Beth Ditto and MAC collaborate on cosmetics collection

Gossip frontwoman Beth Ditto is teaming up with MAC for a limited edition cosmetics line, and I’m kind of having a femme-gasm.

I don’t normally get so excited about celebrities, corporations and capitalism, but this is a partnership I can get behind. MAC cosmetics are not tested on animals, many of the products are vegan, and the company often hires non-normative spokesmodels and employees, like Ditto. She is an unapologetic fat, queer, feminist who lets her inner drag queen shine—someone not considered beautiful to most of American society, someone like me—yet, MAC made her the face of her own high-end cosmetics line. That’s usually reserved for straight, white, thin, young, stereotypically attractive models and celebrities. (Although, CoverGirl did deviate from its usual spokesmodels with Ellen DeGeneres and Queen Latifa.)

I’m bummed that Ditto isn’t working with MAC’s Viva Glam campaign because every cent of the selling price of products in the Viva Glam line goes to the MAC AIDS Fund. Previous Viva Glam spokesmodels include queer and allied songstresses Lady Gaga and Cyndi Lauper, as well as professional drag aficionado RuPaul.

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Queer highlights from Obama’s State of the Union address

 

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LGBT racial minority hit hard by social and financial inequality

Black* members of the LGBT community experience stark social, economic and health disparities compared to the general population and their straight black and white LGBT counterparts, according to a Center for American Progress report.

Data in the report emphasized the intersections of the black racial identity with sexual orientation and gender identity, revealing:

• Families headed by black same-sex couples are more likely to raise their children in poverty.
• Black lesbians are more likely to suffer from chronic diseases.
• Black gay and transgender youth are more likely to end up homeless and living on the streets.

CAP recommends overcoming these issues with a policy agenda that “seeks to understand and tackle the structural barriers—discriminatory systems, conditions and institutions around socioeconomic status, race, sex, sexual orientation and gender identity—that perpetuate negative economic, health, and other life outcomes among this population.” The report also suggests gay policy priorities, like marriage equality, underserve many populations within the LGBT community.

“Despite significant gains in securing basic rights for LGBT Americans over the past decade, the quality of life for black gay and transgender Americans has remained virtually unchanged,” Aisha Moodie-Mills, CAP advisor on LGBT policy and racial justice, wrote in a statement. “Marriage equality is vital to overall progress, but marriage alone is not a silver bullet to reduce the disparities black gay and transgender populations face.”

In the report, CAP made the following recommendations to overcome issues faced by the people of color in the LGBT community:

CAP recommendations for addressing economic insecurity

• Adopt inclusive family policies and safety net programs.
• Pass housing anti-discrimination laws.
• Take a comprehensive federal approach to gay and transgender youth homelessness.
• Make consumer financial protection a priority.
• Pass employee non-discrimination laws.
• Support gay and transgender entrepreneurs.
• Legally recognize same-sex relationships.

CAP recommendations for addressing low educational attainment

• Adopt school safety policies.
• Enforce existing federal civil rights laws.
• Review school discipline policies.

CAP recommendations for addressing health and wellness disparities

• Implement the Affordable Care Act.
• Work toward health equity.
• Examine domestic violence among same-sex couples.

But the data on race and the LGBT community is limited, as few demographic surveys ask respondents their sexual orientation and gender identity. And without solid data, creating credible, persuasive policies is difficult. In response, CAP launched the Fighting Injustice to Reach Equality initiative, which makes policy recommendations to eliminate disparities faced by gay and transgender people of color.

My guess is, if surveys also enumerated other identities, like ability and citizenship status, researchers would find even greater social, economic, and health disparities for LGBT people of color who fall into those oppressed identities as well.

Read the entire report on CAP’s website.

*Black is the racial category used in the CAP report.

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Roe v. Wade turns 39, amid waning abortion access

After years of litigation in the Roe v. Wade case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in favor of Roe, legalizing abortion 39 years ago today.

The court extended the right to privacy clause in the 14th Amendment to a person’s choice to have an abortion; however, that right must be balanced with the state’s interest to protect prenatal life and the mother’s health.

A person may chose to have an abortion until the fetus is viable or “potentially able to live outside the mother’s womb, albeit with artificial aid,” according to the Roe v. Wade ruling. Medically, this is usually at about seven months or 28 weeks, but very few doctors perform abortions on people who are past the first trimester.

Before abortion was legalized in the United States, thousands of women died from complications resulting from botched back alley abortions. Currently, 60,000 to 80,000 people worldwide die each year from unsafe abortions, and 5 million more suffer permanent or temporary injury.

Several states—Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Dakota and South Dakota—enacted trigger laws to automatically criminalize abortion if Roe v. Wade is overturned. Other states did not repeal pre-1973 laws criminalizing abortion, which could be enforced if the decision is overturned.

California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Nevada and Washington have statutes legalizing abortion if Roe v. Wade is overturned.

Many states skirt the ruling by imposing limitations on access to abortions, such as requiring an ultrasound of the fetus or parental permission before performing the procedure for minors. 2011 was a banner year for these laws: State legislators introduced more than 1,100 reproductive health and rights-related provisions, a sharp increase from the 950 introduced in 2010. By year’s end, 135 of these provisions had been enacted in 36 states.

Check out the resources below for more information:

• Guide to having an abortion
• Overview of U.S. abortion laws by state
• Abortion parental consent and notification laws by state
• Safety of abortion fact sheet
• Facts on induced abortion in the United States
• Safer sex tips
• How to use a condom and other condom FAQs
• Safer sex for lesbian and bisexual female-bodied people
• Safer sex after sex reassignment surgery

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All The Writers I Know spotlights queer poets and storytellers

In December I read some of my poetry and short stories at All The Writers I Know, a Chicago queer literary showcase hosted by Southside Hub of Production. I shared my work alongside some other very talented queers—including Kelsey Schultz, Dee Michel, Patrick Gill, Rosy Phinick and Mar Curran.

Because it was close to the holidays, the theme for the night was family: blood and chosen. I read pieces on femme visibility, alcoholism, poverty, fighting and friends. Other writers covered coming out, kooky kin, redefining family, body positivity, and name and pronoun preference.

I was all femmed out while sharing poems and short stories about family at All The Writers I Know.

All The Writers I Know was also featured in The Reader and Redeye. Not too shabby, considering this was the second installment of the series.

The Chicago Center for Literature and Photography recorded the reading as a podcast. Listen below, on iTunes or CCLAP’s website. I start at the 18:45 mark, but the entire show is worth checking out.

More photos from All The Writers I Know are on Stuff Queer People Need To Know’s Facebook page.

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