Celebrity News
Tom Daley receives OBE at Windsor Castle
Olympic gold medalist honored for diving, LGBTQ rights
British Olympic gold medalist Tom Daley was honored at Windsor Castle Tuesday, as Prince Charles, standing in for Queen Elizabeth, bestowed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) on the 28 year-old champion diver.
In the citation Daley was lauded for his services to British diving, as well as in recognition of his charity work and his global advocacy of LGBTQ rights.
Daley was accompanied to the ceremony by his 48-year-old American husband, Academy Award-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black.
As an Olympian diver Daley first represented Britain at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing as a young teenager of 14. A participant and a long time presence on the British diving team, Daley won his first gold medal at the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo in the men’s synchronized 10m platform event.
In his speech accepting the 2021 Attitude Magazine Foundation’s Virgin Atlantic Attitude Sport Award, Daley took aim at 10 countries that have death penalties for people who are LGBTQ.
Daley told the audience at the Roundhouse Theatre in London that the Olympic Games should ban those nations.
“These past Olympic Games there were more out LGBT athletes than at any of the previous Olympics combined, which is a great step forward,” Daley said. “Yet there are still 10 countries that punish being gay with death that were still allowed to compete at the Olympic Games.”
The Olympian champion diver went on to tell those in the audience at the Jaguar Motorcars co-sponsored event he was going to make it his mission to effect change.
“I want to make it my mission before the Paris Olympics in 2024 to make it so that the countries that criminalize and make it punishable by death for LGBT people are not allowed to compete at the Olympic Games,” Daley said.
He then pointed out that those same countries shouldn’t be able to host Olympic games either- then he called out the homophobic atmosphere in Qatar;
“The World Cup in Qatar had extreme rules against LGBT people and women and I think it should not be allowed for a sporting event to host in a country that criminalizes against basic human rights,” he said.
He and his husband are parents to son Robbie, who they welcomed via a surrogate in 2018 and the couple resides in London.
Congratulations to everyone who received Honors today at Windsor Castle! 👏 🥇🌈 Another medal for Daley! Gold medal-winning and four-time Olympian diver @TomDaley1994 was presented with an OBE for services to Diving and support for LGBTQ+ rights. pic.twitter.com/uN3eIPfLC7
— The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall (@ClarenceHouse) July 12, 2022
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Celebrity News
John Waters released from hospital after car accident
Crash took place in Baltimore County
BY TAJI BURRIS | Baltimore filmmaker John Waters was released from the hospital Tuesday morning following a car accident.
The 78-year-old released a statement saying that although he was hurt in the Baltimore County crash, he did not sustain major injuries.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Celebrity News
More than 1 million people attend Madonna concert in Rio
Free event took place on Copacabana Beach on Saturday
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.
In a move aimed at celebrating the beauty, brilliance and resilience of the LGBTQ community, the Human Rights Campaign unveiled the “Queer Renaissance Syllabus” that Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” album inspired.
Curated by Justin Calhoun, Leslie Hall and Chauna Lawson of the HRC’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities Program, the syllabus includes a variety of academic articles, essays, films and other media rooted in Black queer and feminist studies. Each piece is directly inspired by the tracks on Beyoncé’s Billboard 200-topping dance album, “Renaissance.”
Beyoncé’s album “Renaissance” stands as a cultural milestone, celebrating the Black queer roots of dance music while shedding light on overlooked Black queer artists. Inspired by her late-Uncle Johnny, the album not only garnered critical acclaim but also shed light on the often marginalized contributions of Black queer artists. Winning four Grammys and yielding chart-topping hits like “Break My Soul” and “Cuff It,” the album sparked discussions about economic impact and cultural representation.
Amid its success, legislative challenges arose, with Florida and Texas enacting bans on DEI initiatives in public colleges. Recognizing the album’s transformative potential, HRC developed the “Queer Renaissance Syllabus” to leverage its impact for education and activism.
Tailored for educators, youth-serving professionals, DEI practitioners, higher education leaders and admirers of Beyoncé’s artistry, the syllabus aims to encourage meaningful discussions, enrich lesson plans, and explore innovative ways to honor the vibrancy and significance of LGBTQ individuals and their culture.
With six themes anchoring the syllabus, ranging from “intersectionality and inclusivity” to “social justice and activism,” it provides a comprehensive exploration of various facets of LGBTQ experiences and expressions. Fan-favorite tracks from the album are paired with scholarly readings, offering insights into empowerment, self-acceptance and the transformative power of artistic expression. The syllabus also reinforces HRC’s efforts to highlight, amplify and re-center Black and queer voices.
By providing links to articles, books, podcasts and interviews, each associated with a song from the album, it celebrates the rich cultural heritage and contributions of the Black queer community.
The concluding section of the syllabus includes Beyoncé’s tribute to O’Shea Sibley, a young Black queer person who was murdered in Brooklyn, N.Y., last July while voguing to “Renaissance” songs at a gas station. HRC also includes a statement that condemns hate crimes.
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