Friday Five (coddling doesn’t work edition)

Hey! It’s the fourth and final Friday in May, leading into the fifth weekend of May. Pride Month is just days away!

A week ago I got my second Covid vaccine. The side effects for me were a lot milder for the second shot. Then the middle of this week my husband got his second shot. His side effects seem to be much worse for the second than the first one. So we’re having a very mixed week.

Meanwhile, we have this week’s Friday Five. This week I bring you: one story that made me smile, the top five stories of the week, five stories of interest to queers and our allies, five stories about Pride Month, five stories about seditious traitors, five stories about other deplorables, and five videos (plus some notable obituaries).

This Week’s Story That Made Me Smile:

A group of bikers pull up to a lemonade stand and made the day for some little kids

Stories of the Week:

DC Statehood Gets Huge Push From Constitutional Scholars – No, you do NOT need a constitutional amendment to pass DC statehood, say a wide variety of constitutional scholars

US attorney general expands resources to combat hate crimes – Justice Department move follows passage of anti-hate crimes legislation in US Congress

UN rights council to investigate crimes during Gaza conflict – UN Human Rights Council will also investigate ‘systematic’ abuses in the occupied Palestinian territories and Israel

Democrats, GO NEGATIVE in Your Advertising! It WORKS! "The conclusion is clear: START LABELING THE REPUBLICANS AS THE DANGEROUS RADICALS THAT THEY ARE"

The surge in U.S. coronavirus cases shows a shift in who’s getting sick – Younger, unvaccinated people aren’t just getting mild infections; they’re landing in the ER too

Stories of Interest to Queers and Our Allies:

Oregon’s out governor signs bill banning gay & trans “panic” murder defense – The maneuver is usually attempted when an LGBTQ person is killed by someone they recently had sex with

Nashville prosecutor says he won’t enforce anti-trans law requiring bathroom signs – Tennessee passed a law requiring businesses to warn their customers if they serve trans people equally. This DA isn’t having it

Hunter Schafer’s pastor dad says Jesus inspires his fight for trans rights – The father of Euphoria’s Hunter Schafer has written a powerful essay explaining why people of faith should be rushing to support trans rights

Classmates rally behind trans student as school plans to deadname him at graduation – Soren Tucker’s school says they’re going to use the name he was given at birth at his graduation. His classmates aren’t having it

Federal agencies take aim at Trump’s LGBTQ policies

It is nearly Pride month, y’all:

‘Pride Month Song’ sketch by SNL is wicked and hilarious, but never insulting to LGBTQ people

Pride 2021: Big cities ‘playing the safe card’ with small gatherings, virtual events – “We believe that we certainly can’t have millions of spectators in one massive crowd just yet. It’s just too soon for that,” Dan Dimant of NYC Pride said

Companies need to swap tokenism for authenticity if they want to celebrate Pride with us – Companies hoping to make a buck from slapping a rainbow on their products and calling it a day should think carefully about engaging in pink capitalism this year

No Kink at Pride? What’s Next, a Drag Ban?

Nazis, Puriteens and Accessibility: The pointless ‘kink at pride’ discourse "Coddling normies doesn’t move the struggle for liberation. Rights aren’t granted – they’re taken."

This Week in Seditious Treason:

Scared McConnell Begs GOP Senators To Kill Jan 6 Panel As ‘Personal Favor’ – McConnell is so afraid of Brian Sicknick’s mother that he’s strongarming colleagues not to meet with her and to dump the commission as "a personal favor."

Self-Described ‘MAGA Caravan’ Leader ‘Pi Annon’ Charged with Assaulting Police During Capitol Siege

The Capitol Siege: The Arrested And Their Stories

Capitol Rioters Hoping for a Plea Bargain are in for Some Bad News — They Better Prepare for Prison

Giuliani Defends His Call For ‘Trial By Combat’ on Jan 6 as ‘Clearly Hyperbolic’ in Response to Capitol Riot Lawsuit

This Week in Deplorables, Haters, and Obstructors:

Rick Santorum axed by CNN over racist remarks on Native Americans If any headline in the history of the universe was more desperately crying out to have the word "FINALLY" added to it, I don’t know what it could be…

Court documents allege KS lawmaker left student with bruise – Kansas GOP State Rep Told Police He Was Acting Under God’s Instruction When He Kicked Student In The Balls

Son, ghostwriter of late senator say Trump intervened to stop probe of Patriots’ Spygate scandal

Once Again, Rage-Filled Woman-Abusing Good Guy With Gun Does Mass Shooting

Neo-Nazi arrested after terrorizing gay couple & vandalizing trans support center for months – Officers say Seth Bertrand is behind a campaign of terror targeting the LGBTQ community in Ontario