Lesbian comedian Jessica Kirson has publicly apologized for performing at the Riyadh Comedy Festival in Saudi Arabia, saying she has since donated her entire performance fee.
Part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 plan to position the kingdom as a global cultural and entertainment hub, the festival drew widespread condemnation from fellow comedians and human rights organizations.
Kirson said she initially viewed the invitation as a chance to give voice to those repressed in the region.
“I’d like to express my sincere regret for having performed under a government that continues to violate fundamental human rights,” she wrote in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. “I requested a guarantee that I could be openly out as a lesbian on stage and perform gay material. I hoped that this could help LGBTQ+ people in Saudi Arabia feel seen and valued.”
She added that she donated “the entirety of what I was paid to perform” to an unnamed human rights organization.
According to the LGBTQ nonprofit Human Dignity Trust, Saudi Arabia prohibits same-sex activity under Sharia law, with the maximum penalty being death. Gender expression among transgender people is also criminalized under the kingdom’s strict dress codes.
The Riyadh festival featured several high-profile headliners, including Wayne Brady, Pete Davidson, and Kevin Hart. Kirson was one of only three women on the 35-comic lineup, alongside Whitney Cummings and Zarna Garg.
Women have long faced severe discrimination in Saudi Arabia. Although some progress has been made, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) identified more than 20 areas of concern last year, including the targeting of women human rights activists, the continued “male guardianship” system, and the use of the death penalty.
While Kirson has apologized, other comedians who performed at the festival have either stayed silent or doubled down as criticism mounted.
Kirson is currently on a U.S. comedy tour, with an upcoming appearance at The Warner Theatre in Washington D.C. on Thursday, Oct. 16.
Justice Department had demanded Boston Children's Hospital hand over patients' and employees' personal information under the guise of combating medical "fraud."
A federal judge has quashed a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice demanding that Boston Children’s Hospital turn over private medical information on youth receiving gender-affirming care, blasting the request as a “fishing expedition” aimed at prosecuting doctors under the guise of investigating health care fraud.
In his ruling, Judge Myong Joun, a Biden appointee, said the Justice Department sought an “astonishingly broad array of documents and information that are virtually unlimited in scope,” including patients’ Social Security numbers, home addresses, and personal details, as well as the complete personnel files of all 2,000 Boston Children’s Hospital employees, regardless of whether they had any involvement in providing gender-affirming care to minors.
John Reid, the gay Republican nominee for Virginia lieutenant governor, has defended the right of his running mate, current Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, to oppose same-sex marriage -- even though he personally disagrees with her on the issue.
Speaking on the conservative talk radio program The Wilkow Majority on SiriusXM, Reid said he and Earle-Sears are "willing to put aside our differences" to support policies they believe are best for Virginia. Host Andrew Wilkow then asked Reid to name an issue on which the two disagree.
"She's not for gay marriage. She's 100 percent against it," Reid said. "You know, she's from Jamaica, and her religious background tells her a very different narrative than my Episcopalian white-guy Virginia background. I understand!"
FBI Director Kash Patel has allegedly fired a former FBI employee and new agent trainee for displaying a gay Pride flag on his desk at a California field office last year, according to three people familiar with the matter.
The trainee, who worked as an FBI support specialist in Los Angeles, received a termination letter dated October 1 -- the first day of the government shutdown -- and signed by Patel, claiming he had displayed an improper “political” message in the workplace, according to CNN.
At the time, he was completing new agent training at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
You must be logged in to post a comment.