street – so I just kind of over exaggerated myself and went and joined the party and walked across the stage,” she told Pride Source. “I got less applause than anybody. It’s pretty bad when I lose a Dolly Parton look-alike contest!”
Parton loves watching Dolly-inspired drag queens, even though they make her feel incredibly short.
“Most of the drag queens are about six feet tall already … and then they put on those high heels!” she said. “I ain’t big as a minute, so I always think, what I’ve learned about myself is, I’m not tall. I’m definitely even shorter than I knew I was!”
“But actually, I am very honored when the drag queens all do their thing because I think it’s a big compliment,” she adds. “I get a big kick out of some of them. Some of them are really good! Some of them are … comical.”
The “9 to 5” singer was prompted for tips “for drag queens who want to get your bust size just right.”
“Oh heavens … I’m so little is why my boobs look so big,” she said. “But (drag queens) are already big! They’re gonna need to really do some paddin’! I’m larger than life, so just get them boobs the way that they fit into proportion to your body. Put it out there, whatever your imagination is of me.”
The Queen of Country also shared her would-be drag name.
“P. Titty … like P. Diddy!” she said.
Why Dolly Parton has so many gay fans, according to the Queen of Country herself
Parton’s interviewer, Chris Azzopardi, asked her, “Why do gay people identify and empathize with you?”
“Did you say empathize or sympathize?” she laughed. “I think there’s some of both! Actually, I’ve been around so long people just kind of feel like they know me. They’ve seen me enough. I’m more like a favorite aunt or an older sister or somethin’, so I just think people know so much about me they just feel like I’m part of them. I hope that’s what they think. That’s what it seems like!”
Additionally, Parton is familiar with the feeling of growing up different.
“I’ve always felt that’s one of the things that’s drawn my gay fans to me,” she said. “They do know that I do feel different, and all of my life I will be different. I always have been. But I enjoy and appreciate and respect that difference in myself just like I do in other people. God made me the way that I am and it’s my business to be true to that.”
As we reflect on the Pulse tragedy, we’re looking at the gay community from different perspectives. This means connecting with two gay men who are staunch Republicans.
What You Need To Know
Randy Ross was former President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman. He even introduced the former president in Kissimmee.
“Once I came out as a conservative, but more importantly, became the Trump chairman, I took over [Edgewood Mayor] John Dowless’s position as the most hated gay man in Orlando,” Ross told us.
Both men have commonalities.
“I’m a gay man,” said Ross. “I like men. That’s what I – you know. It doesn’t mean that I’m a bad person because I not only happen to support Trump, but I support our governor [Ron DeSantis].”
According to the Williams Institute, in the 2020 election, only 15% of registered LGBTQ voters are Republicans while 50% are Democrats. In the Pulse aftermath, Ross’s party affiliation kept him at arm’s length from others in the gay community.
“Back during Pulse, it was very interesting to me because I didn’t get to mourn like everyone else did,” he said, choking up.
Mayor Dowless agrees.
“Many of us who got a text the next day [after the massacre], just asking, Are you OK?” Dowless said, fighting back tears. “I was probably met with more acceptance and more toleration, if you will, when my Republican friends found out I was gay versus years later when many of my gay friends found out I was a Republican.”
Mayor Dowless says he knows many people who are tight-lipped because they lean right.
“There’s still a bit of fear out there,” said Dowless.
Fear, but still some forward movement with freedom of expression as time moves on.
Both Ross and Mayor Dowless say they consider themselves – over anything else – “American” and that their sexuality is just a part of them, and not their identities.
What happens to your love life after you go on a matchmaking show?
“Million Dollar Matchmaker,” an American reality show, follows millionaires as they go on dates arranged by Hollywood personality Patricia “Patti” Stanger. It’s gotten a lot of buzz on island after David Cruz III, 44, a Guam son based in Los Angeles, landed a role on the hit We TV series.
Five years after the show, Cruz said it was an honor to be cast. As for his foray into Hollywood, he said, “I’ve always been that Guam kid, just living in L.A.”
Cruz moved to Los Angeles in 2009, after 15 years in Orange County, California. Raised on Guam, he attended San Vicente Catholic School until eighth grade, then studied at Father Dueñas Memorial School before graduating from George Washington High School in 1994.
In high school, he settled on entering the entertainment industry. Before then, he considered becoming a news reporter and interned with Pacific Daily News.
Once he arrived in California, he wrote about single life and dating for a magazine. Then his writings led to a website and later, a podcast.
Six months after moving to Los Angeles, a scouting person approached Cruz at a bar, asking him to join the matchmaking show. “It was this weird thing, and I was like ‘I don’t do TV.’ They’re like ‘It’s this show that just started. No one will really see it,’” Cruz said. “That was my introduction into entertainment.”
Finding Cupid
For over a decade, Cruz talked, wrote and explained love. A longtime fan of “Sex and the City,” which chronicles women exploring Manhattan’s dating scene, Cruz provides relationship advice through his website, Finding Cupid.
“I’ve always wanted to be that person to say there’s a relationship out there for everyone,” Cruz said. “Stop thinking about love in the way where it’s destructive or when there are breakups and you’re dependent on somebody.”
During the pandemic, emails flooded Cruz’s inbox. People wanted to know how to transition from video to in-person dating. They wanted to re-enter the dating world but felt scared.
That’s why Cruz launched two projects. By Valentine’s Day next year, he plans to reboot Finding Cupid and restart his podcast and radio show. With more time to reflect on dating after the pandemic, he’ll provide advice to lovers, this time for people used to speaking on the phone, without texting.
His second project, Fruitloots, curates gifts produced by LGBTQ+ makers. Cruz and a gay friend from Orange County founded the business, in hopes of promoting products by gay owners and people of color.
“I have always been someone who has believed in love, relationships and their contributions to one’s happiness in the world,” Cruz said. “It doesn’t mean that relationships are defined by what we know. There are so many types of relationships that don’t need to be defined by what we see in the movies.”
As a gay man, Cruz attempts to redefine relationships as they are portrayed in Hollywood. He hopes to bring his husband, Jonathan Hughes, who also wrote for the popular comedy “The Office,” to Guam.
Coming out as a gay man
As the son of Catholic parents with a military father, Cruz struggled to come out on Guam. In his late teens, people associated homosexuality with AIDS or dancing as a backup for Madonna, Cruz said.
Many years after high school, Cruz first came out to his sister, then to his parents.
“I absolutely remember the day I told my mother,” Cruz said. “A ton of bricks came off of my shoulders. The weight came off. It felt like I was trying to live the truest form of my life.”
Cruz also stood up for gay rights in California. When he arrived in Cypress College in California, he served as the school’s first openly gay student body president, then became editor-in-chief of The Charger Chronicle, the school newspaper.
But 2015 marked a special year in his activism for gay rights.
‘What I do know is my responsibility’
That year, he spoke at the University of Guam graduation as the commencement speaker. The U.S. Supreme Court had legalized same-sex marriage, but former Gov. Eddie Calvo spoke out against it, Cruz said.
Infuriated by Calvo’s response, Cruz spoke to graduates about freedoms, gay rights and legalizing gay marriage. To this day, he still considers the speech — speaking against the former governor, who sat in the audience — one of the most terrifying moments of his life.
“There’s a lot of things to think of when you do something like that,” Cruz said. “It’s a tiny island. I don’t know if I am going to piss off my aunt, my uncle or my grandmother. But what I do know is my responsibility, as I’ve grown up, is how being gay is a political act every single day.”
‘My love for the island is hardcore’
Despite mixed feelings about Calvo’s response, Cruz also considers the keynote speech a highlight in his career.
“I’ve spoken in front of a lot of people, but that was different. It was at home. It was talking about my journey and how I think people should be free and marry,” Cruz said. “I still get messages from people from the island, gay and straight, who say that my existence in this crazy L.A. world is important to them because they see a path forward.”
Might Cruz’s coming out experience on Guam and his island pride clash? “My love for the island is hardcore never going to die. I think it gets better and better as I get older,” Cruz said. “As we think about where we are today with gay rights, gay marriage and the things that we accomplished, we think about things that are still not accomplished. It’s the same with any other group of minorities that are fighting for representation.”
Once a young kid with cabin fever, Cruz left Guam three days after high school graduation.
“As a teenager, all you ever want to do is leave it all. You want to start on your own,” Cruz said. “When you leave, finally go to school and pay your own bills, it becomes very eye-opening. Now it’s your life and you’re in control of it.”
But even if he lives in a city, Guam stays with him.
“All those things that I learned on the island — being nice and welcoming, like the people on the island are — it becomes a part of who you are,” Cruz said. “Still to this day, my friends joke with me: ‘David, we just want to have a gathering with you. You don’t need to make a table of food and throw a party.’ That’s just what I do. That’s how I grew up.”
At 14-years-old, Le’Laia Brito Diaz brims with creativity, from writing songs about her first crush, to perfecting skateboard tricks. But finding a summer camp that appreciates her talents and her queer identity didn’t go well the last time she tried a program in North Carolina.
“I never fit in anywhere so I just got a little bit bullied there and I just hope for it to not happen again,” said Le’Laia.
Now, with pandemic restrictions lifting, she’s grateful that camps for LGBT youth like Camp lightbulb are resuming in-person programming this year.
“To be welcomed, to not be different, to not feet different, i’m so looking forward to it. I can’t wait to meet everyone,” she said.
Camp Lightbulb offers weekend camps here in the city as well as a traditional sleepaway option in Massachusetts, but it all went virtual last year because of the pandemic. Counselor Josh Kelley says it was tough, but especially on kids.
“There are countless young people who are maybe out at school or with their friends at school but not at home, and that was all ripped away,” said Kelley, who says getting back to camp this year means restoring a vital lifeline.
“I was thinking a lot about what’s special about this summer and it’s that they deserve to return to these communities and to these spaces where they feel safe,” said Kelley.
Le’Laia and her mother agree.
“I don’t want her to be afraid, I want her to be a role model to others too that had been in this same situation so she has all my support” said Christie Diaz, Le’Laia’s mom.
The teenager is looking forward to the support at Camp Lightbulb and to making friends who get her.
“It’s like a really big space for you to express yourself. You can get your ukulele and say ‘guys I wrote this song, wanna hear it?’ and they’re gonna be like ‘yeah let’s hear it’.”
With UFC 263 set to take place this weekend, the question of whether UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is gay, bi or straight is once again a hot topic of conversation.
Unlike his career earnings, which are a matter of public record, the specific details of his private life are something he keeps close to the vest.
Adesanya’s sexual preference has been a popular subject of conversation over the years. The questions have only intensified since he established himself as one of the greatest mixed martial artists in the sport today.
This past week, speculation regarding whether Adesanya is straight, gay or bi resurfaced once more when old photos of him with bright pink hair got posted online.
This led to intense debate on MMA message boards regarding Adesanya’s preferences.
“I have a feeling Izzy might be gay,” wrote one user.
“Has he come out yet?” questioned another.
Several users wrote that someone of Adesanya’s stature coming out would be huge for the LGBTQ community, as it would crack open a lot of stereotypes in sports culture and society in general.
“Honestly a big name coming out would help the sport,” wrote one person.
“There are gay male fighters but they don’t ever come out because of the stigma.”
This is not an isolated discussion.
In 2019, when Adesanya took on and defeated Anderson Silva, a similar argument raged.
“As a Bi man myself I get the vibe,” one user wrote of Adesanya.
“In the latest count down when he took his dogs for a walk and a kitten on his chest he has a guy with him usually thats the time to show a gf and or kids. Never introduced him as a nutritionist, or coach they live together and they seem pretty close. And that guy looks to be the guy that Israel kisses after koing Derek Brunson.
“He also posts tons of gay pictures on his insta some have been taken down.”
It goes without saying that it does not matter if Adesanya is straight, gay or bi. His sexual preference is his business and he can share or it keep it quiet as he sees fit.
The Bucks owner’s daughter decided to bring 2021 in with a bang by stripping all her clothes off. https://t.co/UgzhEEna4o
With that in mind, there is no belittling how meaningful it would be if someone of his magnitude came out.
Any athlete coming out is a big deal – but one of the toughest, strongest and most gifted fighters of all time doing it would be on a whole different level.
Colton and his grandmother started laughing after she kept rejecting his Tinder candidatesCredit: Instagram/@coltonunderwood
Colton said: “This year has been a lot for a lot of people. It’s probably made a lot of people look in the mirror and confront what they were running from.
“For me, I’ve run from myself for a long time, and I’ve hated myself for a long time. I’m gay. And I came to terms with that earlier this year.
Colton continued: “The next step in all of this was letting people know. I’m still nervous, it’s been a journey for sure.”
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Cassie and Colton pictured togetherCredit: GC Images
Their relationship became tumultuous when Cassie filed a restraining order and accused Colton of placing a tracking device on her car, in order to harass and stalk her.
Cassie later dropped the restraining order.
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Colton said ‘it’s been a journey’ during his GMA interviewCredit: Good Morning America
Recently, the Bachelor star ranted against what he deemed as an “inappropriate” question by a fan on Instagram.
A fan asked: “How many guys have you done things with?”
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Cassie accused Colton of harassing and stalking herCredit: Social Media – Refer to Source
Colton wrote in a lengthy response: “Let me vent for a second.
“Questions like this are inappropriate. I understand you might know me from the bachelor where I shared a lot about my personal life.
“I have set boundaries and I’m respecting myself in a way that will lead me to a healthier life.”
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The former sports star added: “I never asked to be labeled as the virgin bachelor and have people feel the security to ask me questions about my sex life.
“It just happened and during that time I thought I had no other choice but to just go with it and or the network would be mad. I know differently now.
Colton concluded: “I’ll share what I want and this won’t be one of those things.”
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Colton blasted a fan for an ‘inappropriate question’
Sarah Gilbert, professor of vaccinology at Oxford’s Jenner Institute and Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, poses for a photo in Oxford, England, Friday June 11, 2021. Queen Elizabeth II has used her birthday honors list to celebrate those at the forefront of the U.K.’s rapid rollout of coronavirus vaccines over the past few months, which has been credited with turning around the country’s pandemic response. Two of the most high-profile women in the vaccination drive, Professor Sarah Gilbert of the University of Oxford, and venture capitalist Kate Bingham, the former head of the U.K. Vaccines Taskforce, have been recognized with damehoods in the list that was published late Friday. (Steve Parsons/PA via AP)
LONDON (AP) — Queen Elizabeth II has used her birthday honors list to celebrate those at the forefront of the U.K.’s rapid rollout of COVID-19 vaccines over the past few months, which has been credited with turning around the country’s pandemic response.
Two of the most high-profile women in the vaccination drive, Professor Sarah Gilbert of the University of Oxford, and venture capitalist Kate Bingham, the former head of the U.K. Vaccines Taskforce, have been recognized with damehoods in the list published late Friday.
Gilbert was instrumental in the development of the vaccine being manufactured by pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, while Bingham has been widely lauded for the country’s successful vaccine procurement program.
Though the U.K. has seen Europe’s highest virus-related death toll, with nearly 128,000 people having lost their lives, the vaccination program has been deemed as one of the world’s speediest and most coherent rollouts.
In December, a 90-year-old British grandmother became the first person in the world to be given the Pfizer vaccine outside of a trial. Since then, around 61% of the U.K. population has received at least one dose of vaccine, while about 43% has had two. The rollout, which has primarily been based on age, was earlier this week extended to 25- to 29-year-olds.
Also honored are a multitude of specialists from across the scientific community for their efforts in developing vaccines, running clinical trials, delivering testing and tracking coronavirus infections. The selfless work of people to help others during the pandemic, from running free taxis for key workers to making bottles of hand sanitizer, was also recognized by the 95-year-old monarch.
Of the 1,129 people receiving honors, 62% are being recognized for community work, with nearly a quarter recommended for their activities during the pandemic.
One of those was 25-year-old Rhys Mallows, who was awarded a British Empire Medal for helping to repurpose Mallows Bottling, a Welsh firm, to produce more than one million bottles of hand sanitizer following a deal with a Scottish distiller. He estimates that around 81 million hands have been sanitized.
“We’re not scientists, but we really felt that if we can give people little bullets to protect themselves, then it’d make a big difference,” he said.
Siblings John Brownhill and Amanda Guest were also awarded the British Empire Medal for setting up Food4Heroes, which delivered more than 200,000 meals to the National Health Service.
“You see in a time of crisis the strengths of humanity I think”, Brownhill said.
The honors list is also a record-breaking one in terms of diversity, with 15% of recipients from an ethnic minority background. Meanwhile, 9% of those honored had a disability and 5% identified as LGBT. More women, 50.2%, than men feature on the list, for the first time since 2015.
The winners are chosen by civil servants’ committees based on nominations from the government and the public. The awards are usually given out by the queen or a senior royal acting in her place during investitures at Buckingham Palace, but the pandemic has changed all that, not least because the queen has been living at Windsor Castle.
The honors list also celebrates the achievements of people in the limelight.
In the world of sport, Manchester City footballer Raheem Sterling was awarded an MBE, beoming a member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for his efforts to promote racial equality in sport.
His award coincides with the start of the European Championship, in which Sterling is set to feature for England. In matches ahead of the tournament, England players have been booed by fans for taking the knee as a gesture against intolerance
His England teammate, Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson, was also awarded an MBE after he raised 4 million pounds ($5.7 million) for the NHS from fellow Premier League footballers.
England’s former coach, Roy Hodgson, and ex-tennis star and broadcaster Sue Barker were both awarded a CBE, which makes them Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
In the world of entertainment, actor Jonathan Pryce, who will play the queen’s late husband Prince Philip in the final seasons of Netflix’s royal drama The Crown, was knighted. And veteran performer Engelbert Humperdinck was also awarded an MBE for services to music.
“That the U.K. continues to honor those that work in the arts acknowledges the great contribution artists make to the way we live our lives,” Pryce said.
Lulu, the veteran singer, was also awarded a CBE alongside keyboardist and songwriter Rick Wakeman, whose career has seen him collaborate with a varied bunch — from David Bowie to Black Sabbath.
The youngest recipient was 21-year-old Amika George, founder of the FreePeriods campaign, who was made an MBE for services to education after campaigning against period poverty.
Among the oldest recipients was 95-year-old Sylvia McKeegan, who was honored with a BEM for her decades of support for the elderly, new mothers, and children in Londonderry, Northern Ireland.
Waihee Elementary School teacher Jeremy Percich and Humans Worldwide founder Karen Romero, aka “Miss Happy,” teamed up to teach a happiness-focused curriculum to Percich’s fourth grade students at the end of the school year. — KAREN ROMERO photo
In an effort to end an unconventional school year on a high note, Jeremy Percich, a fourth grade teacher at Waihe’e Elementary School, partnered with Maui-based organization Humans Worldwide last month to create a happiness-focused curriculum for his students.
The students learned how to explore, celebrate and share happiness and how to create happiness ripple effects. The curriculum included a guest speaker, “Miss Happy,” performed by Karen Romero, a local actor, educator and founder of Humans Worldwide.
After the presentation, students received “A smile for a smile” T-shirts and were tasked with finding ways to create their own happiness ripple effects. On the last day of school, they shared their happiness ripple effect ideas.
To learn more about Humans Worldwide, email 4humansworldwide@gmail.com.
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Trade group funds MEO for programs
The Construction Industry of Maui trade group has donated $1,500 to Maui Economic Opportunity for employment training programs, including the nonprofit’s effort to help reintegrate newly released inmates into the community.
This was the first year the trade group made a donation to a community organization.
The presentation was made on May 26 to Maui Economic Opportunity CEO Debbie Cabebe, Chief Operating Officer Gay Sibonga and Bishop Pahia, who runs the BEST (Being Empowered and Safe Together) program. BEST provides support services and training to prepare inmates for a successful return to the community. MEO also provides a comprehensive range of services and training to assist low-income and legal permanent residents to prepare for employment and to help them maintain employment once hired.
“MEO is so thankful for the gift from the Construction Industry of Maui,” Cabebe said. “Our BEST clients often are released from jail or prison with only the things they brought in with them. No money. No housing. No jobs. This donation can help recently released inmates, who have paid their debt to society, find employment and hopefully, prevent them from reoffending.”
For more information about MEO’s job training programs, call 249-2970 or email lee.imada@meoinc.org.
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Rotary scholarship deadline extended
The Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunrise has extended the deadline to apply for three $1,000 vocational scholarships to June 30.
The scholarships will help recipients pay for training in areas like agriculture, auto mechanics, welding, cosmetology or any trade or nonacademic occupation.
Applicants can be of any age and the training can include apprenticeships, hands-on learning or a variety of non-traditional formats. Students who plan to attend vocational training at a college or university or who are already enrolled are also eligible. Previous scholarship recipients can reapply for additional funding if they are still in a training program.
To apply, visit www.lahainasunriserotary.org or email thefarm@hawaii.rr.com.
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Ocean center offers summer program
Maui Ocean Center will offer a family-friendly summer program, Ocean Aloha, Go Green for Blue, starting Tuesday through Sept. 6.
Through the ongoing initiative, malama kekahi i kekahi (to take care of), Ocean Aloha is an island-based marine conservation program that further educates visitors and residents about the importance of caring for Maui’s natural resources.
“The Ocean Aloha initiative reminds each one of us that we must embrace and care for our natural resources, whether above or below the ocean surface. For generations, the Hawaiian culture has respected this invaluable connection,” said Maui Ocean Center General Manager Tapani Vuori. “At Maui Ocean Center, we are passionate advocates of marine conservation and our island sustainability. Each day we strive to build upon our eco-friendly initiatives and encourage our guests to do the same. By further teaching the value of nature and applying simple sustainability initiatives now, we support the growth of our future for generations.”
The program is designed for all ages and will feature outdoor presentations, demonstrations and interactive learning from cultural practitioners and team members.
For more information about the Ocean Aloha program, visit mauioceancenter.com/ocean-aloha.
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Land trust receives $106K for programs
Hawaii Land Trust recently received two grants from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs totaling $106,254 for programs and initiatives on Maui and Kauai from July 2021 through June 2022.
One of the grants will support iwi kupuna protection at Hawaii Land Trust’s 277-acre Waihe’e Coastal Dunes & Wetlands Refuge on Maui. The funding will support efforts to protect iwi kupuna from disinterment by restoring the native coastal ecosystem, empower Native Hawaiians to care for iwi, train Hawaii Land Trust staff and lineal descendants in the treatment and reinterment of iwi and ensure a secure temporary holding space for iwi until they can be properly reinterred.
“We are grateful for OHA’s support and dedication to community ‘aina stewardship as we work to permanently protect landscapes and provide ways for our communities to connect with ‘aina through education and care of cultural sites and iwi kupuna,” said Laura Kaakua, president and chief executive officer of Hawaii Land Trust.
As Hawaii’s statewide local nonprofit land trust, Hawaii Land Trust protects and stewards the lands that sustain Hawaii and teaches future generations to do the same. To date, it has protected more than 21,500 acres of land throughout Hawaii.
Apatient with a new diagnosis of lymphoma was admitted to a quater- nary care hospital for treatment. Upon admission, he informed the oncology nurse he wanted to be referred to as “Jesse.” This was the beginning of ongoing barriers. The patient, aged 58 years and Hispanic, had experienced years of abuse and had decided to transition to male. On admission and throughout his inpatient stay, the patient was continually referred to as “her” by the oncology staff. This was a constant reminder of his historical pain and showed a lack of regard for his preferences. He indicated that he was experiencing excruciating pain from the disease not responding to chemotherapy and believed the multidisciplinary team did not have the competency to manage his disease, seek alternative treatments, or manage his holistic needs. When the chemotherapy ceased to work, he expressed to the social worker that he was suffering and didn’t want to continue treatment. His pain was never adequately controlled, and even upon transitioning to hospice, the unman- aged physiological and emotional pain delayed comfort until days prior to his death.
Approximately 1.4 million people identify as transgender in the United States.1 Although there is currently minimal research on this population, it is known that they face an increased risk for cancer diagnoses. Cancers of the reproductive system are seen among those who undergo gender-affirming treatment that requires high-dose estrogen or testosterone. Liver and anal cancer are also commonly seen due to the increased prevalence of HIV, hepatitis, and human papillomavirus infections in this patient population.
According to the Institute of Medicine (now the National Academy of Medicine), transgender patients may experience delayed diagnoses due to the lack of competency and training among health care providers. Such patients also have felt discriminated against, which can result in unemployment and a lack of health insurance.1 These barriers can lead to their avoiding seeking health care because of the stigmas they experience. As a result, transgender patients who have a diagnosis of cancer and receive treatment often have a poor prognosis.2
Investigators conducted a qualitative study with 273 people who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ) to evaluate their recommendations for improving cancer care. The participants completed an online survey, which the investigators evaluated using coding to identify common themes. The 5 identified themes are:
The LGBTQ population feel their care is affected by health care providers’ knowledge, mistreatment, and assumptions.
They disclose their identify based on their comfort with providers.
Their health care experiences vary based on their experience with identity.
Their care is improved when they have an adequate support system.
They are advocates for their care despite enduring marginalization.3
Disparities in cancer care among the LGBTQ population are globally ignored; therefore, little has been implemented to improve patients’ outcomes. To optimize care, standardized evidence-based interventions and best practices are needed across the continuum of care, from primary prevention to survivorship. Additionally, ongoing competencies are necessary to provide foundational knowledge of this population, including cultural sensitivity.2
Further, health care workers must have an intentional commitment to reduce the barriers that exist among vulnerable populations.
References
1. Institute of Medicine. The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People: Building a Foundation for Better Understanding. National Academies Press (US); 2011.
2. Schabath MB, Blackburn CA, Sutter ME, et al. National survey of oncologists at National Cancer Institute–designated comprehensive cancer centers: attitudes, knowledge, and practice behaviors about LGBTQ patients with cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2019;37(7):547-558. doi:10.1200/JCO.18.00551
3. Kamen, C.S., Alpert, A., Margolies, L. et al. “Treat us with dignity”: a qualitative study of the experiences and recommendations of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) patients with cancer. Support Care Cancer 27, 2525–2532 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-018-4535-0
During the recent “Freedom March,” ex-LGBT folks gathered to reclaim the rainbow as a symbol of God’s covenant.
Men and women who had previously led LGBT lives celebrated freedom in Jesus Christ at the Sylvan Theater in Washington, D.C. on Friday last week..
According to Christian Post, the “Freedom March” drew over 200 individuals, who shared testimonials of how Jesus changed their life. In 2018, the event was hosted for the first time at the same place. But due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Freedom March was postponed last year.
At the event, many of them were wearing T-shirts with rainbow flags and the phrase “Rainbow Revival” printed on them.
The “rainbow revival” is a sign of God’s covenant, says Angel Colon, who reportedly had “miraculously survived” the Pulse Nightclub mass shooting in Orlando in June 2016.
“We are taking back the rainbow,” he said. “It’s His. For us, it’s something beautiful.”
“We are here and we’re loud, letting the world know that the rainbow is something beautiful,” Colon continued. “And we shouldn’t be ashamed of what it really is.”
As the Freedom March activities continue, Colon and his friends are hearing from a growing number of individuals who want to abandon the LGBT lifestyle to follow Jesus. He feels that the COVID-19 outbreak was a “blessing in disguise” since it caused many people to go deeper in their relationship with God.
“We want to say we love you,” Colon said to the LGBTQ community, “especially now during Pride month.”
“We don’t want to judge you or condemn you and welcome you with open arms and be a reflection of Jesus,” he continued. “We’re not the Holy Spirit. We don’t want to do anything but love everyone.”
After three hours of testimony and worship, the participants marched around the pool with a banner from Sylvan Theater in front of Memorial Lincoln.
CP noted that the Freedom March was one of numerous events in which persons who had previously identified as LGBT took part.
A “rainbow revival” will come
Pastor Kent Christmas of Regeneration-Nashville spoke prophetically about the Lord bringing healing and redemption to the LGBT community at The Return intercessory prayer gathering in September, according to Freedom March co-founder Jeffrey McCall.
Last summer, McCall said he noticed an increase in the number of emails he got from individuals who wanted to leave their LGBT identities and lives behind.
“We are getting more emails, more people reaching out and wanting help than we’ve ever had in the past three years,” he said.
McCall feels that the Church is only getting started in terms of effectively reaching out to LGBT people with the transformative power of life in Christ.
Christians needed healing just as much the LGBT folks
Those who took part in the event felt they were “touched by who we believe is the Physician, Jesus Christ,” says Kim Zember, a Freedom March board member.
“He transforms our lives, not forcing us, not changing us because we have to,” she said. “[It’s] not a doctrine or certain church teaching, but because Christ Himself has encountered each one of us and we want to share that, not only the transformation He has brought to our lives but [it’s] continuing as well.”
She believes that in order for churches to truly reach out to the LGBT population, they must grow in humility and recognize that they “are broken as well and allow Jesus to mend our own brokenness.”
The church must be “willing to be transparent with others struggling about (their) own battles and share about Jesus who is (the) only hope for complete healing,” she adds.
A gay man who fled disturbing conversion therapy in Gabon is surviving on just £6 a day while the Home Office considers his asylum application.
Eric, whose name has been changed to protect his identity, told the ithat he escaped from Gabon in January 2020 after he was drugged, subjected to conversion therapy and threatened with prison for being gay.
Eric has now been waiting for 18 months in the UK, unable to work or find a home, while the Home Office considers his asylum application. He is provided with £40 per week by the government, just under £6 a day.
He said that at home he wasn’t openly gay, but secretly “hooked up” with other men. While being gay is not currently illegal in Gabon, it was criminalised between July 2019 and June 2020, during which time Eric fled.
He said: “My family is one strong Christian family, where homosexuality is a big ‘no no’. If you’re not ‘cured’ yet, it’s because you’re not praying hard enough, or not fasting hard enough.”
When one family member discovered that Eric was gay, he was subjected to disturbing and horrific conversion therapy.
He was drugged, and when he woke up he found himself “in a shrine with a traditional healer, half naked with a piece of cloth around my waist”.
“People were chanting,” he said. “I wasn’t fully conscious, and I didn’t know what had happened. It could have been several days, and several nights.”
He was told by his family that he had six months to find a woman to marry, before they would “fix” his sexual orientation “permanently”.
As time went on, and he did not introduce his family to a future wife, he heard that his relatives were planning on kidnapping him and sending him to prison to “teach him a lesson”.
Eric described boarding a plane to the UK, leaving his family, job and life behind, as “one of the scariest things” he’s ever done.
But delays to asylum claims because of the COVID-19 pandemic have left him in limbo.
He asked: “Will I just die in this process, in this system, this pandemic? Am I just going to be another statistic?”
A Home Office spokesperson said in a statement: “The processing of asylum claims was impacted by the global pandemic which restricted our ability to conduct interviews in person, but we have taking steps to increase capacity and have focused on improvements to deliver decisions more efficiently, including prioritising older claims and those made by vulnerable individuals.”
But Eric is not alone in his experience.
Last month, Nadim Uddin, a volunteer for the charity African Rainbow Family, which urgent support for queer asylum seekers of African heritage and other Black and Asian communities, told PinkNews: “We have some people who’ve been waiting five years.”
In 2019, it was revealed that the UK had refused at least 3,100 people who had fled nations where being queer is illegal, and were seeking asylum on this basis.
The next year, researchers from the University of Sussex found a pervasive “culture of disbelief” against LGBT+ asylum seekers both in the UK and across Europe.
Uddin added: “These people are the most vulnerable. They don’t have the right to work, they don’t have access to anything.
“It doesn’t matter what your immigration status is, your legal status is, you’re a human being.
“You should at least be able to have enough food to eat every day. We don’t want anyone to sleep on an empty stomach.”
“I said, ‘Look at this. What is this? Why would you do this?’ And that’s when he tried to give me some lame excuse about a computer glitch, where he said ‘Sometimes I’ll put in a name and it will come out different on the receipt,’” he told NBC News.
The Oakland A’s celebrated Gay Pride on Friday with a new twist, naming the night in honor of former outfielder Glenn Burke.
And earlier in the day, manager Bob Melvin’s daughter, Alexi, added another layer to the festivities with a tweet:
“Happy #PRIDE Night to the @Athletics. The manager has had an LGBTQ+ daughter pretty much since she was born. (It me.) And I have always felt very supported and empowered to live my truth. I have been lucky. So much love to the rest of my community.”
Alexi texted the tweet to her dad, because Stone Age BoMel is not on Twitter. He heartily approved.
“It’s cool and I’m proud of her,” Bob Melvin said in a phone interview Friday afternoon.
Alexi wanted to be at the game, but she lives in Arizona and had other commitments, so she sent her love via Twitter.
“I just wanted to share my support and bring any kind of awareness to the organization,” she said.
Alexi Melvin, now 32, was born in 1988 in Redwood City, when her dad was between his fourth and fifth big-league seasons, a backup catcher for the Giants. She is the only child of Bob and wife Kelley.
In many ways, Alexi took the road less traveled. She skipped eighth grade and entered high school at age 13. At 14, she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. At the same time, she was coming to terms with her sexuality.
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“When it occurred to me that that’s who I was, around 13 or 14, I didn’t really make it a big deal, I just kind of started living my truth,” Alexi said. “My mom, right off the bat, was really, really supportive and always told me that it didn’t really matter what label I wanted to say I was.
“My dad started to pick up on things, and he never expressed any concern, he just wanted me to be happy, and he always told me that, whether it be with regard to my sexuality, or what I was pursuing with school or career.”
Alexi added with a laugh, “I think he was actually glad that it meant I wouldn’t be going after any of the players on his team.”
Since Alexi was, as far as she knew, the only person in her high school who was out, her parents were her support group.
“It’s definitely a sense of otherness,” Alexi said, and her parents “always made me feel like I was unique in a really special way . . . I never felt like they weren’t there for me. There just always were.”
Bob said, “She became a lot happier once she was able to come out and be the person she wants to be. With most people like that, they have to break down some doors, not only as far as the public goes, but for themselves, too, to feel comfortable, and that’s a very hard thing to do.”
After high school, Alexi went to New York to study acting, and brought her parents with her. They wound up staying in New York for six years, as their daughter earned a BA degree from the New School, and attended the Lee Strasberg Theater and Film Institute, then went to work.
Alexi’s acting credits include two Star Wars movies and some commercial work. Recently she changed her career course and enrolled at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco. In the fall, Alexi will be majoring in Women, Gender, Spirituality and Social Justice, with the goal of an MA and a Ph.D.
“Bringing more equality and awareness with regards to gender, sexuality, spiritual expression, all of that is really important to me,” she said. “I would like to write books, and speak. I’m really passionate about talking about transcending gender norms.”
Alexi was heartened by the positive response to her tweet about the A’s Pride Night.
“I love seeing the support and acceptance, that’s what we’re working towards,” she said. “A’s fans, I have to say, are great. I’ve dealt with some kind-of-not-nice people, growing up around baseball and having my dad be who he is. But A’s fans have always been just kind and supportive, just really good, kindhearted people, and today was a great example of that.”
Alexi’s interest in sports was limited to one season of Little League baseball. Oh, and she ran the New York City Marathon in 2019 and will run it again this year, in support of her activism in the diabetes community.
Friday night, though, she was a big A’s fan. Her dad had his team in first place in the AL West, and the A’s were saluting gay pride.
If you ever had the hots for the eternal space twink that is Wesley Crusher, know that you weren’t alone – and Wil Wheaton is here for you.
Star Trek‘s jaunty-jumpered boy genius who may or may not be Picard’s secret son is far from everyone’s fantasy, but for many thirsty 13-year-olds, resistance was futile.
Wil Wheaton acknowledged his character’s queer appeal in a Facebook post celebrating the few young Trekkies who weren’t fundamentally irritated by Wesley’s precocious antics.
“Over the years, I’ve met several men who have told me that their childhood crush on Wesley Crusher was a big part of them coming out and living their lives with joy and love and pride,” Wheaton wrote.
“I can not even begin to tell you how much this means to me. I love it so much that I, and some of my work, were there for people (when I didn’t even know it was happening) who needed a safe place.
“Happy Pride, you lovely and perfect humans,” he added. “I, and Wesley Crusher, see you, and we absolutely adore you.”
As the post went viral, Wheaton’s wife, Anne Wheaton, also weighed in on Twitter.
“Over the years, I’ve had men tell me they had a crush on Wesley Crusher and then immediately apologise to me for it. Don’t apologise!” she said.
“We both love that his character helped you figure out who you are. And I love that Wil wrote a Facebook post about it. Happy Pride, friends.”
Her message brought forth a flood of messages from seasoned fans who proudly confessed to crushing on young Crusher back in the day.
And they’ll be pleased to hear that Dr Crusher has given her blessing.
Wesley’s on-screen mum, actress Gates McFadden, tweeted: “Proud of my space son for writing this! Love you for posting space daughter-in-law.”
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