National
Homophobic attack on Delta flight attendant leads to arrest
The incident occurred aboard Delta Air Lines flight 2908 when he allegedly became uncooperative with flight attendants even before take off
The Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested a passenger flying from Atlanta to Phoenix last Friday, after the man who was traveling first class, allegedly unleashed a tirade using homophobic epithets and assaulting a male flight attendant who refused to serve him more alcohol.
According to the FBI affidavit unsealed Monday, Christopher Alexander Morgan screamed at the attendant calling him a “fag” and a “queer” and then throwing a throwing a glass of ice at him- finally assaulting him with an onboard telephone the Daily Beast reported Tuesday.
The incident occurred aboard Delta Air Lines flight 2908 when Morgan allegedly became uncooperative with flight attendants even before the plane took off.
He “reclined his (1D) seat all the way back and refused to put on his seatbelt,” according to the outlet, which cited an FBI affidavit unsealed Monday.
Two flight attendants told him to bring his seatback to the upright position for takeoff, but he refused, became “uncooperative and would not comply with their instructions,” the affidavit states.
He later ordered and received an alcoholic drink, but was angered when a flight attendant – cited as “H.D.” — offered him a non-alcoholic beverage when he ordered another one, according to the document.
“Morgan called H.D. the f-word and a ‘queer’ and threw a glass of ice at H.D.,” the affidavit says.
“When passenger R.O., who was sitting in seat 2G, said something to Morgan to deescalate Morgan’s display of aggression, Morgan became angry with the passenger R.O. and held the glass he was holding up to R.O.’s face,” it states.
The flight attendant then went to inform the captain about what Morgan was doing.
“According to H.D., Morgan then got out of his seat, grabbed the telephone from H.D., and hit H.D. in the chest with the telephone,” the affidavit continues. “Passenger R.O. reported that he heard Morgan call H.D. a ‘fag’ and that he observed Morgan take the airplane phone from H.D. and throw it at him.”
Morgan was arrested upon arrival at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and is facing charges of interference with flight crew members or attendants, a felony which carries up to 20 years in prison.
National
Queen Jean is Tony’s first transgender winner
Designer/activist wins for work on ‘Cats: The Jellicle Ball’
It was a historic night at the 79th annual Tony Awards on Sunday as Queen Jean won the award for Best Costume Design of a Musical, making her the first out transgender person to win a Tony.
“This experience has been monumental. We are here for the legacy of queer people, trans people,” she said. “We are taking up space in ways we have to take up space. We have to shift the paradigm. So I just want to say, thank you all so much for this incredible honor. The world right now is deeply, deeply combating so many ailments, and we know as a society that when we come together, we can make real, permanent change.”
She won the award for her work on “Cats: The Jellicle Ball” and was also nominated for best costume design of a play for “Liberation.”
In addition to her stage work, Queen Jean is the founder of Black Trans Liberation, an organization that supports trans and gender-nonconforming people in New York City.
National
Madonna turns Times Square into massive dance floor
Pop icon celebrates Pride month with surprise performance
Pop icon Madonna celebrated Pride month with a pop-up performance in New York City’s Times Square on Thursday to the delight of 50,000 fans.
She performed for about 15 minutes high above street level, including several songs from her new album “Confessions II” due on July 3, along with a trio of songs from the first “Confessions on a Dance Floor.”
In addition to the brand new “Love Sensation,” she performed “I Feel So Free” and “Bring Your Love,” plus “Hung Up,” “Get Together” and “I Love New York.” She wished the crowd a happy Pride season; the event was shared with audiences through Grindr’s first-ever livestream.
National
Gallup finds LGBTQ support among Americans is dropping
Marriage equality support lowest since 2016
Gallup, one of the leading organizations in public opinion polling, has found that LGBTQ support among Americans is dropping.
The poll, whose data was collected using Gallup’s annual Values and Beliefs survey, was conducted in May and was published on Wednesday. The data was collected through telephone interviews from a sample of more than 1,000 adults living in all 50 states and D.C. using random digit dialing.
It highlights declining attitudes surrounding LGBTQ issues in multiple areas — from support for same-sex marriage to views on gender identity and the morality of one’s sexuality.
One of the most striking findings was that support for marriage equality fell six points from its 2022-2023 high.
The survey also found that 62 percent of Americans view gay and lesbian relations as morally acceptable, the lowest level since 2016 just after same-sex marriage was legalized nationwide by the U.S. Supreme Court.
One newer question on the poll found that the perceived morality of changing one’s gender has dropped eight points since 2021, indicating the American public is less supportive of transgender people.
The data attributes much of the decline to shifting Republican views alongside the party itself. Conservative leaders have pushed back against diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that were intended to foster greater acceptance of LGBTQ people and other historically disadvantaged groups.
President Donald Trump has been a guiding force behind waves of anti-LGBTQ sentiment, particularly when it comes to trans rights. The president has enacted multiple executive orders, including Executive Order 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” which mandates that gender be defined by one’s sex assigned at birth. He also signed Executive Order 14183, “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” which barred qualified trans applicants from joining the military and led to the removal of trans service members already serving in the armed forces.
Additionally, he signed Executive Order 14201, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which prohibits trans female athletes from participating on women’s and girls’ sports teams.
In February, Gallup found that an estimated 9 percent of Americans identified as part of the LGBTQ community in some form.
The organization also found that 23 percent of adults under age 30 identify as LGBTQ, compared with 10 percent of those ages 30 to 49 and 3 percent or less among those ages 50 and older.
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