News
One person dead after pickup truck hits Wilton Manors Pride parade participants
Vehicle narrowly missed U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz
WILTON MANORS, Fla. ā At least one person died on Saturday when a pickup truck ran over them during a Pride parade in Wilton Manors, Fla.
South Florida Gay News, WPLG and other South Florida media outlets reported the incident took place shortly before 7 p.m. after the Stonewall Pride Parade began on Wilton Drive.
Christian De La Rosa, a WPLG reporter, told his television station a white pickup truck that was lined up with other parade floats hit the accelerator and ran over two people. WPLG reported the vehicle narrowly missed U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), who was in a convertible participating in the parade.
“I want to thank our first responders for their heroic efforts as both police and emergency medical personnel stepped into action quickly,” tweeted the congresswoman after the incident.
“Weāre praying for the victims and their loved ones as law enforcement investigates, and I am providing them with whatever assistance I can,” she added. “I am so heartbroken by what took place at this celebration. May the memory of the life lost be for a blessing.”
āThis is a terrorist attack against the LGBT community,ā Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis told WPLG shortly after the incident took place, without any apparent confirmation. āThis is exactly what it is. Hardly an accident. It was deliberate, it was premeditated and it was targeted against a specific person. Luckily they missed that person, but unfortunately, they hit two other people.ā
BREAKING: At least 2 people have been hit by a truck at the beginning of the @WiltonManorsCty #Pride parade. @delarosaWPLG was only yards away at the time. He spoke with @DeanTrantalis. @WPLGLocal10 pic.twitter.com/CRRmGz0a12
ā Ian Margol (@IanMargolWPLG) June 19, 2021
Detective Ali Adamson of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department told reporters near the scene the “investigation is active and we are considering and evaluating all possibilities.”
“We owe it to our community to conduct a thorough and complete investigation,ā she added.
Adamson confirmed her department is “working with” the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is “evaluating all possibilities.” The pickup truck’s driver remains is in custody.
“We have to look at all the angles and thatās what we are doing,ā said Adamson.
Fort Lauderdale Gay Men’s Chorus President Justin Knight told WPLG reporter Liane Morejon that the two victims and the driver who struck them were members of his organization. Knight in his statement also said to his knowledge the incident “was not an attack on the LGBTQ community.”
“We anticipate more details to follow and ask for the community’s love and support,” added Knight.
Florida state Sen. Shevrin Jones, who is openly gay, in a tweet said he is “heartbroken and in shock over what has happened at Wilton Manors Pride.”
“Praying for and sending love to everyone there, including many friends,” he said.
Washington Blade Senior News Reporter Lou Chibbaro, who is currently on vacation in Wilton Manors, was along the parade route when the incident took place.
The Stonewall Pride Festival had begun earlier in the day. Chibbaro said Pride organizers cancelled the parade.
The incident took place a week after the 5th anniversary of the massacre at Pulse, an LGBTQ nightclub in Orlando. Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this month signed a bill that bans transgender athletes from participating in high school and college sports teams that correspond with their gender identity and vetoed funding that activists say would have funded programs for Pulse survivors and homeless LGBTQ youth.
“We are heartbroken by the news of loss of life and multiple injuries at Wilton Manors Pride tonight,” said Equality Florida, a statewide LGBTQ advocacy group, in a series of tweets. “Our hearts go out to all those impacted. Our staff and volunteers at Pride are all safe and accounted for.”
“We are, with the rest of the community, awaiting additional info on whether this was a tragic accident or an intentional act of hate,” added Equality Florida.
Equality Florida also said “fears are heightened at a time when Gov. DeSantis and GOP legislators are fanning the flames of anti-LGBTQ hatred for political gain.”
“We canāt help but think of the awful bill passed this session enabling people to use vehicles as weapons against demonstrators. And, just days after the Pulse remembrance, we know dangerous rhetoric comes with real costs,” said Equality Florida. “But let us await the full story and send hope and healing to those injured and grieving tonight.”
The Blade will provide additional details as they become available.
Congress
Sens. Butler, Smith introduce Pride in Mental Health Act to aid at-risk LGBTQ youth
Bill is backed by Democrats in both chambers
U.S. Sens. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) introduced the Pride in Mental Health Act on Thursday, legislation that would strengthen resources in mental health and crisis intervention for at-risk LGBTQ youth.
āAccessing mental health care and support has become increasingly difficult in nearly every state in the country,āĀ said Butler, who is the first Black LGBTQ senator. āBarriers get even more difficult if you are a young person who lacks a supportive community or is fearful of being outed, harassed, or threatened.”
“I am introducing the Pride in Mental Health Act to help equip LGBTQ+ youth with the resources to get the affirming and often life-saving care they need,” she said.
āMental health care is health care,” said Smith. “And for some LGBTQ+ youth, receiving access to the mental health care they need can mean the difference between living in safety and dignity, and suffering alone through discrimination, bullying, and even violence.āĀ
The Minnesota senator added that data shows LGBTQ students are experiencing “an epidemic” of “anxiety, depression and other serious mental health conditions.”
For example, a 2023 study by The Trevor Project found that 54 percent of LGBTQ youth reported symptoms of depression, compared to 35 percent of their heterosexual counterparts.
Joining the senators as cosponsors are Democratic U.S. Sens. Ed Markey (Mass.), Bob Casey (Penn.), Peter Welch (Vt.), Alex Padilla (Calif.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Cory Booker (N.J.), and Tammy Baldwin (Wis.). Baldwin was the first LGBTQ woman elected to the House in 1999 and the first LGBTQ woman elected to the Senate in 2013.
Leading the House version of the bill are LGBTQ Democratic U.S. Reps. Sharice Davids (Kan.), Eric Sorensen (Ill.), and Ritchie Torres (N.Y.), along with 163 other House members.
Organizations that have backed the Pride in Mental Health Act include the Human Rights Campaign, GLSEN, American Academy of Pediatrics, National Education Association (NEA), National Center for Transgender Equality, Seattle Indian Health Board, PFLAG National, The Trevor Project, American Psychological Association, Whitman-Walker Institute, InterACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth, National Alliance on Mental Illness, American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Mental Health America, and Center for Law and Social Policy.
District of Columbia
D.C. mayorĀ honors 10th anniversary of Team Rayceen Productions
LGBTQ entertainment, advocacy organization praised for āvital workā
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser today issued an official proclamation declaring Monday, March 18, 2024, as Team Rayceen Day in honor of the local LGBTQ entertainment and advocacy organization Team Rayceen Productions named after its co-founder Rayceen Pendarvis.
āWhereas Rayceen, along with Team Rayceen Productions co-founder, Zar, have spent 10 years advocating for the Black LGBTQI+ community using various forms including in-person events, social media, and YouTube,ā the proclamation states.
The proclamation adds that through its YouTube Channel, Team Rayceen Productions created a platform for āBlack LGBTQIA+ individuals to discuss various topics including spotlighting nonprofit organizations and small businesses, voter registration and participation, the state of LGBTQIA+ rights and resources in D.C, gender equality and equity, and the amplification of opportunities to bring the community together.ā
It also praises Team Rayceen Productions for its partnership with the Mayorās Office of LGBTQ Affairs in helping to produce āexciting events like the District of Pride talent showcase held each June and the iconic 17th Street High Heel Race celebrated in October.ā
āWhereas I thank Team Rayceen Productions for its vital and necessary work and am #DCProud to wish you all the best as you continue to support Black LGBTQIA+ residents across all 8 Wards,ā the proclamation continues.
āNow, therefore, I, the Mayor of Washington, D.C., do hereby proclaim March 18, 2024, as TEAM RAYCEEN DAY in Washington, D.C. and do commit this observance to all Washingtonians,ā it concludes.
āWe thank Mayor Bowser for this special proclamation, which highlights where it all began, with the Black LGBTQIA+ community of Washington, D.C,ā Team Rayceen Productions says in a statement. āStarting with The Ask Rayceen Show, Reel Affirmation, and events with D.C. Public Library to Art All Night, Silver Pride by Whitman-Walker, and events with the Mayorās Office of LGBTQ Affairs, we are #dcproud of what we have accomplished in the Nationās Capital,ā the statement says.
“For TEAM RAYCEEN DAY, we thank the diverse group of individuals who have made everything we have done possible by volunteering their time and talents over the past decade ā as online co-hosts, event staff, performers, DJs, photographers, and more,ā says the statement.
U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court declines to hear case over drag show at Texas university
Students argue First Amendment protects performance
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday declined to hear a First Amendment case over a public university president’s refusal to allow an LGBTQ student group to host a drag show on campus.
The group’s application was denied without the justices providing their reasoning or issuing dissenting opinions, as is custom for such requests for emergency review.
When plaintiffs sought to organize the drag performance to raise money for suicide prevention in March 2023, West Texas A&M University President Walter Wendler cancelled the event, citing the Bible and other religious texts.
The students sued, arguing the move constituted prior restraint and viewpoint-based discrimination, in violation of the First Amendment. Wendler had called drag shows āderisive, divisive and demoralizing misogyny,” adding that “a harmless drag show” was “not possible.”
The notoriously conservative Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who former President Donald Trump appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, ruled against the plaintiffs in September, writing that āit is not clearly established that all drag shows are inherently expressive.”
Kacsmaryk further argued that the High Court’s precedent-setting opinions protecting stage performances and establishing that “speech may not be banned on the ground that it expresses ideas that offend” was inconsistent with constitutional interpretation based on ātext, history and tradition.”
Plaintiffs appealed to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is by far the most conservative of the nation’s 12 appellate circuit courts. They sought emergency review by the Supreme Court because the 5th Circuit refused to fast-track their case, so arguments were scheduled to begin after the date of their drag show.
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