Podcast appearances and mentions of ruth ellis center

In this episode of HR Like a Boss, Amy Bouque, Chief People Officer at Kelly®, discusses the evolution of HR from a compliance-driven function to a strategic, people-centered force for business success. Amy shares her career journey, the risks she took along the way, and how authenticity in leadership can shape a thriving workplace culture. She dives into HR transformation, the critical role of people managers, and how engagement and trust can make or break an organization. Tune in to hear insights on purpose-driven leadership and the power of putting people at the center of business.ABOUT AMY BOUQUEAmy Bouque has a passion for empowering people to thrive at work and in life. As chief human resources officer for Kelly®, a global leader in providing strategic workforce solutions and connecting talented people to great companies, she does exactly that. Amy leads the human resources practices for the more than 7,000 internal full-time Kelly employees around the world. She views their dedication to connecting people of all backgrounds with work that enriches their lives as a truly noble cause. Describing herself as an ally to all people, Amy strives to accelerate the success of Kelly through transformative people initiatives that help employees find their purpose and achieve their full potential through meaningful work. Citing empowerment, inclusion and compassion as guiding principles, Amy says it is a privilege to be a people leader at a talent-focused organization that embraces the full humanity of all workers and supports all workstyles. Amy extends her commitment to enabling human centered success through her roles as an HR advisor for Semper Virens Venture Capital and beyond the world at work. She's equally committed to lifting her community, being a founding member and former board president of Impact100 Metro Detroit, and a current member of the board of the Ruth Ellis Center. Amy holds degrees from both Michigan State University and Wayne State University. With both kids off to college, Amy enjoys her role as a bird launcher (empty nester). In her newly found spare time, she enjoys reading, hiking, kayaking and sitting at a bonfire with a glass of red wine.

I'Sha and Krystina conduct and in-depth conversation with Joyya Pettus, Assoicate Housing Director and Manny, a young person at Ruth Ellis Center. These conversations address why the Ruth Ellis Center is so important to the community we serve. Thank you for listening and don't forget to leave your episode suggestions in the comments or on our social media. We want to highlight the talented Patrick Harris II, Volunteer Executive Producer of Voice of REC Podcast. Check out our producer Patrick and his work at Patrick Harris (@presidentpat) • Instagram photos and videos

In this episode special episode of the Detroit City Sports Cast, we've got another "Make City Make Spence" with Sean Spence recapping a massive two weeks in Detroit City FC history. This week we discuss DCFC beating the Houston Dynamo, taking down another MLS side, the Detroit City women beating Flint City AFC, and finally the huge Thursday announcement of Le Rouge acquiring land in Corktown to build a soccer-specific stadium. Make your pledge to Prideraiser and help support the great work the Ruth Ellis Center does to help LGBTQ+ youth in the Detroit area. https://ngs.prideraiser.org Read Sean Spence's work online over at "Word's About Shapes": ⁠https://www.patreon.com/wordsaboutshapes⁠ Visit The Majors Detroit at ⁠https://detroit.themajorssports.com ⁠ Visit Channel 451 at ⁠https://451.themajorssports.com ⁠ Follow us on Twitter (@TMSNXDetroit) This episode was hosted by Garret Komatz (@GMKomatz), Adam Hernandez (@TMSNXAdam), and Sean Spence (@scyldsceafing). Written by: Garret Komatz Produced by: Adam Hernandez

It finally happened, Jared Goff got his contract extension. In this Detroit City Sports Cast episode, Garret and Adam react to Goff getting paid by the Detroit Lions and what this means for Detroit moving forward. In the second half, the Tigers continue to struggle at the plate despite getting some dominating starting pitching. In the post-game, more lottery misfortune for the Red Wings and Pistons plus Detroit City FC once again shocked the U.S. Soccer world. Make sure to get your pledges into Prideraiser (https://ngs.prideraiser.org) benefiting the Ruth Ellis Center and all the hard work they do for at-risk LGBTQ+ youth in the Detroit area! Visit The Majors Detroit at ⁠⁠https://detroit.themajorssports.com⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Follow us on Twitter (@TMSNXDetroit) This episode is hosted by Garret Komatz (@GMKomatz) and Adam Hernandez (@TMSNXAdam). Written by: Garret Komatz Produced by: Adam Hernandez

Holiday Season is a BUSY one for Ruth Ellis Center. All of the staff are running around and organizing things to make sure the young people we serve have a holiday season of joy, needs met, and space for their chosen families. That being said, sorry for our tardy on this episode. Krystina and I'Sha discuss the importance of safe queer spaces, have conversations with staff and a young person about what that means to them AND reveal a little surprise collaboration with the folks over at Sepia Coffee @scpdetroit-instagram www.sepiacoffeeproject.com and Pottluckery Ceramics @pottluckery-instagram pottluckery.com. If you're moved to give during this time⁠, please click here to donate⁠.   We want to highlight the talented Patrick Harris II, Volunteer Executive Producer of Voice of REC Podcast. Check out our producer Patrick and his work at ⁠Patrick Harris (@presidentpat) • Instagram photos and videos --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/voicesofrec/message

I'Sha and Krystina speak about gender affirming care, expose false statements about the practice, and share the facts backed by data. The Ruth Ellis Center Voice of the Month is Celina, Education and Facilitation Specialist at the Ruth Ellis Institute. The Ruth Ellis Institute is the training and evaluation arm of the Ruth Ellis Center, for providers to be more informed and educated. Celina speaks about gender affirming care from their lens as a trainer and a non-binary person. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/voicesofrec/message

Author Michael Bronski and Ruth Ellis Center's Mark Erwin joined “Detroit Today” to discuss the rapidly evolving LGBTQ+ culture in America.

Biden Administration colluding with social media, Gov. Abbot of Texas bussing illegal immigrants to Chicago, Oregon tells California to hold its beer on electric cars… … and more on today’s CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. My name is Toby Sumpter and today is Friday, September 2, 2022. Blue Ridge Reformed Church, a potential CREC church plant in the Roanoke Valley, will begin worship services on Sunday September 4th at 6:00 p.m. They are located at 6032 Cloverdale Rd, Roanoke, VA 24019. For more information folks can check out our website blueridgereformed.org https://www.theepochtimes.com/over-50-biden-administration-employees-12-us-agencies-involved-in-social-media-censorship-push-documents_4704349.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Over 50 Biden Administration Employees, 12 US Agencies Involved in Social Media Censorship Push: Documents Over 50 officials in President Joe Biden’s administration across a dozen agencies have been involved with efforts to pressure Big Techcompanies to crack down on alleged misinformation, according to documents released on Aug. 31. Senior officials in the U.S. government, including White House lawyer Dana Remus, deputy assistant to the president Rob Flaherty, and onetime White House senior COVID-19 adviser Andy Slavitt, have been in touch with one or more major social media companies to try to get the companies to tighten rules on allegedly false and misleading information on COVID-19, and take action against users who violate the rules, the documents show. In July 2021, for instance, after Biden said that Facebook was “killing people” by not combating misinformation effectively, an executive at Meta reached out to Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, a Biden appointee, to say that government and Meta teams met after the remarks “to better understand the scope of what the White House expects from us on misinformation going forward.” The same executive later wrote to Murthy saying, “I wanted to make sure you saw the steps we took just this past week to adjust policies on what we are removing with respect to misinformation, as well as steps taken to further address the ‘disinfo dozen,'” including removing pages linked to the group. The White House publicly pressured social media companies to take action against a group officials dubbed the “disinformation dozen,” which a nonprofit claimed were producing the bulk of “anti-vaccine misinformation” on the platforms. Also in July 2021, Murthy said Facebook had not done enough to combat misinformation. Rob Flaherty, director of digital strategy for the White House, told Slavitt and others in April 2021 that White House staff would be briefed by Twitter “on vaccine misinfo,” with the meeting including “ways the White House (and our COVID experts) can partner in product work,” according to one of the messages. In another exchange that year, a Department of Treasury official working on “mis, dis, and mal-information” told Meta workers that the deputy treasury secretary wanted to talk about “potential influence operations.” In a text in February 2021, meanwhile, U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly, wrote to another agency official that she was “trying to get us in a place where Fed can work with platforms to better understand the mis/dis trends so relevant agencies can try to prebunk/debunk as useful.” The documents were part of a preliminary production in a lawsuitlevied against the government by the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana, later joined by experts maligned by federal officials. “If there was ever any doubt the federal government was behind censorship of Americans who dared to dissent from official Covid messaging, that doubt has been erased,” Jenin Younes, a lawyer with the New Civil Liberties Alliance who is representing some of the plaintiffs in the case, said in a statement. “The shocking extent of the government’s involvement in silencing Americans, through coercing social-media companies, has now been revealed.” Club Membership Plug: Let’s stop and take a moment to talk about Fight Laugh Feast Club membership. By joining the Fight Laugh Feast Army, not only will you be aiding in our fight to take down secular & legacy media; but you’ll also get access to content placed in our Club Portal, such as past shows, all of our conference talks, and EXCLUSIVE content for club members that you won’t be able to find anywhere else. Lastly, you’ll also get discounts for our conferences… so if you’ve got $10 bucks a month to kick over our way, you can sign up now at flfnetwork.com https://www.theepochtimes.com/texas-gov-greg-abbott-begins-busing-illegal-immigrants-to-chicago_4703681.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Begins Busing Illegal Immigrants to Chicago Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday said that illegal aliens apprehended along the U.S.-Mexico border are now being bused to Chicago in addition to New York City and Washington. Abbott said his strategy to bus illegal immigrants from Texas to the Democrat-led sanctuary cities makes a strategic point about the impact of President Joe Biden’s “open border policies” on American communities. “President Biden’s inaction at our southern border continues putting the lives of Texans—and Americans—at risk and is overwhelming our communities,” the Republican governor said in a statement. “To continue providing much-needed relief to our small, overrun border towns, Chicago will join fellow sanctuary cities Washington, D.C. and New York City as an additional drop-off location.” Acknowledging Chicago’s sanctuary city policies, Abbott said Mayor Lori Lightfoot “loves to tout” that her city welcomes illegal immigrants as a matter of “responsibility.” “I look forward to seeing this responsibility in action as these migrants receive resources from a sanctuary city with the capacity to serve them,” Abbott said. Chicago Calls Busing Program ‘Racist’ The Chicago mayor’s office confirmed that around 60 illegal aliens arrived at Union Square from Texas on Wednesday night and were being provided with essential services while they “navigate the next steps of their journey.” “As a city we are doing everything we can to ensure these immigrants and their families receive shelter, food, and most importantly protection,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “This is not new; Chicago welcomes hundreds of migrants every year to our city and provides much-needed assistance.” The spokesperson also accused Abbott of having no “shame or humanity” and described the busing program as “racist practices.” The mayors of Washington and New York City, Muriel Bowser and Eric Adams, have also criticized the busing program, calling it a political stunt. But Abbott has said the illegal immigrants voluntarily chose to go to their cities where there is more capacity to serve them. The Texas governor first directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management in April to charter buses to transport illegal immigrants who claimed asylum when apprehended along the U.S.-Mexico border to Washington. New York City was added as a second drop-off location in August. Since then, more than 8,900 illegal aliens have been bused out of Texas to those cities, providing “much-needed relief to Texas’ overwhelmed border communities,” according to Abbott’s office. Overwhelmed with the influx of illegal aliens arriving from Texas, Bowser has twice asked the Biden administration to deploy National Guard personnel to help her city cope. Both requests were denied. Lightfoot signed Chicago’s “Welcoming City Ordinance” measure in February 2021 to strengthen the city’s sanctuary policies, which prevented local police from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. “Chicago has been a welcoming city and a city of immigrants since its very founding, and proudly so,” Lightfoot said at the time. Abbott’s office noted that under this policy Chicago doesn’t deny city services to individuals based on their immigration status. “With its ‘Welcoming City Ordinance’ making it a sanctuary city, Chicago will not deny city services to individuals based on their immigration status. The city also does not require local police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities,” Abbott’s office said. Abbott promised to keep busing illegal aliens to so-called sanctuary cities until the Biden administration “does its job” to secure the border. Redballoon Not so long ago, the American dream was alive and well. Employees who worked hard were rewarded, and employers looked for people who could do the job, not for people who had the right political views. RedBalloon.work is a job site designed to get us back to what made American businesses successful: free speech, hard work, and having fun. If you are a free speech employer who wants to hire employees who focus on their work and not identity politics, then post a job on RedBalloon. If you are an employee who is being censored at work or is being forced to comply with the current zeitgeist, post your resume on RedBalloon and look for a new job. redballoon.work, the job site where free speech is still alive! www.redballoon.work https://www.theepochtimes.com/oregon-to-join-california-in-move-to-ban-gas-powered-vehicle-sales_4704534.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Oregon to Join California in Move to Ban Gas-Powered Vehicle Sales Oregon has joined a list of more than a dozen states vowing to follow California’s lead in banning the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035. The move comes as California urges residents to not charge their electric vehicles during a heatwave to avoid straining the electrical grid. An Oregon Department of Environmental Quality advisory committee is now in the process of creating what it calls “Advanced Clean Cars II Rules,” which will guide the state toward that new goal. California announced on Aug. 24 that it would begin to phase out gas-powered vehicles beginning in 2026, when 35 percent of all passenger vehicles and light duty trucks sold in the state must be zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs). With an anticipated increase of nearly 8 percent annually, the state has vowed that 100 percent of all vehicles sold in California will be ZEVs by 2035. Oregon aims to follow suit. “The transportation sector accounts for more than 40 percent of Oregon’s greenhouse gas emissions,” the Oregon Department of Energy said in a statement. “Moving to cleaner, alternative fuel transportation options, like zero-emission vehicles, can reduce those harmful Green House Gases (GHGs) and help Oregon reach its climate goals.” Oregon had already been working toward a goal set by its legislature in 2019 to have 250,000 registered ZEVs in the state by 2025. As of April, there were approximately 50,000 ZEVs on Oregon roads, falling well short of the pace to meet that goal in the first three years. “We’re committed to getting more electric vehicles [EVs] on Oregon’s roads and 50,000 registered EVs is a major milestone,” said Amanda Pietz, administrator of the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Climate Office. “EVs make up about 8 percent of new cars, trucks, and SUVs sold in Oregon, and we’ll support that growing market through partnerships to build out EV charging stations along major roads and in Oregon’s communities.” The state will also “support” that market by banning gas-powered vehicles and using taxpayer-funded subsidies to prime the pump. Oregon offers as much as $7,500 in taxpayer-funded rebates on top of the federal tax credit of $7,500 toward the purchase of a ZEV. Utilities in the state are offering additional rebates of up to $1,500 for a vehicle purchase and up to $1,000 to install a residential home charger or workplace-commercial charging station. The Go Electric Oregon website encourages buyers to “stack” government incentives to obtain more than $16,500 to use for the purchase of a ZEV. According to Oregon Public Broadcasting, taxpayers have already subsidized the purchase of electric vehicles (at an average cost of $66,000) to the tune of $55 million. One 2018 estimate puts the average income of an electric vehicle driver at $150,000 compared to the U.S. average of $63,000. In May, the Oregon Department of Transportation committed to spending $100 million in federal and state funds over the next five years to expand Oregon’s EV charging infrastructure. The transition to ZEVs seems to overlook increasing concern over their environmental impact and national security implications. Making ZEV batteries requires the use of fossil fuels to process ore and extract minerals, including lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, and graphite. They also require steel, aluminum, plastic, and other materials. The extraction and processing of these minerals are dominated by China and the Democratic Republic of Congo. According to Bloomberg, China controls 80 percent of the market for EV batteries. The push to convert to ZEVs will also create challenges to the electrical grid. In a 2018 analysis, energy economists at the University of Texas found that if California drivers were to go fully electric overnight, the state would need about 47 percent more electricity than it currently consumes. All the states that follow California’s emission standards will face similar challenges. But California’s electrical grid is already strained and Oregon’s faces uncertainty. With a heatwave looming, California’s grid operator issued an alert on Aug. 31, urging residents to avoid using large appliances and charging electric vehicles between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. over the Labor Day weekend. “Lowering electricity use during that time will ease strain on the system, and prevent more drastic measures, including rotating power outages,” the alert reads. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has supported removing or breaching the Lower Snake River Dams to protect fish populations. Carbon-free hydropower from dams makes up 45 percent of the electricity used in Oregon. https://www.breitbart.com/sports/2022/08/31/report-20-mlb-teams-promote-fund-groups-perform-child-sex-change-operations/ Report: 20 MLB Teams ‘Promote or Fund’ Groups that Perform Child Sex Change Operations The magazine reviewed the causes and organizations to which these teams are handing out millions of dollars in donations and found that many support sex-change surgery, hormone treatments, and other dangerous procedures for “transitioning” teens and pre-teens. National Review found that almost every team in the league “promote or fund groups that encourage or provide sex-change procedures and gender-transition hormone treatment for minors as young as 12. Other organizations promote ‘social transitions’ — i.e., nonmedical changes in ‘gender expression,’ including the adoption of new names, pronouns, and clothing — for children as young as three.” Much of the support these teams are lending is organized under the rubric of the widespread LGBTQ “Pride Nights” that the league pushes. Along with the yearly events in the stadiums, the teams also donate money to a number of advocacy groups — usually local groups, but often national groups, as well. The Detroit Tigers, for instance, support the Ruth Ellis Center and Corktown Health in Detroit, the magazine noted. At the checkout page for tickets to the Pride Night game, the Tigers website offered ‘a chance to support a local Pride organization of your choice,’ with a drop-down menu that included LGBT-focused clinics such as the Ruth Ellis Center and Corktown Health, both of which perform medical gender transitions on minors. On top of masculinizing and feminizing drugs, at least one — the Ruth Ellis Center — included irreversible ‘gender affirming surgery’ in its suite of ‘transition care for transgender youth’ options. Another charity promoted by the Tigers, the Trans Sistas of Color Project, was actively funding groups such as ‘Trans Minors Rights,’ which ‘advocates for empowering transgender youth to make their own decisions regarding puberty blockers’ — i.e., ‘without requiring the consent of a parent.’ (The group’s tagline: ‘Unblock blockers.’) The magazine noted that the Tigers are only one example and that the MLB “Pride Resource Guide” promotes a long list of “social justice” groups that also push transgenderism on kids. The report found that five teams promoted groups that push dangerous surgeries on trans kids, including the Detroit Tigers, the Boston Red Sox, the Milwaukee Brewers, Tampa Bay Rays, and the Cleveland Guardians. Four teams partner with organizations that provide counseling and referrals to youths for such medical procedures. That list includes the L.A. Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, and the Oakland As. And another five teams promote groups that offer guides and promotion of the transgender lifestyle, including the Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros, Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, and the Colorado Rockies. Finally, six teams support groups that have lobbyists for the trans cause and otherwise advocate for the transgender lifestyle. Those teams include the Chicago Cubs and White Sox, the L.A. Angels, Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, and the Washington Nationals. “It’s a classic case of institutional capture by the Left,” the magazine concluded. It is up to the fans to speak out and urge the league to reverse course on this outrageous advocacy. Christ Church Events Coordinator Looking to move to Moscow? Christ Church is hiring a full-time events coordinator to plan and manage all events for our various ministries. Coordinators have to understand what it takes to make sure the logistics work out for our growing ministries, keep everything within the allocated budget and ensure that the event itself is carried out smoothly. For more information, Please contact Carson Sensing at csensing@christkirk.com if you are interested in applying Psalm of the Day: Fight Laugh Feast Theme Song: To the Word sea shanty To the Testimony and Law, To the Word, to Word we go; If they don’t speak this word, they have no light at all; Bend, break, burn, and blow. 0:00-1:07 Amen! This is Toby Sumpter with CrossPolitic News. Remember you can always find the links to our news stories and these psalms at crosspolitic dot com – just click on the daily news brief and follow the links. Or find them on our App: just search “Fight Laugh Feast” in your favorite app store and never miss a show. We are now doing a daily show, with daily backstage content for Fight Laugh Feast Club Member. Join today and get access as well as a $100 discount at the Fight Laugh Feast conference in Knoxville, TN Oct. 6-8, and have a great day.

Biden Administration colluding with social media, Gov. Abbot of Texas bussing illegal immigrants to Chicago, Oregon tells California to hold its beer on electric cars… … and more on today’s CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. My name is Toby Sumpter and today is Friday, September 2, 2022. Blue Ridge Reformed Church, a potential CREC church plant in the Roanoke Valley, will begin worship services on Sunday September 4th at 6:00 p.m. They are located at 6032 Cloverdale Rd, Roanoke, VA 24019. For more information folks can check out our website blueridgereformed.org https://www.theepochtimes.com/over-50-biden-administration-employees-12-us-agencies-involved-in-social-media-censorship-push-documents_4704349.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Over 50 Biden Administration Employees, 12 US Agencies Involved in Social Media Censorship Push: Documents Over 50 officials in President Joe Biden’s administration across a dozen agencies have been involved with efforts to pressure Big Techcompanies to crack down on alleged misinformation, according to documents released on Aug. 31. Senior officials in the U.S. government, including White House lawyer Dana Remus, deputy assistant to the president Rob Flaherty, and onetime White House senior COVID-19 adviser Andy Slavitt, have been in touch with one or more major social media companies to try to get the companies to tighten rules on allegedly false and misleading information on COVID-19, and take action against users who violate the rules, the documents show. In July 2021, for instance, after Biden said that Facebook was “killing people” by not combating misinformation effectively, an executive at Meta reached out to Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, a Biden appointee, to say that government and Meta teams met after the remarks “to better understand the scope of what the White House expects from us on misinformation going forward.” The same executive later wrote to Murthy saying, “I wanted to make sure you saw the steps we took just this past week to adjust policies on what we are removing with respect to misinformation, as well as steps taken to further address the ‘disinfo dozen,'” including removing pages linked to the group. The White House publicly pressured social media companies to take action against a group officials dubbed the “disinformation dozen,” which a nonprofit claimed were producing the bulk of “anti-vaccine misinformation” on the platforms. Also in July 2021, Murthy said Facebook had not done enough to combat misinformation. Rob Flaherty, director of digital strategy for the White House, told Slavitt and others in April 2021 that White House staff would be briefed by Twitter “on vaccine misinfo,” with the meeting including “ways the White House (and our COVID experts) can partner in product work,” according to one of the messages. In another exchange that year, a Department of Treasury official working on “mis, dis, and mal-information” told Meta workers that the deputy treasury secretary wanted to talk about “potential influence operations.” In a text in February 2021, meanwhile, U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly, wrote to another agency official that she was “trying to get us in a place where Fed can work with platforms to better understand the mis/dis trends so relevant agencies can try to prebunk/debunk as useful.” The documents were part of a preliminary production in a lawsuitlevied against the government by the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana, later joined by experts maligned by federal officials. “If there was ever any doubt the federal government was behind censorship of Americans who dared to dissent from official Covid messaging, that doubt has been erased,” Jenin Younes, a lawyer with the New Civil Liberties Alliance who is representing some of the plaintiffs in the case, said in a statement. “The shocking extent of the government’s involvement in silencing Americans, through coercing social-media companies, has now been revealed.” Club Membership Plug: Let’s stop and take a moment to talk about Fight Laugh Feast Club membership. By joining the Fight Laugh Feast Army, not only will you be aiding in our fight to take down secular & legacy media; but you’ll also get access to content placed in our Club Portal, such as past shows, all of our conference talks, and EXCLUSIVE content for club members that you won’t be able to find anywhere else. Lastly, you’ll also get discounts for our conferences… so if you’ve got $10 bucks a month to kick over our way, you can sign up now at flfnetwork.com https://www.theepochtimes.com/texas-gov-greg-abbott-begins-busing-illegal-immigrants-to-chicago_4703681.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Begins Busing Illegal Immigrants to Chicago Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday said that illegal aliens apprehended along the U.S.-Mexico border are now being bused to Chicago in addition to New York City and Washington. Abbott said his strategy to bus illegal immigrants from Texas to the Democrat-led sanctuary cities makes a strategic point about the impact of President Joe Biden’s “open border policies” on American communities. “President Biden’s inaction at our southern border continues putting the lives of Texans—and Americans—at risk and is overwhelming our communities,” the Republican governor said in a statement. “To continue providing much-needed relief to our small, overrun border towns, Chicago will join fellow sanctuary cities Washington, D.C. and New York City as an additional drop-off location.” Acknowledging Chicago’s sanctuary city policies, Abbott said Mayor Lori Lightfoot “loves to tout” that her city welcomes illegal immigrants as a matter of “responsibility.” “I look forward to seeing this responsibility in action as these migrants receive resources from a sanctuary city with the capacity to serve them,” Abbott said. Chicago Calls Busing Program ‘Racist’ The Chicago mayor’s office confirmed that around 60 illegal aliens arrived at Union Square from Texas on Wednesday night and were being provided with essential services while they “navigate the next steps of their journey.” “As a city we are doing everything we can to ensure these immigrants and their families receive shelter, food, and most importantly protection,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “This is not new; Chicago welcomes hundreds of migrants every year to our city and provides much-needed assistance.” The spokesperson also accused Abbott of having no “shame or humanity” and described the busing program as “racist practices.” The mayors of Washington and New York City, Muriel Bowser and Eric Adams, have also criticized the busing program, calling it a political stunt. But Abbott has said the illegal immigrants voluntarily chose to go to their cities where there is more capacity to serve them. The Texas governor first directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management in April to charter buses to transport illegal immigrants who claimed asylum when apprehended along the U.S.-Mexico border to Washington. New York City was added as a second drop-off location in August. Since then, more than 8,900 illegal aliens have been bused out of Texas to those cities, providing “much-needed relief to Texas’ overwhelmed border communities,” according to Abbott’s office. Overwhelmed with the influx of illegal aliens arriving from Texas, Bowser has twice asked the Biden administration to deploy National Guard personnel to help her city cope. Both requests were denied. Lightfoot signed Chicago’s “Welcoming City Ordinance” measure in February 2021 to strengthen the city’s sanctuary policies, which prevented local police from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. “Chicago has been a welcoming city and a city of immigrants since its very founding, and proudly so,” Lightfoot said at the time. Abbott’s office noted that under this policy Chicago doesn’t deny city services to individuals based on their immigration status. “With its ‘Welcoming City Ordinance’ making it a sanctuary city, Chicago will not deny city services to individuals based on their immigration status. The city also does not require local police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities,” Abbott’s office said. Abbott promised to keep busing illegal aliens to so-called sanctuary cities until the Biden administration “does its job” to secure the border. Redballoon Not so long ago, the American dream was alive and well. Employees who worked hard were rewarded, and employers looked for people who could do the job, not for people who had the right political views. RedBalloon.work is a job site designed to get us back to what made American businesses successful: free speech, hard work, and having fun. If you are a free speech employer who wants to hire employees who focus on their work and not identity politics, then post a job on RedBalloon. If you are an employee who is being censored at work or is being forced to comply with the current zeitgeist, post your resume on RedBalloon and look for a new job. redballoon.work, the job site where free speech is still alive! www.redballoon.work https://www.theepochtimes.com/oregon-to-join-california-in-move-to-ban-gas-powered-vehicle-sales_4704534.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Oregon to Join California in Move to Ban Gas-Powered Vehicle Sales Oregon has joined a list of more than a dozen states vowing to follow California’s lead in banning the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035. The move comes as California urges residents to not charge their electric vehicles during a heatwave to avoid straining the electrical grid. An Oregon Department of Environmental Quality advisory committee is now in the process of creating what it calls “Advanced Clean Cars II Rules,” which will guide the state toward that new goal. California announced on Aug. 24 that it would begin to phase out gas-powered vehicles beginning in 2026, when 35 percent of all passenger vehicles and light duty trucks sold in the state must be zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs). With an anticipated increase of nearly 8 percent annually, the state has vowed that 100 percent of all vehicles sold in California will be ZEVs by 2035. Oregon aims to follow suit. “The transportation sector accounts for more than 40 percent of Oregon’s greenhouse gas emissions,” the Oregon Department of Energy said in a statement. “Moving to cleaner, alternative fuel transportation options, like zero-emission vehicles, can reduce those harmful Green House Gases (GHGs) and help Oregon reach its climate goals.” Oregon had already been working toward a goal set by its legislature in 2019 to have 250,000 registered ZEVs in the state by 2025. As of April, there were approximately 50,000 ZEVs on Oregon roads, falling well short of the pace to meet that goal in the first three years. “We’re committed to getting more electric vehicles [EVs] on Oregon’s roads and 50,000 registered EVs is a major milestone,” said Amanda Pietz, administrator of the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Climate Office. “EVs make up about 8 percent of new cars, trucks, and SUVs sold in Oregon, and we’ll support that growing market through partnerships to build out EV charging stations along major roads and in Oregon’s communities.” The state will also “support” that market by banning gas-powered vehicles and using taxpayer-funded subsidies to prime the pump. Oregon offers as much as $7,500 in taxpayer-funded rebates on top of the federal tax credit of $7,500 toward the purchase of a ZEV. Utilities in the state are offering additional rebates of up to $1,500 for a vehicle purchase and up to $1,000 to install a residential home charger or workplace-commercial charging station. The Go Electric Oregon website encourages buyers to “stack” government incentives to obtain more than $16,500 to use for the purchase of a ZEV. According to Oregon Public Broadcasting, taxpayers have already subsidized the purchase of electric vehicles (at an average cost of $66,000) to the tune of $55 million. One 2018 estimate puts the average income of an electric vehicle driver at $150,000 compared to the U.S. average of $63,000. In May, the Oregon Department of Transportation committed to spending $100 million in federal and state funds over the next five years to expand Oregon’s EV charging infrastructure. The transition to ZEVs seems to overlook increasing concern over their environmental impact and national security implications. Making ZEV batteries requires the use of fossil fuels to process ore and extract minerals, including lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, and graphite. They also require steel, aluminum, plastic, and other materials. The extraction and processing of these minerals are dominated by China and the Democratic Republic of Congo. According to Bloomberg, China controls 80 percent of the market for EV batteries. The push to convert to ZEVs will also create challenges to the electrical grid. In a 2018 analysis, energy economists at the University of Texas found that if California drivers were to go fully electric overnight, the state would need about 47 percent more electricity than it currently consumes. All the states that follow California’s emission standards will face similar challenges. But California’s electrical grid is already strained and Oregon’s faces uncertainty. With a heatwave looming, California’s grid operator issued an alert on Aug. 31, urging residents to avoid using large appliances and charging electric vehicles between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. over the Labor Day weekend. “Lowering electricity use during that time will ease strain on the system, and prevent more drastic measures, including rotating power outages,” the alert reads. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has supported removing or breaching the Lower Snake River Dams to protect fish populations. Carbon-free hydropower from dams makes up 45 percent of the electricity used in Oregon. https://www.breitbart.com/sports/2022/08/31/report-20-mlb-teams-promote-fund-groups-perform-child-sex-change-operations/ Report: 20 MLB Teams ‘Promote or Fund’ Groups that Perform Child Sex Change Operations The magazine reviewed the causes and organizations to which these teams are handing out millions of dollars in donations and found that many support sex-change surgery, hormone treatments, and other dangerous procedures for “transitioning” teens and pre-teens. National Review found that almost every team in the league “promote or fund groups that encourage or provide sex-change procedures and gender-transition hormone treatment for minors as young as 12. Other organizations promote ‘social transitions’ — i.e., nonmedical changes in ‘gender expression,’ including the adoption of new names, pronouns, and clothing — for children as young as three.” Much of the support these teams are lending is organized under the rubric of the widespread LGBTQ “Pride Nights” that the league pushes. Along with the yearly events in the stadiums, the teams also donate money to a number of advocacy groups — usually local groups, but often national groups, as well. The Detroit Tigers, for instance, support the Ruth Ellis Center and Corktown Health in Detroit, the magazine noted. At the checkout page for tickets to the Pride Night game, the Tigers website offered ‘a chance to support a local Pride organization of your choice,’ with a drop-down menu that included LGBT-focused clinics such as the Ruth Ellis Center and Corktown Health, both of which perform medical gender transitions on minors. On top of masculinizing and feminizing drugs, at least one — the Ruth Ellis Center — included irreversible ‘gender affirming surgery’ in its suite of ‘transition care for transgender youth’ options. Another charity promoted by the Tigers, the Trans Sistas of Color Project, was actively funding groups such as ‘Trans Minors Rights,’ which ‘advocates for empowering transgender youth to make their own decisions regarding puberty blockers’ — i.e., ‘without requiring the consent of a parent.’ (The group’s tagline: ‘Unblock blockers.’) The magazine noted that the Tigers are only one example and that the MLB “Pride Resource Guide” promotes a long list of “social justice” groups that also push transgenderism on kids. The report found that five teams promoted groups that push dangerous surgeries on trans kids, including the Detroit Tigers, the Boston Red Sox, the Milwaukee Brewers, Tampa Bay Rays, and the Cleveland Guardians. Four teams partner with organizations that provide counseling and referrals to youths for such medical procedures. That list includes the L.A. Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, and the Oakland As. And another five teams promote groups that offer guides and promotion of the transgender lifestyle, including the Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros, Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, and the Colorado Rockies. Finally, six teams support groups that have lobbyists for the trans cause and otherwise advocate for the transgender lifestyle. Those teams include the Chicago Cubs and White Sox, the L.A. Angels, Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, and the Washington Nationals. “It’s a classic case of institutional capture by the Left,” the magazine concluded. It is up to the fans to speak out and urge the league to reverse course on this outrageous advocacy. Christ Church Events Coordinator Looking to move to Moscow? Christ Church is hiring a full-time events coordinator to plan and manage all events for our various ministries. Coordinators have to understand what it takes to make sure the logistics work out for our growing ministries, keep everything within the allocated budget and ensure that the event itself is carried out smoothly. For more information, Please contact Carson Sensing at csensing@christkirk.com if you are interested in applying Psalm of the Day: Fight Laugh Feast Theme Song: To the Word sea shanty To the Testimony and Law, To the Word, to Word we go; If they don’t speak this word, they have no light at all; Bend, break, burn, and blow. 0:00-1:07 Amen! This is Toby Sumpter with CrossPolitic News. Remember you can always find the links to our news stories and these psalms at crosspolitic dot com – just click on the daily news brief and follow the links. Or find them on our App: just search “Fight Laugh Feast” in your favorite app store and never miss a show. We are now doing a daily show, with daily backstage content for Fight Laugh Feast Club Member. Join today and get access as well as a $100 discount at the Fight Laugh Feast conference in Knoxville, TN Oct. 6-8, and have a great day.

Biden Administration colluding with social media, Gov. Abbot of Texas bussing illegal immigrants to Chicago, Oregon tells California to hold its beer on electric cars… … and more on today’s CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. My name is Toby Sumpter and today is Friday, September 2, 2022. Blue Ridge Reformed Church, a potential CREC church plant in the Roanoke Valley, will begin worship services on Sunday September 4th at 6:00 p.m. They are located at 6032 Cloverdale Rd, Roanoke, VA 24019. For more information folks can check out our website blueridgereformed.org https://www.theepochtimes.com/over-50-biden-administration-employees-12-us-agencies-involved-in-social-media-censorship-push-documents_4704349.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Over 50 Biden Administration Employees, 12 US Agencies Involved in Social Media Censorship Push: Documents Over 50 officials in President Joe Biden’s administration across a dozen agencies have been involved with efforts to pressure Big Techcompanies to crack down on alleged misinformation, according to documents released on Aug. 31. Senior officials in the U.S. government, including White House lawyer Dana Remus, deputy assistant to the president Rob Flaherty, and onetime White House senior COVID-19 adviser Andy Slavitt, have been in touch with one or more major social media companies to try to get the companies to tighten rules on allegedly false and misleading information on COVID-19, and take action against users who violate the rules, the documents show. In July 2021, for instance, after Biden said that Facebook was “killing people” by not combating misinformation effectively, an executive at Meta reached out to Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, a Biden appointee, to say that government and Meta teams met after the remarks “to better understand the scope of what the White House expects from us on misinformation going forward.” The same executive later wrote to Murthy saying, “I wanted to make sure you saw the steps we took just this past week to adjust policies on what we are removing with respect to misinformation, as well as steps taken to further address the ‘disinfo dozen,'” including removing pages linked to the group. The White House publicly pressured social media companies to take action against a group officials dubbed the “disinformation dozen,” which a nonprofit claimed were producing the bulk of “anti-vaccine misinformation” on the platforms. Also in July 2021, Murthy said Facebook had not done enough to combat misinformation. Rob Flaherty, director of digital strategy for the White House, told Slavitt and others in April 2021 that White House staff would be briefed by Twitter “on vaccine misinfo,” with the meeting including “ways the White House (and our COVID experts) can partner in product work,” according to one of the messages. In another exchange that year, a Department of Treasury official working on “mis, dis, and mal-information” told Meta workers that the deputy treasury secretary wanted to talk about “potential influence operations.” In a text in February 2021, meanwhile, U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly, wrote to another agency official that she was “trying to get us in a place where Fed can work with platforms to better understand the mis/dis trends so relevant agencies can try to prebunk/debunk as useful.” The documents were part of a preliminary production in a lawsuitlevied against the government by the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana, later joined by experts maligned by federal officials. “If there was ever any doubt the federal government was behind censorship of Americans who dared to dissent from official Covid messaging, that doubt has been erased,” Jenin Younes, a lawyer with the New Civil Liberties Alliance who is representing some of the plaintiffs in the case, said in a statement. “The shocking extent of the government’s involvement in silencing Americans, through coercing social-media companies, has now been revealed.” Club Membership Plug: Let’s stop and take a moment to talk about Fight Laugh Feast Club membership. By joining the Fight Laugh Feast Army, not only will you be aiding in our fight to take down secular & legacy media; but you’ll also get access to content placed in our Club Portal, such as past shows, all of our conference talks, and EXCLUSIVE content for club members that you won’t be able to find anywhere else. Lastly, you’ll also get discounts for our conferences… so if you’ve got $10 bucks a month to kick over our way, you can sign up now at flfnetwork.com https://www.theepochtimes.com/texas-gov-greg-abbott-begins-busing-illegal-immigrants-to-chicago_4703681.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Begins Busing Illegal Immigrants to Chicago Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday said that illegal aliens apprehended along the U.S.-Mexico border are now being bused to Chicago in addition to New York City and Washington. Abbott said his strategy to bus illegal immigrants from Texas to the Democrat-led sanctuary cities makes a strategic point about the impact of President Joe Biden’s “open border policies” on American communities. “President Biden’s inaction at our southern border continues putting the lives of Texans—and Americans—at risk and is overwhelming our communities,” the Republican governor said in a statement. “To continue providing much-needed relief to our small, overrun border towns, Chicago will join fellow sanctuary cities Washington, D.C. and New York City as an additional drop-off location.” Acknowledging Chicago’s sanctuary city policies, Abbott said Mayor Lori Lightfoot “loves to tout” that her city welcomes illegal immigrants as a matter of “responsibility.” “I look forward to seeing this responsibility in action as these migrants receive resources from a sanctuary city with the capacity to serve them,” Abbott said. Chicago Calls Busing Program ‘Racist’ The Chicago mayor’s office confirmed that around 60 illegal aliens arrived at Union Square from Texas on Wednesday night and were being provided with essential services while they “navigate the next steps of their journey.” “As a city we are doing everything we can to ensure these immigrants and their families receive shelter, food, and most importantly protection,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “This is not new; Chicago welcomes hundreds of migrants every year to our city and provides much-needed assistance.” The spokesperson also accused Abbott of having no “shame or humanity” and described the busing program as “racist practices.” The mayors of Washington and New York City, Muriel Bowser and Eric Adams, have also criticized the busing program, calling it a political stunt. But Abbott has said the illegal immigrants voluntarily chose to go to their cities where there is more capacity to serve them. The Texas governor first directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management in April to charter buses to transport illegal immigrants who claimed asylum when apprehended along the U.S.-Mexico border to Washington. New York City was added as a second drop-off location in August. Since then, more than 8,900 illegal aliens have been bused out of Texas to those cities, providing “much-needed relief to Texas’ overwhelmed border communities,” according to Abbott’s office. Overwhelmed with the influx of illegal aliens arriving from Texas, Bowser has twice asked the Biden administration to deploy National Guard personnel to help her city cope. Both requests were denied. Lightfoot signed Chicago’s “Welcoming City Ordinance” measure in February 2021 to strengthen the city’s sanctuary policies, which prevented local police from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. “Chicago has been a welcoming city and a city of immigrants since its very founding, and proudly so,” Lightfoot said at the time. Abbott’s office noted that under this policy Chicago doesn’t deny city services to individuals based on their immigration status. “With its ‘Welcoming City Ordinance’ making it a sanctuary city, Chicago will not deny city services to individuals based on their immigration status. The city also does not require local police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities,” Abbott’s office said. Abbott promised to keep busing illegal aliens to so-called sanctuary cities until the Biden administration “does its job” to secure the border. Redballoon Not so long ago, the American dream was alive and well. Employees who worked hard were rewarded, and employers looked for people who could do the job, not for people who had the right political views. RedBalloon.work is a job site designed to get us back to what made American businesses successful: free speech, hard work, and having fun. If you are a free speech employer who wants to hire employees who focus on their work and not identity politics, then post a job on RedBalloon. If you are an employee who is being censored at work or is being forced to comply with the current zeitgeist, post your resume on RedBalloon and look for a new job. redballoon.work, the job site where free speech is still alive! www.redballoon.work https://www.theepochtimes.com/oregon-to-join-california-in-move-to-ban-gas-powered-vehicle-sales_4704534.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport Oregon to Join California in Move to Ban Gas-Powered Vehicle Sales Oregon has joined a list of more than a dozen states vowing to follow California’s lead in banning the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035. The move comes as California urges residents to not charge their electric vehicles during a heatwave to avoid straining the electrical grid. An Oregon Department of Environmental Quality advisory committee is now in the process of creating what it calls “Advanced Clean Cars II Rules,” which will guide the state toward that new goal. California announced on Aug. 24 that it would begin to phase out gas-powered vehicles beginning in 2026, when 35 percent of all passenger vehicles and light duty trucks sold in the state must be zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs). With an anticipated increase of nearly 8 percent annually, the state has vowed that 100 percent of all vehicles sold in California will be ZEVs by 2035. Oregon aims to follow suit. “The transportation sector accounts for more than 40 percent of Oregon’s greenhouse gas emissions,” the Oregon Department of Energy said in a statement. “Moving to cleaner, alternative fuel transportation options, like zero-emission vehicles, can reduce those harmful Green House Gases (GHGs) and help Oregon reach its climate goals.” Oregon had already been working toward a goal set by its legislature in 2019 to have 250,000 registered ZEVs in the state by 2025. As of April, there were approximately 50,000 ZEVs on Oregon roads, falling well short of the pace to meet that goal in the first three years. “We’re committed to getting more electric vehicles [EVs] on Oregon’s roads and 50,000 registered EVs is a major milestone,” said Amanda Pietz, administrator of the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Climate Office. “EVs make up about 8 percent of new cars, trucks, and SUVs sold in Oregon, and we’ll support that growing market through partnerships to build out EV charging stations along major roads and in Oregon’s communities.” The state will also “support” that market by banning gas-powered vehicles and using taxpayer-funded subsidies to prime the pump. Oregon offers as much as $7,500 in taxpayer-funded rebates on top of the federal tax credit of $7,500 toward the purchase of a ZEV. Utilities in the state are offering additional rebates of up to $1,500 for a vehicle purchase and up to $1,000 to install a residential home charger or workplace-commercial charging station. The Go Electric Oregon website encourages buyers to “stack” government incentives to obtain more than $16,500 to use for the purchase of a ZEV. According to Oregon Public Broadcasting, taxpayers have already subsidized the purchase of electric vehicles (at an average cost of $66,000) to the tune of $55 million. One 2018 estimate puts the average income of an electric vehicle driver at $150,000 compared to the U.S. average of $63,000. In May, the Oregon Department of Transportation committed to spending $100 million in federal and state funds over the next five years to expand Oregon’s EV charging infrastructure. The transition to ZEVs seems to overlook increasing concern over their environmental impact and national security implications. Making ZEV batteries requires the use of fossil fuels to process ore and extract minerals, including lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, and graphite. They also require steel, aluminum, plastic, and other materials. The extraction and processing of these minerals are dominated by China and the Democratic Republic of Congo. According to Bloomberg, China controls 80 percent of the market for EV batteries. The push to convert to ZEVs will also create challenges to the electrical grid. In a 2018 analysis, energy economists at the University of Texas found that if California drivers were to go fully electric overnight, the state would need about 47 percent more electricity than it currently consumes. All the states that follow California’s emission standards will face similar challenges. But California’s electrical grid is already strained and Oregon’s faces uncertainty. With a heatwave looming, California’s grid operator issued an alert on Aug. 31, urging residents to avoid using large appliances and charging electric vehicles between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. over the Labor Day weekend. “Lowering electricity use during that time will ease strain on the system, and prevent more drastic measures, including rotating power outages,” the alert reads. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has supported removing or breaching the Lower Snake River Dams to protect fish populations. Carbon-free hydropower from dams makes up 45 percent of the electricity used in Oregon. https://www.breitbart.com/sports/2022/08/31/report-20-mlb-teams-promote-fund-groups-perform-child-sex-change-operations/ Report: 20 MLB Teams ‘Promote or Fund’ Groups that Perform Child Sex Change Operations The magazine reviewed the causes and organizations to which these teams are handing out millions of dollars in donations and found that many support sex-change surgery, hormone treatments, and other dangerous procedures for “transitioning” teens and pre-teens. National Review found that almost every team in the league “promote or fund groups that encourage or provide sex-change procedures and gender-transition hormone treatment for minors as young as 12. Other organizations promote ‘social transitions’ — i.e., nonmedical changes in ‘gender expression,’ including the adoption of new names, pronouns, and clothing — for children as young as three.” Much of the support these teams are lending is organized under the rubric of the widespread LGBTQ “Pride Nights” that the league pushes. Along with the yearly events in the stadiums, the teams also donate money to a number of advocacy groups — usually local groups, but often national groups, as well. The Detroit Tigers, for instance, support the Ruth Ellis Center and Corktown Health in Detroit, the magazine noted. At the checkout page for tickets to the Pride Night game, the Tigers website offered ‘a chance to support a local Pride organization of your choice,’ with a drop-down menu that included LGBT-focused clinics such as the Ruth Ellis Center and Corktown Health, both of which perform medical gender transitions on minors. On top of masculinizing and feminizing drugs, at least one — the Ruth Ellis Center — included irreversible ‘gender affirming surgery’ in its suite of ‘transition care for transgender youth’ options. Another charity promoted by the Tigers, the Trans Sistas of Color Project, was actively funding groups such as ‘Trans Minors Rights,’ which ‘advocates for empowering transgender youth to make their own decisions regarding puberty blockers’ — i.e., ‘without requiring the consent of a parent.’ (The group’s tagline: ‘Unblock blockers.’) The magazine noted that the Tigers are only one example and that the MLB “Pride Resource Guide” promotes a long list of “social justice” groups that also push transgenderism on kids. The report found that five teams promoted groups that push dangerous surgeries on trans kids, including the Detroit Tigers, the Boston Red Sox, the Milwaukee Brewers, Tampa Bay Rays, and the Cleveland Guardians. Four teams partner with organizations that provide counseling and referrals to youths for such medical procedures. That list includes the L.A. Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, and the Oakland As. And another five teams promote groups that offer guides and promotion of the transgender lifestyle, including the Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros, Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, and the Colorado Rockies. Finally, six teams support groups that have lobbyists for the trans cause and otherwise advocate for the transgender lifestyle. Those teams include the Chicago Cubs and White Sox, the L.A. Angels, Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, and the Washington Nationals. “It’s a classic case of institutional capture by the Left,” the magazine concluded. It is up to the fans to speak out and urge the league to reverse course on this outrageous advocacy. Christ Church Events Coordinator Looking to move to Moscow? Christ Church is hiring a full-time events coordinator to plan and manage all events for our various ministries. Coordinators have to understand what it takes to make sure the logistics work out for our growing ministries, keep everything within the allocated budget and ensure that the event itself is carried out smoothly. For more information, Please contact Carson Sensing at csensing@christkirk.com if you are interested in applying Psalm of the Day: Fight Laugh Feast Theme Song: To the Word sea shanty To the Testimony and Law, To the Word, to Word we go; If they don’t speak this word, they have no light at all; Bend, break, burn, and blow. 0:00-1:07 Amen! This is Toby Sumpter with CrossPolitic News. Remember you can always find the links to our news stories and these psalms at crosspolitic dot com – just click on the daily news brief and follow the links. Or find them on our App: just search “Fight Laugh Feast” in your favorite app store and never miss a show. We are now doing a daily show, with daily backstage content for Fight Laugh Feast Club Member. Join today and get access as well as a $100 discount at the Fight Laugh Feast conference in Knoxville, TN Oct. 6-8, and have a great day.

Ladies and gentleman, this is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Monday, May 30th, 2022. Hey, it’s May 30th… the first day of CrossPolitic going to a Daily Show! Pray for us as we work hard to produce content for you on a daily basis, and if you really want to support us, you could sign up to be a club member at. flfnetwork.com/membership/… we now live stream al of our content inside of our app and club portal… so sign up today! Again that’s flfnetwork.com/membership/. So… here’s what you guys missed over the weekend: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/federal-agents-entered-uvalde-school-kill-gunman-local-police-initiall-rcna30941 Federal agents entered Uvalde school to kill gunman despite local police initially asking them to wait Federal agents who went to Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday to confront a gunman who killed 19 children were told by local police to wait and not enter the school — and then decided after about half an hour to ignore that initial guidance and find the shooter, say two senior federal law enforcement officials. According to the officials, agents from BORTAC, the Customs and Border Protection tactical unit, and ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrived on the scene between noon and 12:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Local law enforcement asked them to wait, and then instructed HSI agents to help pull children out of the windows. The BORTAC team, armed with tactical gear, at first did not move toward the gunman. After approximately 30 minutes passed, however, the federal agents opted of their own volition to lead the “stack” of officers inside the school and take down the shooter. Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said Friday that Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, had stopped at least 19 officers from breaking into the school as the gunman opened fire for at least an hour. Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the children were not under an active threat, said McCraw at a news conference. Tragic… Keep that community in your prayers during this time. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/oklahoma-gov-stitt-signs-transgender-bathroom-bill-biological-sex We now shift our eyes north to Oklahoma… Oklahoma has been in the news a lot lately as Governor Stitt recently signed the strongest abortion bill into law in the entire U.S. to date… The more recent news states: Oklahoma Gov. Stitt signs bill requiring students to use bathrooms aligned with their biological sex at birth This needs to be a law? Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt says the measure he signed into law on Wednesday that requires students in schools across the state to use restrooms that align with their biological sex at birth is "common sense" and that it is "kind of crazy" that the law had to be passed in the first place. The legislation, Senate Bill 615, now applies to students in pre-K to 12th grade at public and public charter schools in the state. In addition to bathrooms, the new law also requires students to use locker rooms that align with their biological sex at birth. The bill, which successfully passed through the Oklahoma state legislature last week, calls for schools to "provide a reasonable accommodation to any individual who does not wish to comply" with the new law. That accommodation, according to the measure, is "access to a single-occupancy restroom or changing room." "It's common sense," Stitt told Fox News Digital as he described the law during an interview on Thursday. "It's kind of crazy that we have to pass laws like this nowadays, but it just simply says we're gonna protect girls. Girls are going to go to girls bathrooms, boys are going to go to boys bathrooms, and that's gonna be law for children K through 12 in Oklahoma. We'll have a third, single-use, single-person bathroom for anyone who maybe doesn't, you know, wanna use any one of those bathrooms — which is fine." "We've heard from parents, we've heard from families, we've heard from little girls, they're not going to be comfortable sharing a bathroom with boys throughout school," he added. Asked about what safety this provides for those who have raised concern about sharing bathrooms with transgender students, Stitt reiterated that it is "common sense" and insisted that during his tenure as governor he will not allow boys to expose themselves to little girls in school bathrooms or locker rooms. Discussing potential backlash he may receive over the new law, Stitt said those who are opposed to the law can "argue with me and we can have a disagreement." Gold River Trading Co. Are you tired of buying sugary drinks and coffee from large woke corporations? Throw a tea party! Gold River Trading Co. is an American company that offers premium alternatives for Americans who enjoy a delicious cup of tea. Start your day with Gold River’s invigorating American Breakfast Blend, cool down with a pitcher of crisp & refreshing Iced Tea, or unwind with Chamomile Herbal tea. Explore a variety of high-quality blends and enjoy a healthy, flavorful alternative from an American company that shares your values. Go to goldriverco.com and save 10% off all orders using discount code CROSSPOLITIC at checkout. https://www.foxnews.com/us/north-carolina-preschool-pregnant-man North Carolina preschool uses LGBT flashcards depicting a pregnant man to teach kids colors A North Carolina preschool used flash cards featuring LGBTQ themes to teach kids colors, including one card depicting a pregnant man. "Schools should only be using age-appropriate materials, and these flashcards clearly do not meet that standard for a pre-school classroom," Republican State Rep. Erin Paré said in a statement after being alerted to the cards by a constituent, according to North Carolina Speaker of the House Tim Moore. Paré said a concerned constituent emailed her about the cards that were being used to teach preschoolers colors at Ballentine Elementary School in Wake County, NC. Paré then contacted the principal of the elementary school in an attempt to verify the use of the cards in class, with the principal taking "swift action" to investigate the constituents claims. The principal was able to locate the cards in the preschool classroom and verify with the teacher that they had been used to teach colors, which the principal said was approved curriculum at the school. The principal took possession of the cards and alerted the district superintendent and human resources about the incident, which she said she was unaware of until being alerted to the situation by Paré. The incident comes amid an effort in the North Carolina General Assembly to pass legislation aimed at giving parents more control over what their children are taught in school, including giving them the option to opt out of what they consider "age-inappropriate classroom materials." In the meantime, Paré said the situation schools across the state should use the response of Ballentine Elementary as an example. We’re in the last few days of May! Meaning, we’re just 5 months away from our Fight Laugh Feast Conferfence. This year our national conference is in Knoxville, TN October 6th-8th. The theme of this year’s conference is Lies, Propaganda, Storytelling and the Serrated Edge. Satan is the father of lies, and the mother of those lies is a government who has rejected God. We have especially been lied to these last two years, and the COVIDpanic has been one of the central mechanisms that our government has used to lie to us and to grab more power. Because Christians have not been reading their bibles, we are susceptible to lies and weak in our ability to fight these lies. God has given us His word to fight Satan and his lies, and we need to recover all of God’s word, its serrated edge and all. Mark your calendars for October 6th-8th, as we fight, laugh and feast with fellowship, beer and Psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers, hanging with our awesome vendors, meeting new friends, and more. Early bird tickets sale now!. https://www.foxnews.com/sports/detroit-tigers-money-trans-surgeries-kids Now it’s time for the topic that I love. SPORTS! Though, once again this topic just shows the disgusting underbelly of what our culture has soured into. So… do we have any Detroit Tigers’ fans in our audience? Well, you should take note of where the club is spending your money… Detroit Tigers funneling money for trans surgeries for kids The money that Detroit Tigers fans regularly give to the organization through ticket sales may not have yielded a quality on-field product in years, but some of it will now benefit local LGBTQ groups which support irreversible trans surgeries for children. Nate Hochman of National Review recently explained that those who purchase tickets for "Pride Night" this year have the option to support groups such as the Trans Sistas of Color Project and the Ruth Ellis Center, which both directly or indirectly provide "gender-affirming surgery" to those under 18. The Trans Sistas of Color Project website refers to "Trans Minor Rights" and boasts that its funding recipients perform "chest reconstruction and/or genital reassignment surgery," while the Ruth Ellis Center offers "transition care for transgender youth," including surgery. The Center further claims that there "are a lot of barriers — especially for people under 18 — that still exist for accessing puberty blockers and gender-affirming hormones. This is a huge problem." There is indeed "a huge problem" here, but it’s not the one they claim. The problem is the genital mutilation of children, but the Tigers don’t seem to care about that. Unlike previous "Pride" days at Comerica Park, which began in 2018, those who purchase tickets for "Pride Night" on June 1 this year have the option of donating to organizations such as the Trans Sistas of Color Project, the Ruth Ellis Center and others. I used to love sports across the board… but the rot of our godless culture has seeped into the fibers of every sport, whether it be baseball, the NFL, the NBA, you get the picture… Heck even nascar has buckled with the likes of Bubba Wallace. Hockey, and MMA seem to be the last bastions of just focusing on sports, as opposed to politics. Okay, last thing… Happy Memorial Day, especially to those who have served… Here’s some history on the subject. Memorial Day is an American holiday, observed on the last Monday of May, honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. Memorial Day 2022 will occur on Monday, May 30. Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971. Many Americans observe Memorial Day by visiting cemeteries or memorials, holding family gatherings and participating in parades. Unofficially, it marks the beginning of the summer season. It is unclear where exactly this tradition originated; numerous different communities may have independently initiated the memorial gatherings. And some records show that one of the earliest Memorial Day commemorations was organized by a group of formerly enslaved people in Charleston, South Carolina less than a month after the Confederacy surrendered in 1865. Nevertheless, in 1966 the federal government declared Waterloo, New York, the official birthplace of Memorial Day. I want to take a moment to thank all of those in our audience, and across the U.S. who have fought for this country. All gave some, but some gave all. We owe you our gratitude. Thank you for listening to this CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. If you liked the show, share it far and wide. And as always, if you’d like to partner with CrossPolitic Studios, email me, at garrison@fightlaughfeast.com. For CrossPolitic News, I’m Garrison Hardie. Have a great Memorial Day, and Lord bless.

Ladies and gentleman, this is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Monday, May 30th, 2022. Hey, it’s May 30th… the first day of CrossPolitic going to a Daily Show! Pray for us as we work hard to produce content for you on a daily basis, and if you really want to support us, you could sign up to be a club member at. flfnetwork.com/membership/… we now live stream al of our content inside of our app and club portal… so sign up today! Again that’s flfnetwork.com/membership/. So… here’s what you guys missed over the weekend: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/federal-agents-entered-uvalde-school-kill-gunman-local-police-initiall-rcna30941 Federal agents entered Uvalde school to kill gunman despite local police initially asking them to wait Federal agents who went to Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday to confront a gunman who killed 19 children were told by local police to wait and not enter the school — and then decided after about half an hour to ignore that initial guidance and find the shooter, say two senior federal law enforcement officials. According to the officials, agents from BORTAC, the Customs and Border Protection tactical unit, and ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrived on the scene between noon and 12:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Local law enforcement asked them to wait, and then instructed HSI agents to help pull children out of the windows. The BORTAC team, armed with tactical gear, at first did not move toward the gunman. After approximately 30 minutes passed, however, the federal agents opted of their own volition to lead the “stack” of officers inside the school and take down the shooter. Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said Friday that Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, had stopped at least 19 officers from breaking into the school as the gunman opened fire for at least an hour. Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the children were not under an active threat, said McCraw at a news conference. Tragic… Keep that community in your prayers during this time. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/oklahoma-gov-stitt-signs-transgender-bathroom-bill-biological-sex We now shift our eyes north to Oklahoma… Oklahoma has been in the news a lot lately as Governor Stitt recently signed the strongest abortion bill into law in the entire U.S. to date… The more recent news states: Oklahoma Gov. Stitt signs bill requiring students to use bathrooms aligned with their biological sex at birth This needs to be a law? Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt says the measure he signed into law on Wednesday that requires students in schools across the state to use restrooms that align with their biological sex at birth is "common sense" and that it is "kind of crazy" that the law had to be passed in the first place. The legislation, Senate Bill 615, now applies to students in pre-K to 12th grade at public and public charter schools in the state. In addition to bathrooms, the new law also requires students to use locker rooms that align with their biological sex at birth. The bill, which successfully passed through the Oklahoma state legislature last week, calls for schools to "provide a reasonable accommodation to any individual who does not wish to comply" with the new law. That accommodation, according to the measure, is "access to a single-occupancy restroom or changing room." "It's common sense," Stitt told Fox News Digital as he described the law during an interview on Thursday. "It's kind of crazy that we have to pass laws like this nowadays, but it just simply says we're gonna protect girls. Girls are going to go to girls bathrooms, boys are going to go to boys bathrooms, and that's gonna be law for children K through 12 in Oklahoma. We'll have a third, single-use, single-person bathroom for anyone who maybe doesn't, you know, wanna use any one of those bathrooms — which is fine." "We've heard from parents, we've heard from families, we've heard from little girls, they're not going to be comfortable sharing a bathroom with boys throughout school," he added. Asked about what safety this provides for those who have raised concern about sharing bathrooms with transgender students, Stitt reiterated that it is "common sense" and insisted that during his tenure as governor he will not allow boys to expose themselves to little girls in school bathrooms or locker rooms. Discussing potential backlash he may receive over the new law, Stitt said those who are opposed to the law can "argue with me and we can have a disagreement." Gold River Trading Co. Are you tired of buying sugary drinks and coffee from large woke corporations? Throw a tea party! Gold River Trading Co. is an American company that offers premium alternatives for Americans who enjoy a delicious cup of tea. Start your day with Gold River’s invigorating American Breakfast Blend, cool down with a pitcher of crisp & refreshing Iced Tea, or unwind with Chamomile Herbal tea. Explore a variety of high-quality blends and enjoy a healthy, flavorful alternative from an American company that shares your values. Go to goldriverco.com and save 10% off all orders using discount code CROSSPOLITIC at checkout. https://www.foxnews.com/us/north-carolina-preschool-pregnant-man North Carolina preschool uses LGBT flashcards depicting a pregnant man to teach kids colors A North Carolina preschool used flash cards featuring LGBTQ themes to teach kids colors, including one card depicting a pregnant man. "Schools should only be using age-appropriate materials, and these flashcards clearly do not meet that standard for a pre-school classroom," Republican State Rep. Erin Paré said in a statement after being alerted to the cards by a constituent, according to North Carolina Speaker of the House Tim Moore. Paré said a concerned constituent emailed her about the cards that were being used to teach preschoolers colors at Ballentine Elementary School in Wake County, NC. Paré then contacted the principal of the elementary school in an attempt to verify the use of the cards in class, with the principal taking "swift action" to investigate the constituents claims. The principal was able to locate the cards in the preschool classroom and verify with the teacher that they had been used to teach colors, which the principal said was approved curriculum at the school. The principal took possession of the cards and alerted the district superintendent and human resources about the incident, which she said she was unaware of until being alerted to the situation by Paré. The incident comes amid an effort in the North Carolina General Assembly to pass legislation aimed at giving parents more control over what their children are taught in school, including giving them the option to opt out of what they consider "age-inappropriate classroom materials." In the meantime, Paré said the situation schools across the state should use the response of Ballentine Elementary as an example. We’re in the last few days of May! Meaning, we’re just 5 months away from our Fight Laugh Feast Conferfence. This year our national conference is in Knoxville, TN October 6th-8th. The theme of this year’s conference is Lies, Propaganda, Storytelling and the Serrated Edge. Satan is the father of lies, and the mother of those lies is a government who has rejected God. We have especially been lied to these last two years, and the COVIDpanic has been one of the central mechanisms that our government has used to lie to us and to grab more power. Because Christians have not been reading their bibles, we are susceptible to lies and weak in our ability to fight these lies. God has given us His word to fight Satan and his lies, and we need to recover all of God’s word, its serrated edge and all. Mark your calendars for October 6th-8th, as we fight, laugh and feast with fellowship, beer and Psalms, our amazing lineup of speakers, hanging with our awesome vendors, meeting new friends, and more. Early bird tickets sale now!. https://www.foxnews.com/sports/detroit-tigers-money-trans-surgeries-kids Now it’s time for the topic that I love. SPORTS! Though, once again this topic just shows the disgusting underbelly of what our culture has soured into. So… do we have any Detroit Tigers’ fans in our audience? Well, you should take note of where the club is spending your money… Detroit Tigers funneling money for trans surgeries for kids The money that Detroit Tigers fans regularly give to the organization through ticket sales may not have yielded a quality on-field product in years, but some of it will now benefit local LGBTQ groups which support irreversible trans surgeries for children. Nate Hochman of National Review recently explained that those who purchase tickets for "Pride Night" this year have the option to support groups such as the Trans Sistas of Color Project and the Ruth Ellis Center, which both directly or indirectly provide "gender-affirming surgery" to those under 18. The Trans Sistas of Color Project website refers to "Trans Minor Rights" and boasts that its funding recipients perform "chest reconstruction and/or genital reassignment surgery," while the Ruth Ellis Center offers "transition care for transgender youth," including surgery. The Center further claims that there "are a lot of barriers — especially for people under 18 — that still exist for accessing puberty blockers and gender-affirming hormones. This is a huge problem." There is indeed "a huge problem" here, but it’s not the one they claim. The problem is the genital mutilation of children, but the Tigers don’t seem to care about that. Unlike previous "Pride" days at Comerica Park, which began in 2018, those who purchase tickets for "Pride Night" on June 1 this year have the option of donating to organizations such as the Trans Sistas of Color Project, the Ruth Ellis Center and others. I used to love sports across the board… but the rot of our godless culture has seeped into the fibers of every sport, whether it be baseball, the NFL, the NBA, you get the picture… Heck even nascar has buckled with the likes of Bubba Wallace. Hockey, and MMA seem to be the last bastions of just focusing on sports, as opposed to politics. Okay, last thing… Happy Memorial Day, especially to those who have served… Here’s some history on the subject. Memorial Day is an American holiday, observed on the last Monday of May, honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. Memorial Day 2022 will occur on Monday, May 30. Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971. Many Americans observe Memorial Day by visiting cemeteries or memorials, holding family gatherings and participating in parades. Unofficially, it marks the beginning of the summer season. It is unclear where exactly this tradition originated; numerous different communities may have independently initiated the memorial gatherings. And some records show that one of the earliest Memorial Day commemorations was organized by a group of formerly enslaved people in Charleston, South Carolina less than a month after the Confederacy surrendered in 1865. Nevertheless, in 1966 the federal government declared Waterloo, New York, the official birthplace of Memorial Day. I want to take a moment to thank all of those in our audience, and across the U.S. who have fought for this country. All gave some, but some gave all. We owe you our gratitude. Thank you for listening to this CrossPolitic Daily News Brief. If you liked the show, share it far and wide. And as always, if you’d like to partner with CrossPolitic Studios, email me, at garrison@fightlaughfeast.com. For CrossPolitic News, I’m Garrison Hardie. Have a great Memorial Day, and Lord bless.

We've been away too long! We've missed you and we've got a surprise in store. We're going to be talking to an awesome woman, learn about her journey, and her personal history with the Ruth Ellis Center. There will be lots of laughs, love, and an unabashed podcast love letter to all the beautiful women who support us. No frills, just a quick, meaty conversation. Stay tuned, we're back in 2022! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/voicesofrec/message

First of all, Layton Mykell Price is an amazing human being. He is an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategist and the Director of Talent & Development at Ruth Ellis Center. We talk about his upbringing, his empathy at a young age and the great work that is being done at the Ruth Ellis Center. I hope this inspires you like it inspired me. #BaxtersBuzz --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/baxter-hall/support

Folks, this episode is jam-packed! We begin with our normal chat, which segues into conversations with some incredible individuals. We first meet Elaine Montilla, Founder of 5x Minority, and Assistant Vice President and CIO for Information Technology at The Graduate Center, CUNY, a Forbes Technology Council member and contributor, a TEDx Speaker, and an AMA Women's Leadership Center presenter AND a place on Yahoo Finance's 2021 OUTstanding 100 LGBT+ Executives list. The list showcases leaders who are breaking down barriers and creating more inclusive workplaces. A pioneer by any other word, much like our beloved Ruthie. How did we even find this amazing human, you ask? Much like this episode and interview, she was brought to us by the wonderful folks of @Cadillac and their #AudacityofMe Campaign (video link below). Then Elysia has some insightful conversations with three Ruth Ellis Center family/staff members to reflect on #TransAwarenessWeek // #TransDayofRemeberance - on this mini-episode Voices of REC. While Nazarina shares some history on the day and why it is such a critical period for us as an organization, Elysia talks to our future and learns what they are doing to ensure transgender young people feel safe and supported no matter where they go. Our abundant gratitude to Latrice Ward, Harmony Harris, and Elijah Earnest for sharing their time, energy, and experience with you and for all their diligent work in and for the community. Special thanks to @TransSistasofColorProject & @NuiiWaavBrotherhood for creating affirming spaces and families for our trans siblings here at REC, in Detroit/Highland Park, and beyond. Many thanks to @PFLAG and Gwendolyn Ann Smith for co-founding this important event. Resources mentioned in the episode: Elaine Montilla | 5xminority CUNY Profile: Elaine Montilla | CUNY School of Professional Studies | CUNY SPS Ted Talk: The Value of Mentoring Women and Minorities in Tech | Elaine Montilla | TEDxChelseaPark - YouTube" Cadillac Campaign: Audacity of Me Nuii Waav Brotherhood www.NuiiWaavBrotherhood.org Elijah Marques synnwright22@gmail.com Trans Sistas of Color Project https://www.facebook.com/TSCOPD/ Fair Michigan https://www.fairmichigan.org/ Julisa Abad Director of LGBTQ Outreach and relations & Victim Advocate 313 658-5534 / Lgbtteamabad@gmail.com W'SUP - WSU Prevention Team https://linktr.ee/WSUP Matrix Human Services https://www.matrixhumanservices.org/ Remembering Our Dead Remembering Our Dead (translivesmatter.info) PFLAG Transgender Day of Remembrance 2021 | PFLAG --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/voicesofrec/message

LGBTQ youth have a 120% higher risk of becoming unhoused than other youth. Across the nation, LGBTQ youth drop-in centers aim to minimize harm to homeless youth and help them build a foundation for security and stability. In this #AuthenticVoicesOfPride episode, we follow the staff of the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit who were all formerly homeless or housing insecure themselves. Presented by Chevrolet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LGBTQ youth have a 120% higher risk of becoming unhoused than other youth. Across the nation, LGBTQ youth drop-in centers aim to minimize harm to homeless youth and help them build a foundation for security and stability. In this #AuthenticVoicesOfPride episode, we follow the staff of the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit who were all formerly homeless or housing insecure themselves. Presented by Chevrolet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the season changes from summer to fall, and we transition into the year-end season of giving here's a playlist of interviews curated from past guests of organizations worthy of your consideration for support with a donation or even as a volunteer. They can all be found on SoundCloud or Blog Talk Radio on the Collections by Michelle Brown station. So, pop in your ear buds, or put on your headphones and listen to the 100+ interviews. You will be inspired by Guests who have come from across the country representing a variety of topics from vegan advocacy, the arts (Musicians/authors/visual artists), disability rights, politics and all points in between. Between now and year-end besides bringing you more interviews from new and old friends We are going to highlight some of the amazing organizations we've gotten to know over the years.

Jon talks with Sari Cicurel, Owner of Sari M Cicurel PR. Sari Cicurel is an in-demand publicist in the metropolitan Detroit area that specializes in gaining significant media exposure for her clients in broadcast, print, and online news outlets by bringing her passion, determination, and expertise. Sari Cicurel is an in-demand publicist in metropolitan Detroit. She offers the public relations, communications, and marketing services you would expect from a big agency and partners it with the specialized attention of a boutique firm. For all her clients, Sari brings her passion, determination, and expertise so she can gain significant media exposure for her clients in broadcast, print, and online news outlets. She leverages her 30 years of experience to spearhead projects, social media strategies, event production, community relations campaigns, and marketing. Sari is a storyteller who cultivates a favorable public image for her clients in a variety of industries including healthcare, retail, restaurant, and hospitality, automotive, publishing, as well as politics, professional services, and numerous non-profit organizations. Her current and past projects include clients such as Empire Kitchen and Cocktails, Red Dunn Kitchen & Cocktails, Trumbull & Porter Hotel, Profile by Sanford, Hill Gallery, Broth Masters, Detroit Axe, The Phluid Project based in New York, Curated Cincinnati, Fit Bits LLC, Beyond Juice + Eatery, Cadillac Travel Group, Artist, Richard Phillips, and Tony ROKO and many retailers in SE Michigan. When she's not helping her clients tell their stories, Sari can be found with her family. Together with her husband of 28 years, she has three children. Her son Ari lives in Washington, DC where he works for a think tank. Marisa is pursuing a career in acting after graduating from Pace University. Her youngest son Noah is attending Law School at Loyola University Chicago. Sari is also active with many different non-profit organizations as she believes this work is the ultimate way to assist in telling a story. In addition to being the Executive Director at the Michigan Jewish Sports Foundation, she also works with The Emily Stillman Foundation, Beer City Dog Biscuits based in Grand Rapids, ELLA Designs, Stand With Trans, Sib4Sib, the Ruth Ellis Center, and Yoga Moves MS.   Connect with Jon Dwoskin: Twitter: @jdwoskin Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.dwoskin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejondwoskinexperience/ Website: https://jondwoskin.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jondwoskin/ Email: jon@jondwoskin.com Get Jon's Book: The Think Big Movement: Grow your business big. Very Big!   Connect with Sari Cicurel: Website: sarimcicurel.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/sarimcicurel Instagram: instagram.com/sarimcicurel LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sari-cicurel-69a0409/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sari.cicurel

Pamela E. Alexander is no stranger to Collections by Michelle Brown-Blog Radio. Being of service to community is just who she is and something she instills in all everyone she meets. This Gold Star Mother, honors the life of her son SSGT Vincent J. Bell, supporting other military families and working with her daughter London Bell as part of the Bell Global Justice Institute named in his honor. She served for many years before retiring as the deputy director of the Ruth Ellis Center serving LGBTQ youth in southeastern Michigan and established the “Kofi House: Center for Lesbian and Queer Women & Girls. Her research on the life and achievements of the Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray introduced may at the Kofi House to this LGBTQ pioneer in civil rights. Retirement has not slowed her down one bit. A born and raised in Macomb, MI she is no working to ensure her hometown and county are diverse and inclusive. Since February 2021 Pamela leads the Northern Macomb County NAACP Branch as president of the chapter. In October 2021 Macomb County will hold its first LGBTQ Pride celebration in downtown Mt. Clemens, MI. Pamela joins us to talk about all of this and the amazing synchronicity that her commitment to social justice brings to everything she touches.

Growing up on Detroit's northwest side C. Imani Williams loved learning about Black culture. Books, cheerleading, softball, and was involved in other community-based activities. While living in Detroit Imani was the first full-time employee of the Ruth Ellis Center. She was a founder of PFLAG Family Reunion — Detroit Chapter and served on the board of Black Pride Society. Her background includes work in Guidance and Counseling, Communications/Journalism, and Creative-Writing. She has written for several publications including Michigan's Between the Lines Newspaper and a weekly column Queer Voices from an Urban Bush Sista! Now living in Las Vegas, NV she is determined to live her purpose as a Healing Artist, she has used a combination of Holistic Creative Arts including yoga, meditation, mindfulness, poetry, essays, and jewelry design to empower others   Her “Standing on United Love – Soul Project provides a safe space where community members can explore the issues of the day affecting Black communities including Mental illness in Black communities, Healing from Childhood Trauma, Sex On The Table: Decoding Black Sexual Politics, and Queering Black Spaces. Imani's work pays homage to the ancestors and elders who paved the way while she works towards a Black art-infused better tomorrow.  This is the legacy she wants to leave not just for her community but especially for her children and grandchildren.

Greetings friends and welcome to episode 5 of our EMPOWER Podcast! My name is London and I am your host! Today I am excited to talk with one of metro Detroit's finest community leaders, Dr. Kofi Adoma! Dr. Kofi and I will be talking about the life and legacy of Ruth Ellis (July 23, 1899 - October 5, 2000) who was well known for being the oldest out African American lesbian, as well an activist and businesswoman in Detroit. You are going to absolutely love listening to Dr. Kofi share about her good friend Mother Ruth and how she became one of the co-founders of the Ruth Ellis Center, a nationally known organization located in Highland Park, Michigan providing trauma-informed services to LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. Please visit the Ruth Ellis Center to learn more on how you can support this incredible organization! 

Greetings friends and welcome to episode 5 of our EMPOWER Podcast! My name is London and I am your host! Today I am excited to talk with one of metro Detroit's finest community leaders, Dr. Kofi Adoma! Dr. Kofi and I will be talking about the life and legacy of Ruth Ellis (July 23, 1899 - October 5, 2000) who was well known for being the oldest out African American lesbian, as well an activist and businesswoman in Detroit. You are going to absolutely love listening to Dr. Kofi share about her good friend Mother Ruth and how she became one of the co-founders of the Ruth Ellis Center, a nationally known organization located in Highland Park, Michigan providing trauma-informed services to LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. Please visit the Ruth Ellis Center to learn more on how you can support this incredible organization! 

https://www.ruthelliscenter.org/ Music : Wisdom in Sun used under a creative commons license from Canva Art: BJK Hosted by Mary Byler and James Schwartz

This year's Stride For Pride seeks volunteers to sign up to walk anywhere in their communities to raise funds for the center's vital work.

Pamela E. Alexander is a part of Detroit’s LGBTQ history. She has been active in the metro-Detroit community for years  She is a “Gold Star” mother. The retired Deputy Director of the Ruth Ellis Center was instrumental on the founding and Development of the Kofi House: Center for Lesbian and Queer Women and Girls. Her love of Black, Women’s, and LGBTQ history inspired her research in the life and legacy of Pauli Murray. The Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray was an activist for American civil rights and women’s rights. She was a lawyer, poet, author, and first African American Woman Episcopalian priest.“Pauli” Murray was born in Baltimore, MD. She was orphaned when young, and raised mostly by her maternal grandparents in Durham, NC. In 1940, Murray sat in the whites-only section of a bus in Virginia and was arrested for violating state segregation laws. She enrolled in the law school at Howard University, where she also became aware of sexism. She called it "Jane Crow" and published a book by that title. As a lawyer, Murray argued for civil rights and women's rights.Thurgood Marshall called Murray's 1950 book, States' Laws on Race and Color, the "bible" of the civil rights movement.. In 1966 she was a co-founder of the National Organization of Women (NOW). Ruth Bader Ginsberg named Murray as a co-author of a brief on the 1971 case Reed v. Reed,  She became an ordained priest in 1977, among the first generation of women priests. In addition to her legal and advocacy work, Pauli published two well-reviewed autobiographies and a volume of poetry. 

While many nonprofits are cutting back on services and in some instances closing their doors the Ruth Ellis Center is pushing through the pandemic and expanding services. Executive Director Jerry Peterson shares how the organization has carried on its mission of providing services during the pandemic while pushing forward with new plans. Today, beyond its main 77 Victor St. location in Highland Park, REC is on its way to hosting four locations across the city. It recently announced three new programs – the REC at Clairmount for long term housing support in Detroit’s north end, and the Rapid Rehousing Project and the Kelly Stough Project. Both the Kelly Stough and Rapid Re-housing, via partnerships with landlords, can provide up to 24 months of rental support at both short-term and intermediate lengths for residents across Detroit and the Metro area. Although the organization has grown over the years, it remains committed to carrying with it the spirit and legacy of its own namesake - lesbian activist Ruth Ellis. She is very alive in this work and that spirit.

Ruth Ellis was an out lesbian and staunch advocate for LGBTQ and African American civil rights. The Detroit home Ellis shared with her longtime partner became a safe haven for young LGBTQ people from the city and beyond. Now, the Ruth Ellis Center is carrying on its namesake's legacy by providing services and community for LGBTQ youth—a group that faces a disproportionately high rate of homelessness. On this episode, we talk about the center’s new supportive housing project and how “chosen families” help LGBTQ youth thrive. GUESTS: Jerry Peterson, executive director of the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit Lilianna Reyes, senior director of the LGBTQ youth drop-in service at Detroit's Ruth Ellis Center and head of the Trans Sisters of Color Project Find Neenah Ellis’s interview with Ruth Ellis here. If you enjoy the pod, consider making a gift to Michigan Radio. If you want to hear more conversations from Stateside—and listen to the full audio from today’s show—click here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Craig's guest is Jerry Peterson, Executive Director of the Ruth Ellis Center,  a Highland Park-based nonprofit that serves LGBTQ+ young people 13 to 30 who are experiencing homelessness and other barriers to success.  The Center recently broke ground  on a new permanent supportive housing development along Detroit's Woodward Corridor that will provide housing, a health clinic and community space targeted at LGBTQ+ youth.The 43-unit, 44,000-square-foot mixed-use Ruth Ellis Clairmount Center, at 61 Clairmount St., is a $15 million ground-up development will provide permanent supportive housing that includes integrated supportive services to create an inclusive environment while also tackling other issues that can lead to homelessness. 

Racquelle Trammell shares experiences from her life as a Black trans activist, mother, and visionary.

Philosophy, the skincare company, is more than just the pioneers of self-care for the body, they care DEEPLY about the mind. Naz & I'Sha sit down with Philosophy and learn about their charity, the Hope & Grace initiative, that supports mental health & wellbeing. They also chat with Ruth Ellis Center living legend + one of its founders Dr. Kofi Adoma.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/voicesofrec/message

Sup y'all! It's Episode 4 of our shitty little podcast, Smoke Til It's Gone Or Die! Your favorite sky high assholes, Patty and Rylee, surprise each other with stories with lots of parallels. Patty tells the spooky story of Andrea Balcer and the murder of her parents in rural Maine on Halloween Night of 2016. Rylee dives into Aileen Wuornos, who...let’s be honest, is sort of of an icon...despite killing seven men in ICE cold blood. This week’s Probable Causes: Patty asks you to visit https://www.glaad.org/, and toss a few dollars their way. GLAAD leads the conversation. Shapes the media narrative. Changes the culture. GLAAD works through entertainment, news, and digital media to share stories from the LGBTQ community that accelerate acceptance. Patty also used one of their articles, Consistent Respect: Reporting On Transgender Crime Suspects, in her research this week. This article states that transgender people are sometimes suspected and/or convicted of crimes and that the media has a responsibility to represent all transgender people accurately, with their correct names and pronouns, and without relying on dehumanizing stereotypes. This responsibility does not change with the circumstances of a story, including instances where transgender people are suspected of crimes. To read the rest of the article visit https://www.glaad.org/publications/consistent-respect-reporting-transgender-crime-suspects Rylee asks you to check out the Ruth Ellis Center. Founded in 1999, Ruth Ellis Center (REC) has established a national reputation for quality and innovation in providing trauma-informed services for lesbian, gay, bi-attractional, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ+) youth, and young adults, with an emphasis on young people of color, experiencing homelessness, involved in the child welfare system, and/or experiencing barriers to health and wellbeing. It is their mission to create opportunities with LGBTQ+ young people to build their vision for a positive future. Their vision is a world where LGBTQ+ young people are safe and supported no matter where they go. Head to http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/, and as always, we love a prominently displayed Donate button. Thanks for listening! You can find us on Instagram @stgdpocast, our email is stgdpodcast@gmail.com., and you can become a patron at patreon.com/stgdpodcast. Listen on YOUR favorite streaming platform! Under Massachusetts’ Chapter 94G and California’s Proposition 64 Bills it is legal for us two assholes to possess and consume MaryJane, medically known as cannabis, in our respective states. We do NOT condone the illegal consumption, possession, or sale of cannabis in places it’s not supposed to be smoked, man handled, or acquired from a legal dispensary. But we DO condone what the awesome humans at Marijuana Policy Project are doing to support legislation at the state and federal level to decriminalize cannabis across the country, and advocate for those who have been incarcerated for cannabis possession. Visit mpp.org for more details. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/stgdpodcast/support

The ladies are keeping the Pride party going with two guardian angels of the LGBTQ+ community over a bottle of Crowdpleazin zinfandel! First, Kelley tells the tale of Storme Delarverie, a horse riding, body guarding, drag king and leader in the Stonewall Uprising! She was a tough gal and would wreck anyone who messed with her babies (i.e. the LGBTQ+ community.) Then, Emily talks about Ruth Ellis, a black lesbian who survived a race massacre and became an unofficial community center for the LGBTQ+ community which was dubbed the "Gay Spot." Put on your suit and sing happy birthday, because it's time to wine about herstory!Donate to the Ruth Ellis Center at http://ruthelliscenter.org/** Mornings with u by Barradeen | https://soundcloud.com/barradeenMusic promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.comCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unportedhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en_US Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/winingaboutherstory/overview)

In this episode Nazarina & I'Sha social distance while interviewing Katie Gorney, Ruth Ellis Center's Behavioral Health Director. We discuss her journey to REC and how she and her team have been able to see patients virtually, some of the challenges that present, and get deep about self-care in the time of a pandemic. Questions, comments, inquires, concerns? Please feel free to email us at voicesofrec@ruthelliscenter.org we'll be glad to hear from you.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/voicesofrec/message

Join I'sha and Nazarina, the Community Engagement Manager, and Senior Development Associate, respectively as they introduce themselves and the Ruth Ellis Center, an organization dedicated to creating opportunities with LGBTQ+ young people to build their version of a positive future.  They'll be discussing the podcast's goals, some organizational history,  culture, and even some snippets from a recent staff meeting (cultivation mtg) about another one of the Center's new endeavors... rebranding. They'll share also what you can do to get involved, and what's in store for the coming episodes. We hope you'll tune in.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/voicesofrec/message

Sari Cicurel is an in-demand publicist in metropolitan Detroit. She offers the public relations, communications, and marketing services you would expect from a big agency and partners it with the specialized attention of a boutique firm. For all her clients, Sari brings her passion, determination, and expertise so she can gain significant media exposure for her clients in broadcast, print, and online news outlets. She leverages her 30 years of experience to spear head projects, social media strategies, event production, community relations campaigns, and marketing.  Sari is a storyteller who cultivates a favorable public image for her clients in a variety of industries including healthcare, retail, restaurant and hospitality, automotive, publishing, as well as in politics, professional services and for numerous non-profit organizations. Her current and past projects include clients such as Empire Kitchen and Cocktails, Red Dunn Kitchen & Cocktails, Trumbull & Porter Hotel, Profile by Sanford, Hill Gallery, Broth Masters, Detroit Axe, The Phluid Project based in New York, Curated Cincinnati, Fit Bits LLC, Beyond Juice + Eatery, Cadillac Travel Group, Artist, Richard Phillips and Tony ROKO and many retailers in SE Michigan.  When she’s not helping her clients tell their stories, Sari can be found with her family. Together with her husband of 28 years, she has three children. Her son Ari lives in Washington, DC where he works for a think tank. Marisa is pursuing a career in acting after graduating from Pace University. Her youngest son Noah is attending Law School at Loyola University Chicago. Sari is also active with many different non-profit organizations as she believes this work is the ultimate way to assist in telling a story. In addition to being the Executive Director at the Michigan Jewish Sports Foundation, she also works with The Emily Stillman Foundation, Beer City Dog Biscuits based in Grand Rapids, ELLADesigns, StandWithTrans, Sib4Sib, the Ruth Ellis Center, and Yoga Moves MS. Connect with Sari Cicurel Website: www.sarimcicurel.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/sarimcicurel Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sari.cicurel LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sari-cicurel-69a0409/ Connect with Jon Dwoskin: Website: http://jondwoskin.com/ Twitter: @jdwoskin Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.dwoskin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com /Thejondwoskinexperience/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jondwoskin/

London Bell is a community warrior. This lawyer, community organizer, activist and humanitarian can always be found standing for the human rights of all – not just in metro Detroit but anywhere people, especially women and girls, are oppressed. The native Detroiter has focused her career advocating for policy changes on behalf of diverse communities. She is the President and CEO of Bell Global Justice Institute, a non-governmental organization (NGO) based in Detroit focused on advancing and promoting the international human right to education for girls. Bell Global Justice Institute, in partnership with the Ruth Ellis Center, will be hosting an NGO Parallel Event during the 64th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in New York. The parallel event “Promising Practices for Beijing+25: Strengthening Visibility for Women of Color will feature besides Bell, Deidre “D.S.Sense” Smith, Founder of On My Detroit Everything Movement; Famika Edmond, Founder of For The Love of HER; Corporal Dani Woods, Chief’s Neighborhood Liaison Unit Detroit Police Department; and Pamela E. Alexander, Deputy Director at the Ruth Ellis Center. Their presentation will showcase gender equality and the empowerment of women. The 64th session of the Commission on the Status of Women is planned to take place from 9 to 20 March 2020 at United Nations Headquarters in New York. The year 2020 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995). The 64th session of the Commission on the Status of Women will focus on how do we make the changes needed.

It's hard to make friends as an adult, and making friends as a grown ass queer offers its own challenges. We touch on some of the issues we've encountered as the Qweirdos we are, things like: navigating our paranoia around straight ladies, easy outs on a friendship, and establishing whether it is a friendship or a romance. We realize this issue is SO BIG that we're kind of all over the place with it and going to have to revisit it again and again and again...as if we are Bill Murray in Groundhog Day (one of the most important days of the year, btw, and it just happened. Thanks, Phil!), so stick with us as we navigate the twisty turns of QUAF (QUeer Ass Friendships)! Sources & Links: Marsh P. Johnson park, Elsa's girlfriend, queer & sober, Sis Got Tea kickstarter, Ruth Ellis Center, make a donation to Ruth Ellis Center. Be weird & stay queer! xox- NY --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/qweird/message

*Re-Release* There is no more appropriate episode for me to publish today, the 50th anniversary of #Stonewall and #Pride, than this one. Please listen. Happy Pride! Episode 11 of #DontMentionIt - My conversation with Lilianna Reyes, Second Stories Director at the Ruth Ellis Center & Co-Executive Director of the Trans Sistas of Color Project. We talk about the Ruth Ellis Center, life for trans women of color, and about the role racism and privilege play in access to resources for people of color in the LGBTQIA+ community. Note: This episode contains difficult subject matter including violence against trans women of color and survival sex work. All opinions expressed by the me in this podcast are my own, and do not represent the views of anyone else, or any employer, company, or entity. Show Notes Links Ruth Ellis Center Website: http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/ Second Stories Drop-In Center at Ruth Ellis http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/what-we-do/2ndstories/ Ruth Ellis Center 2018 Report http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/ReReport.pdf Ruth Ellis Center on Twitter: @REC_Detroit Instagram @ruthelliscenter FB at facebook.com/RuthEllisCenter Trans Sistas of Color Project - Detroit https://www.facebook.com/TSCOPD/ Trans Sistas of Color Project Detroit Twitter @tsocproject Instagram @tsocproject To Donate Monetary Donations (Please remember that if you want your donation to go to Trans Sistas of Color Project, to indicate that in the notes field): https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/weblink.aspx?name=rutheci&id=1 Clothing & Other Items: http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/get-involved/donate-items/ Articles Vice.com, Pastor charged with murder of black trans woman near notorious Detroit park Human Rights Campaign, Violence Against the Transgender Community in 2019 Human Rights Campaign Report, Dismantling A Culture Of Violence Human Rights Campaign, New Report on Youth Homeless Affirms that LGBTQ Youth Disproportionately Experience Homelessness Inside Monica Roberts' Mission to Identify Transgender Murder Victims President Obama Designates Stonewall National Monument Killings of transgender people in the US saw another high year Monuments  Stonewall Forever - A Living Monument to 50 Years Of Pride New York City Monument Will Honor Transgender Activists Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera Organizations & Podcasts Trans Doe Task Force The Fall Line Documentaries Stonewall Uprising, THE YEAR THAT CHANGED AMERICA - American Experience, PBS The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson - Release date: October 6, 2017 (USA), Director, David France How To Survive A Plague - Independent Lens - Release Date:September 21, 2012 Paris is Burning - Release Date: August 1991 (USA), Director, Jennie Livingston Additional Music Credits “In Suspense”, from PodSummit.com is licensed under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication License. Edited for length for episode.  

Happy Pride! Episode 11 of #DontMentionIt - My conversation with Lilianna Reyes, Second Stories Director at the Ruth Ellis Center & Co-Executive Director of the Trans Sistas of Color Project. We talk about the Ruth Ellis Center, life for trans women of color, and about the role racism and privilege play in access to resources for people of color in the LGBTQIA+ community. Note: This episode contains difficult subject matter including violence against trans women of color and survival sex work.   All opinions expressed by the me in this podcast are my own, and do not represent the views of anyone else, or any employer, company, or entity. Show Notes Links Ruth Ellis Center Website: http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/ Second Stories Drop-In Center at Ruth Ellis http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/what-we-do/2ndstories/ Ruth Ellis Center 2018 Report http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/ReReport.pdf Ruth Ellis Center on Twitter: @REC_Detroit Instagram @ruthelliscenter FB at facebook.com/RuthEllisCenter Trans Sistas of Color Project - Detroit https://www.facebook.com/TSCOPD/ Trans Sistas of Color Project Detroit Twitter @tsocproject Instagram @tsocproject To Donate Monetary Donations (Please remember that if you want your donation to go to Trans Sistas of Color Project, to indicate that in the notes field): https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/weblink.aspx?name=rutheci&id=1 Clothing & Other Items: http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/get-involved/donate-items/ Articles Vice.com, Pastor charged with murder of black trans woman near notorious Detroit park Human Rights Campaign, Violence Against the Transgender Community in 2019 Human Rights Campaign Report, Dismantling A Culture Of Violence Human Rights Campaign, New Report on Youth Homeless Affirms that LGBTQ Youth Disproportionately Experience Homelessness Inside Monica Roberts' Mission to Identify Transgender Murder Victims President Obama Designates Stonewall National Monument Killings of transgender people in the US saw another high year Monuments  Stonewall Forever - A Living Monument to 50 Years Of Pride New York City Monument Will Honor Transgender Activists Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera Organizations & Podcasts Trans Doe Task Force The Fall Line Documentaries Stonewall Uprising, THE YEAR THAT CHANGED AMERICA - American Experience, PBS The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson - Release date: October 6, 2017 (USA), Director, David France How To Survive A Plague - Independent Lens - Release Date:September 21, 2012 Paris is Burning - Release Date: August 1991 (USA), Director, Jennie Livingston Additional Music Credits “In Suspense”, from PodSummit.com is licensed under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication License. Edited for length for episode.  

Activist, advocate, leading salesperson, councilwoman, she's been called many things in her lifetime but "Your Honor" is something Beth Bashert is still getting used to. In 1993 she and her wife Lisa were the first lesbian couple to have an engagement announcement in The Ann Arbor News. At the ceremony later that year, they legally took the name Bashert (meaning “destined, meant to be”) a new family name for both. When the window opened up five years ago for same-gender loving couples in Michigan to be legally married the Basherts joined the 300 couples who took advantage of that window. Already a member of Ypsilanti’s City Council, in 2018 Bashert ran for and won the mayoral race with 63 percent of the vote. She ran on a platform that advocated for changing the city’s budget, bringing back services and increasing development. She is the recipient of many awards including Equality Award from the Human Rights Campaign, Living Pride Award from Washtenaw Rainbow Action Project, Political Action Award from PFLAG and the Gay & Lesbian Pride Award. Being both the Mayor of a small city and a leading salesperson at a local family owned car dealership is hectic and exciting nut Beth Bashert manages to do both working and talking with people about their needs at both. It turns out serving people does not change much even in different environments. She has focused on serving people long before taking on either of these roles.  In 1999, she was selected as the founding President of Michigan Equality an organization designed to identify, educate and mobilize voters to help further equality for LGBT people in Michigan. She was the first Director of Fund Development for the Ruth Ellis Center serving LGBTQ youth including many who were homeless.

Her path has taken many twists and turns. She had an amazing career in human services. She's currently Deputy Director at the Ruth Ellis Center. She's also a community activist and the matriarch of a gold star family. She's always moving forward. For the next chapter in her life, Pamela is moving out of the “helping” profession and becoming a Detroit entrepreneur. Her business “Café Ruby” will open in 2019 as “the ultimate urban global coffee house and wine bar!” Why coffee? Drinking coffee is something billions of people do around the world every day! Coffee is more than popular: it's ubiquitous. No other beverage is as revered or respected. It can be seen in offices, during commutes, and on kitchen countertops worldwide. Coffee is worth over $100 billion worldwide. That puts it ahead of natural gas, gold, sugar, and corn. Worldwide, we drink over 500 billion cups of coffee every year. Arabica is the more common type of bean grown (70 percent of coffee is Arabica), and it's considered more flavorful. Join Pamela as she shares her love and knowledge of coffee as well as how she plans to bring a unique coffee experience with her coffeehouse and wine bar to the metro-Detroit area. 

Bridie Mae Johnson grew up in Saginaw, Michigan. With a lineage from several cultures, Johnson brings a unique perspective to all she does drawing upon her roots to build spaces where diversity and inclusion can flourish. A licensed social worker, Johnson worked as Director of Programs at the Ruth Ellis Center from 2007 to 2009. She moved to Atlanta, Georgia. Johnson was employed at Saginaw County Youth Protection Council, as the Division Director of Innerlink Services Division. She recently returned to the metro-Detroit area joining the staff of the American Indian Health & Family Services.She's back in Detroit working with the community and using the knowledge she's learned along the way to educate attendees at the Creating Change Conference in Washington DC. Through her work in Michigan and Georgia, Bridie has become aware of and researched the problem of human trafficking especially of youth and members of the LGBTQ community. Based on her work in this area she submitted a proposal and will be presenting at the Creating Change Conference in Washington, DC January 24-28.  Bridie will talk about her work in the LGBTQ community and presentation at Creating Change. This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the Creating Change Conference. It will be held in Washington, DC at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, January 24-28, 2018.

What is Kwanzaa, how is it celebrated in the community at large and especially in the African American LGBTQ community? Joining Collections by Michelle Brown is Dr. Kofi Adoma who for many years has organized and led Kwanzaa celebrations in Detroit’s African American LGBTQ community to give us a “Kwanzaa 101” introduction and talk about this year’s celebration. An African American cultural holiday initiated by Dr. Maulana Karenga Kwanzaa celebrates the work and dedication African Americans put forth throughout the year.  It is patterned on the African celebration of harvest during which tribute is paid to the ancestors and to God, while at the same time praying for another benevolent year. The word “Kwanzaa” refers to the first fruits of the harvest. It indicates the firm determination of a community to begin a new year of commitment, hard work, and fulfillment that requires collective effort.  It centers around the Nguzo Saba (Seven Principles) Umoja (Unity); Kujichagulia (Self-Determination); Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility); Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics); Nia (Purpose); Kuumba (Creativity); and Imani (Faith). "Dr. Kofi", as she is affectionately called, has been a community activist/organizer since high school when she was a member of the Highland Park High School Black Awareness Club. She is a founding member of numerous grassroots organizations including Unity Fellowship Church Detroit, The A.L.O.R.D.E. Collective, Karibu House Community Center, Race Matters, and The Ruth Ellis Center.

Earlier this year we introduced you to Jerry Peterson, Executive Director of the Ruth Ellis Center located in Highland Park MI. The Center is named after Ruth Ellis,  an African-American woman who became widely known as the oldest surviving open lesbian, and LGBTQ rights activist at the age of 100 who died in 2005. The Center is a youth social services agency with a mission to provide short-term and long-term residential safe space and support services for LGBTQ youth in Detroit and Southeastern Michigan. Since incorporating in 1999, the Center has offered core services including Its residential housing program, the 2nd Stories Drop-in Center and Family Group Decision Making. Most recently it added integrated behavioral and primary healthcare services, allowing the Center to take a critical step forward to meet the ever-changing needs of the young people they serve. More than a space and programs, The Ruth Ellis Center is people, a community that includes not only staff but the youth it serves. Joining Collections by Michelle Brown are Amara one of the young people who has been coming to the Center for five years. She participates in many of the 2nd Story programs and is finding her voice as a youth advocate. From the staff side joining us is Pamela E. Alexander the Deputy Director of Programs at the Center. Alexander has been active in the LGBTQ community for many years before joining the staff at the Ruth Ellis Center. They share a conversation about their experience with the Center and how their lives intersect.

Danielle Woods is a Detroit native and 16-year veteran with the Detroit Police Department. She is currently assigned to the Chief's Neighborhood Liaison unit where she coordinates and oversees the operations of the Citizen Radio Patrol. She recalls responding to a domestic violence disturbance in 2006 that was between two females who were romantically involved. Her male partner at the time made an offensive remark about the couple's sexual orientation. Woods was so upset that she approached her boss about the need for a community liaison officer for the LGBT community. Woods was appointed the Detroit Police Department's first LGBT liaison officer in 2013. She formulated the first LGBT Advisory Board Committee under the appointment of Chief James E. Craig and is a driving force in the LGBT community in her efforts of "Bridging the Gap" between law enforcement and the LGBT community. Woods says her role as LGBT liaison is to "serve as a bridge between the LGBT community and the police department," helping to build mutual trust, respect, and understanding between the two groups. She works closely with LGBT organizations within Detroit and surrounding areas, including Equality Michigan, the Ruth Ellis Center, Affirmations, and LGBT Detroit, and serves on an LGBT advisory board whose goal is to advocate for the LGBT community and make sure their concerns are heard.

On Saturday July 1st Chicago will again host the ESTEEM Awards recognizing a cross section of leadership in the LGBTQ community. Today we are talking with the founder and force behind these annual awards Philip Esteem. Phil is proud African American Gay Male. Although he was never formally trained as a writer or journalist Phil believes he was led to share other people’s experiences. In 1998, he started a ZINE called Legends Statements and Stars.  Legends Statements and Stars focused primarily on the ball scenewhere people, especially youth "walk" or compete for trophies and prizes at events known as balls.. In 2000, he started ESTEEM newsletter, a ZINE for the greater gay community. In 2004 Phil was approached by JC Cole about joining forces with her for a website she created called PrideIndex.com.  PrideIndex is a lifestyles and entertainment site for gay communities of color. In 2006, he joined the Windy City Black Pride Gay Pride Awards Committee where he successfully created interest for the Pride Awards for 2 years. He decided to step out on my own in 2007 and the Esteem Awards were born. The ESTEEM awards honor some of the best and brightest LGBTQ citizens, organizations and supporters from across the country. The honorees represent a who’s who among people whose activism, service and creativity have made significant contributions to our community.  Past honorees include GLAAD, The Lambda Literary Foundation, Mandy Carter, The NAACP, HRC, Keith Boykin, Mandy Carter,  Monica Roberts, The Schomberg Museum,  Sampson McCormick, The Ruth Ellis Center and other LGBTQ activists . 

2014 is coming to a close and all over the country organizations are gearing up for their Year End Ask. Some organizations are not large but community based,  take care of youth, seniors, and the disabled, defend the weak and support the strong and most important STAND UP for the LGBTQ Community. Many of these organizations thrive off of the help and support of everyday people and their donations of money, time, and other resources.  Can We Talk for REAL co-host, Ina, Michelle and Terry would like for everyone to join us as we explore the true meaning of GIVING. Listen in Wednesday night as 4 organizations talk about their programs, their future, their wish list and others ways you can be a part of GIVING BACK. It is important to know that you have organizations that can step in and assist if you need them now or in the future. The sad part is if we don’t help, then who will? These organizations are our DIAMONDS and we need to make sure they shine BRIGHT. Opportunities are always presenting themselves and if you want to volunteer some time, if you want to write a check or if you have ideas that would further the organizations mission, join us. Wednesday Night we welcome to CWT4R, the Ruth Ellis Center with Jerry Peterson, Affinity with Jerrell Clayton, Chicago House with James Lobianco, and Gloria’s Helping Hands with Tiara Thomas.

You know you've skirted a line when the White House officially distances itself from a joke you made at the Correspondents' Dinner. Wanda Sykes had that experience after suggesting that Rush Limbaugh was the the 20th hijacker on 9/11 but was too high on Oxycontin to make his flight. She followed it up by saying she hoped his kidneys fail—a play on Limbaugh's statement that he hoped the Obama Administration would fail. "I kind of regret that I said that," she confessed on this week's show. "It got in the way of the main joke. I hope his kidneys fail—that was like a throwaway line, and I wish I had thrown it away. It overshadowed what my main point was." Sykes will perform Saturday night at the Louisville Palace. She joined us this week to talk about the fine line between edginess and offensiveness. We also talked about her charity work with the Ruth Ellis Center, a shelter for homeless LGBTQ youth in Detroit. We also talked about her famous sketch, imagining what it would be like if she's had to "come out" as black, like she did as a lesbian. Some of the parental reactions she enacts in the routine reflect her own family's response when she came out of the closet. "It was really hard," Sykes tells us. "It was hard for them. But I couldn't blame them or shut them off or anything, because it took me 40-something years to figure it our myself, so obviously I had a hard time dealing with it too "At the bottom line is, they love me and I love them, and over time we worked through it, and now we have a great relationship." We were also joined this week by hip-hop scholar and writing professor Mickey Hess, who just completed a biography of Wu-Tang Clan co-founder Ol' Dirty Bastard—co-authored with Dirty's best friend, Buddha Monk. He described the challenges of co-writing the story with someone who was so personally involved in it. And in Juicy Fruit, we talk about the viral Church of God and Christ video of a man claiming the Holy Spirit has made him not gay, and the similarities between some religious tactics and conversion therapy (which is banned in some places). We also shout out LaVerne Cox, who was just named Glamour Magazine's Woman of the Year! Strange Fruit can be heard on 89.3 WFPL in Louisville (and live streaming at wfpl.org) on Saturday nights at 10 p.m.

Approximately 40% of homeless youth are LGBTQ. Nearly all homeless youth service providers in the U.S. now serve our youth but very few are exclusively by, for and about LGBTQ Youth. Joining Ina, Teresa and Michelle on CAN WE TALK FOR REAL on Wednesday August 20, 2014 is Jerry Peterson, Executive Director of The Ruth Ellis Center in Highland Park, Michigan serving the metro-Detroit community.  The Ruth Ellis Center is a youth social services agency that serves the needs of runaway, homeless and at-risk youth. Incorporated in 1999, it is one of the nation’s leading organizations focusing on vulnerable youth who are experiencing residential instability Being homeless brings its own level of stigma to LGBTQ youth and the definition for homelessness defies traditional boundaries. Many youth say “I have a home. I just don’t want to go there”. Opting for alternative housing (couch surfing, etc.) and/or the streets over unstable households. Sex trafficking transactional sex, even suicide are day –to-day realities. What can we do? Peterson will be talking about the “Family Acceptance Project” which focuses on the harmful effects of family rejection and the importance of engaging family members who are outed by their children and other options for our youth than the dangers/victimization on the streets. America’s next generation of LGBTQ youth need us to stand with them so that they can stand on their own. How can you help? Tune in Wednesday, August 20, 2014 to CAN WE TALK FOR REAL and be a part of the solution. Join us in the fight to save our YOUTH. Call in 347-215-8985, show starts at 10:30est/9:30cst. Press 1 to speak.