Arts & Entertainment

Gay ‘Jeopardy’ contestant calls out GOP for Snapchat

Virtel fires back over snap

Published

8 years ago

January 13, 2016

Mariah Cooper

(Screenshot courtesy of YouTube)

Out “Jeopardy” contestant Louis Virtel is calling out the GOP for using a gif of him on their Snapchat promoting their coverage of the State of the Union address on Tuesday.

Virtel, who appeared on “Jeopardy” last year, gained Internet attention after answering a Daily Double question correctly and giving a fierce snap in celebration. The moment earned Virtel shareable gifs and memes and the GOP decided to get in on the fun.

The GOP used the gif of Virtel snapping with the words “Snap of the Union” as they covered the State of the Union address on their Snapchat account. Virtel took to Twitter to express his disdain for the situation.

Hey, GOP! Your candidates are horrifying garbage who’ve done nothing for LGBT rights. Don’t use my image. https://t.co/N1zddPOeZR

— Louis Virtel (@louisvirtel) January 12, 2016

Dear @GOP: The reason people liked my snap was because it defied regressive, homophobic, scary-ass losers like you. https://t.co/N1zddPOeZR

— Louis Virtel (@louisvirtel) January 12, 2016

Virtel spoke to Slate about why the GOP using the gif upset him as much as it did.

“As a gay guy who is protective and militantly proud of his gayness, it’s both hilarious and borderline traumatizing to see the GOP mistake my energy for something in line with their ideals. Like many longtime out-and-proud gay guys from the Midwest, I’ve known plenty of closeted folks who are terrified of coming out,” Virtel told Slate.

“They all have one thing in common: Their parents are staunch Republicans. The GOP as it stands is a regressive and terrifying threat to LGBT Americans, and if the GOP can’t see that a gay guy on Jeopardy! wouldn’t want to be associated with them, it’s only further proof of their brutal ignorance,” Virtel went on.

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Celebrity News

More than 1 million people attend Madonna concert in Rio

Free event took place on Copacabana Beach on Saturday

Published

8 hours ago

May 6, 2024

Michael K. Lavers

Madonna performs on Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Beach on May 4, 2024. (Screen capture via Reuters YouTube)

An estimated 1.6 million people on Saturday attended Madonna’s free concert on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach.

The concert, which was the last one as part of Madonna’s Celebration Tour, included a tribute to people lost to AIDS.

Bob the Drag Queen introduced Madonna before the concert began. Pabllo Vittar, a Brazilian drag queen and singer, and Anitta, a bisexual pop star who was born in Rio’s Honório Gurgel neighborhood, also joined Madonna on stage.

Congresswoman Erika Hilton, a Black travesti and former sex worker, and Rio Municipal Councilwoman Mônica Benício, the widow of Marielle Franco, a bisexual Rio Municipal Councilwoman who was assassinated in 2018, are among those who attended the concert.

“Madonna showed that we fight important fights for the human rights of Black (people), young (people), women and LGBTQIA+ people, and against all injustice, discrimination, and violence,” said Associaçao Nacional de Travestis e Transexuais (National Association of Travestis and Transsexuals), a Brazilian trans rights group known by the acronym ANTRA, on its X account. “What they call identitarianism’ is our subversion to the retrograde and conservative tackiness that plagues the country.”

The Associated Press reported the concert was Madonna’s biggest ever.

Photos

PHOTOS: Gay Day at the Zoo

Smithsonian observs International Family Equality Day

Published

1 day ago

May 5, 2024

Michael Key

Gay Day at the Zoo (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The DC Center for the LGBTQ Community, SMYAL and Rainbow Families sponsored Gay Day at the Zoo on Sunday at the Smithsonian National Zoo. The Smithsonian observed International Family Equality Day with special exhibits and an event space.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)