While Star Trek: Discovery has drawn praise for featuring the franchise’s first-ever same-sex couple, unsurprisingly not everyone is happy.
Right-wing activist Peter LaBarbera recently told radio station VCY America that producers should balance the inclusion of Anthony Rapp and Wilson Cruz’s characters with an “ex-gay” character.
LaBarbera is president of Americans for Truth, an organisation dedicated to “exposing the homosexual activist agenda.”
“The homosexual activists are never satisfied, they always want more, more, more,” LaBarbera said, according to Right Wing Watch. “We have yet to see an ex-gay, a former homosexual prominently portrayed in Hollywood.”
The idea that someone can change their sexuality has been widely discredited, with former advocates of “ex-gay” therapy — also known as conversion therapy — distancing themselves from the movement.
LaBarbera offers a simple solution for anyone offended by the inclusion of a gay couple in Discovery.
“This is more activism, and I guess all we can do is not watch Star Trek,” he said, adding that “this sort of propaganda” is “why Trump won in the first place.”
However, LaBarbera believes that the problem extends beyond just showing gays on television.
He claims there is a “battle between good and evil” in America and urged anyone listening to “call your congressman” and complain about the Equality Act, which would create federal legislation protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination.
“Call your representative,” he said. “Say you oppose this homosexual legislation which would actually make it easier for homosexual activists and liberal attorneys to persecute people of faith for opposing this juggernaut which calls itself ‘gay.'”
We spoke to Anthony Rapp earlier this year about his role as Science Officer Paul Stamets in Discovery. Rapp said that he was “honored” to be playing one of the franchise’s first openly gay characters.
“I’m also honored to be a part of a piece of work that’s part of the cultural pantheon,” he said. “It’s kind of crazy that I get to be a part of something that means so much to so many people. It meant a lot to me, too. I’m thrilled and I’m honored to be the vehicle for this aspect of the story that’s being told.”
The first season of HBO’s The Last of Us was a must-see for LGBTQ people everywhere and fans can't wait for more. A second helping has already been announced, and now one of the most beloved comedic actresses of our time has signed on to guest star.
Catherine O’Hara has been confirmed to appear in season two of The Last of Us. So far, there are scant details regarding her involvement -- it’s not been disclosed what character she’ll play.
O’Hara is a fantastic actress, but she’s something of an odd choice for The Last of Us. Those who watched the first season know it is not a comedy. In fact, it’s hard to remember more than a moment or two that elicited a laugh.
It’s weirdly fitting that a Zoom call to talk about Solar Opposites begins with a kvetch session about Covid.
“Mike and I dodged it for years,” says Josh Bycel, one of the brilliantly funny animated show’s longtime executive producers. “My whole family had it twice. I never had it. And then I remember I was not feeling well -- this is like a year ago, now -- and I tested and it was two lines! I was looking at it like, ‘This can't be true! There's no way!’ I had thought I had dragon blood.”
“I hate that when you test, the second line pops up instantaneously,” adds Mike McMahan, co-creator of the popular Hulu series. “It's like, ‘Fuck!’ It's so fast!”
At around 2 a.m. on March 9, a security camera outside of Precinct, a gay bar in downtown Los Angeles, caught two men dressed in black and carrying cocktail glasses walking around the corner from the bar's main entrance. They entered an exterior hallway leading to the bar's employee entrance.
The men set their glasses on a nearby railing, unzipped their pants, and appeared to urinate in a corner between the door and the entranceway.
In the video, two other men are seen passing by the entranceway but not entering it, just moments as the taller of the two men appears to zip up his fly and looks around furtively. The video cuts out shortly after that.
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