Courtesy of Yahoo News:
On HBO’s “Last Week Tonight” Sunday, John Oliver called on the federal government to extend basic civil rights protections to the LGBT community because, as he put it, “There are still a number of ways to ruin a gay honeymoon.”
In many states, Oliver noted, same-sex couples can get married and return to work only to find they’ve lost their jobs or housing because of it.
“That’s clearly terrible,” he said. “The only possible reason you should be fired from your job after your wedding is if your theme was ‘Stolen Office Supplies.’”
But discriminating against gay people is “surprisingly legal,” Oliver said. “In 31 states, people are at risk of being fired, evicted or refused service just because they are gay.”
Oliver also reached out to every single presidential candidate to ask them this:
"Would you support passage of a federal law or laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, specifically in the areas of employment, housing, public accommodations, and access to credit."
Only four responded.
Lincoln Chafee, Bernie Sanders, and Martin O'Malley on the Democrats side all said yes they would support the legislation.
And Rand Paul's campaign only responded with an "We'll pass. Thanks."
Personally am a little disappointed that Hillary did not respond as I think this reaches a demographic that she is going to need going forward.
As for the rest of the candidates, well I think their silence is deafening don't you?
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/55db8117e4b08cd3359cf324
ReplyDeleteThat IS not funny, but dangerous..
What a douche.
DeleteThrough my job, I've met both Chafee and O'Malley. They are very nice guys. I'm not surprised they would respond this way just surprised that they did. But Bernie is the Bomb and I hope he gets the nomination.
ReplyDeleteAnd once again, Hillary is silent when it matters.
ReplyDeleteI've been fairly neutral on her because it looked like she was a shoe-in as the nominee. But, I'm beginning to actively dislike her.
I love John Oliver, but I'm not sure this is "when it matters."
DeleteAnother candidate for president has arrived:
ReplyDelete...According to WVLT, Darrell Trigg, an engineer from Rogersville, Tennessee, has announced he is running for U.S. president as a candidate of the Christian Party whose motto states: “Calm Strength – Implicit Faith – Fearless Courage — Confidence in God.”
...Trigg does not call for stoning of gays or adulterers — as advocated in the Bible — but said that “Homosexuality will not be recognized legally, or in any other manner, by the United States government or any state, city, or county government.”
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/08/bad-news-for-josh-duggar-candidate-for-newly-formed-christian-party-would-jail-adulterers/
Over forty-five years ago Pierre Trudeau, at that time Canada's Minister of Justice, introduced https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_Law_Amendment_Act,_1968-69. It became law on the 27th of June 1969, decriminalizing homosexuality, allowing abortion and contraception, regulating lotteries, gun possession, drinking and driving offences, and more. Trudeau, who later became Prime Minister of Canada, supported the bill with a statement that some American politicians would do well to heed:
ReplyDeletethere's no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation.
Thank You, Mr Powell. We're way behind the learning curve on a lot of issues. I hope President Obama follows his lead by using executive order.
DeleteI'm surprised Rand Paul didn't take this opportunity to declare once again that he doesn't have a problem with businesses discriminating against anyone for any reason.
ReplyDeleteMr Oliver is spot on with this show. I live in a state that's painted yellow on that map, while watching the clip, I remembered my dad and realized how ahead of his times he was. He had rental property in an all white neighborhood, and when he listed with a realtor, the man asked him if he wanted a lawn sign, and my dad said "Sure", he was told it may "attract unsavory elements", When pressed further about "unsavory elements", the realtor said "You know, n words and f words". My dad insisted on the lawn sign and said "I'm paying you to rent out a property, pre certify that the renter has the income to afford the monthly payment, NOT paying you to screen people"
ReplyDeleteThe realtor refused, parted ways, and my dad decided to handle it on his own. And he rented to qualified people, no matter their race nor what they did in private.
The neighbors didn't like it, but he didn't care, as long as the rent was paid and the place was cared for, he rarely raised the rent nor held a damage deposit. If the neighbors vandalized the property, it wasn't the fault of the renters, and he ate that cost. He knew what it felt like to be considered "other" when he immigrated here.