LGBTQ+ Representation Good News

This past Tuesday was challenging but among all the new stories was the fact that next year America will have a record 1000+ out LGBTQ elected officials serving at the same time. That is good news that is worth celebrating. 

Non-Binary Elected Representation Will Increase Nationwide:

Xander Orenstein won a seat on the Allegheny County Magisterial District Court in Pennsylvania, becoming the first non-binary person elected to a judicial position in the United States.

Thu Nguyen won their race for Worcester City Council to become the first non-binary person ever elected in the state of Massachusetts.

Stanley Martin won their race for the Rochester City Council in New York to become the first non-binary person to serve in that body and Sarah Salem won reelection to the Poughkeepsie City Council, also in New York.

New York City Elects Most Out LGBTQ Councilmembers Ever

Crystal Hudson (District 35) and Kristin Richardson Jordan (District 9), who will be the first two Black out LGBTQ women elected to the council.

Lynn Schulman (District 29) and Tiffany Cabán (District 22), who will be the first out LGBTQ women elected to any public office from Queens.

Chi Ossé (District 36), who will be the youngest person ever elected to the council

Erik Bottcher (District 3), who will preserve LGBTQ representation in his district, an LGBTQ legacy seat that is home to the Stonewall Inn.

Non-Incumbent LGBTQ Candidates of Color Make History in City Council Races

Christopher Coburn: became the first Black out LGBTQ person elected in the state of Montana with his win for Bozeman City Council

Reggie Harris: became the first Black out gay man elected to the Cincinnati City Council

Darin Mano: became the first Asian American out LGBTQ person elected to the Salt Lake City Council

Stanley Martin: became the first non-binary person elected to the Rochester City Council and one of the first Black out LGBTQ people elected to the body

Gabriela Santiago-Romero: became the first out LGBTQ woman elected to the Detroit City Council and the first out LGBTQ Latinx person elected in Michigan

Dontae Payne: became the first Black man elected to the Olympia (WA) City Council

Alejandro Puy: became the first Latinx out LGBTQ person elected to the Salt Lake City Council; and
Alex Wan: restored LGBTQ Asian American representation to the Atlanta City Council.

Dion Manley Is First Trans Person Elected in Ohio, And Other School Board Wins

Dion Manley won his election for the Gahanna Jefferson School Board, making him the first trans person elected in all of Ohio.

Danica Roem Defeats Her Third Anti-Trans Opponent in Virginia

Honoring Days That Are "Days"

 

Honoring Days That Are "Days"

Honoring days that are "days"

When getting up and moving

Is simply a bit more challenging

Than it could be or might be otherwise

Honoring days that are "days"

Some days will go smoothly

Some days will be adventures

Some days will simply be 

Honoring days that are "days"

Sometimes is is about pushing forward

Sometimes is is about stepping back

Sometimes it is about simply sitting

Honoring days that are "days"

Today when nothing on my to-do list

Appeal at all to me I choose to go for a 

Walk and found wisdom written on a rock

Honoring days that are "days"

Be Happy

Be Awesome today

Be You

Honoring days that are "days"

So no matter what type of day

Your today is shaping up to be

You are not alone, never alone

Honoring days that are "days"

Remember you are beloved

Remember you are Loved

Remember you are amazing

Honoring days that are "days"

Be gentle on those around you

Be gentle on those far away

Be gentle on yourself every day

Honoring days that are "days"

Some days will go smoothly

Some days will be adventures

Some days will simply be 

Happy Month Of Thanks And Writing

 

Happy November 1st. 

This is a month where we start to put stuff away so we can be all cozy come winter. For some of us this involves cooking and then freezing various batches of food to fill our freezers with yumminess. For some this is a perfect month to spend thinking about and honoring those people and things we are thankful for. For some this means cleaning and organizing so come the busy holiday month of Dec we can feel calm and centered.

This is also a month where many people choose to do Nanowrimo: National Novel Writing Month. For some the focus is on completing the challenge to write 50,000 words over the course of the month. For others it is simply a push to put some focused time into writing knowing that each word is one more word than they would have normally written. There is no wrong way to do Nanowrimo and the point is to have fun.

No matter what you choose to do this season or this month I hope you find ways to feel warm and cozy, get to drink something warm (warm apple cider, Hot cocoa, tea ...), and feel good about yourself. Remember you are amazing, wonderful, beloved, and loved.

Happy Halloween Weekend

 

Happy Halloween

May this be a weekend of good magic

A weekend of dreams coming true

A candy filled weekend

A weekend to dress up as who ever you want

May this be a weekend of good magic

This is going to be a full weekend for so many of us between parties and campfires and Halloween parades. Halloween has a long history going back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain.

The tradition originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints. Soon, All Saints Day incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was known as All Hallows Eve, and later Halloween. Over time, Halloween evolved into a day of activities like trick-or-treating, carving jack-o-lanterns, festive gatherings, donning costumes and eating treats.

 Some Halloween Fun

The Curious Creations of Christine McConnell (Netflix)

What We Do in the Shadows (Hulu)

The Addams Family (Pluto TV)

Happy Ace Week 2021

Being Ace:

• Ace Week is an annual campaign to raise awareness, build community, and create change globally. It is said that Aces make up about 1% of the population but that is likely to be an undercount since there is still a real lack of ace awareness plus there are many cultural norms/cultural expectations that can mislabel and dismiss asexuality.

Historical Context For Asexuality:

• Aces have left fewer marks on the historical record. For historical figures it often comes down to a lack of evidence that they had sex. But since asexuality is based on sexual attraction we will never know if individuals were ace or simply did not have sex for other reasons. Plus it is possible that figures were asexual/did not experience sexual attraction but lived in times where social norms such as reproducing forced them into sexual relationships.

• On the Kinsey Scale there was an X grade used to mean "no socio-sexual contacts or reactions" that is often thought of a a proto-asexuality classification. This X has many of the same issues as trying to identify asexuality in historical figures because it was not really set up to capture sexual attraction like we think about it today but it is evidence that while the term asexuality might be one of the newer ones it does not mean the identity itself is new. 

Asexuality:

• Asexual – A term used to describe someone who does not experience sexual attraction toward individuals of any gender.
• Gray-A, gray-asexual, gray-sexual are terms used to describe individuals who feel as though their sexuality falls somewhere on the spectrum of sexuality between asexuality and sexuality.
• Demisexual individuals are those who do not experience primary sexual attraction but may experience secondary sexual attraction after a close emotional connection has already formed.

Types of Attraction:

• Sexual attraction: attraction that makes people desire sexual contact or shows sexual interest in another person(s).
• Romantic attraction: attraction that makes people desire romantic contact or interaction with another person or persons.
• Aesthetic attraction: occurs when someone appreciates the appearance or beauty of another person(s), disconnected from sexual or romantic attraction.
• Sensual attraction: the desire to interact with others in a tactile, non-sexual way, such as through hugging or cuddling.
• Emotional attraction: the desire to get to know someone, often as a result of their personality instead of their physicality. This type of attraction is present in most relationships from platonic friendships to romantic and sexual relationships.
• Intellectual attraction: the desire to engage with another in an intellectual manner, such as engaging in conversation with them, “picking their brain,” and it has more to do with what or how a person thinks instead of the person themselves.

Romantic Orientations:

• Romantic Orientation – Describes an individual’s pattern of romantic attraction based on a person’s gender(s) regardless of one’s sexual orientation. 
• Aromantic: individuals who do not experience romantic attraction toward individuals of any gender(s)
• Biromantic: romantic attraction toward males and females
• Heteroromantic: romantic attraction toward person(s) of a different gender
• Homoromantic: romantic attraction towards person(s) of the same gender
• Panromantic: romantic attraction towards persons of every gender(s)
• Polyromantic: romantic attraction toward multiple, but not all genders
• Gray-romantic: individuals who do not often experience romantic attraction
• Demiromantic: an individual who does not experience romantic attraction until after a close emotional bond has been formed. People who refer to themselves as demiromantic may choose to further specify the gender(s) of those they are attracted to (e.g. demi-homoromantic).
• Queerplatonic Relationships (QPRs) are those relationships that are not romantic in nature but they involve very close emotional connections that are often deeper or more intense than what is traditionally considered a friendship. Since there is not adequate language to describe queerplatonic partners, some people refer to these partners as zucchini.
• Squish is a term used to identify aromantic crushes; the desire for a non-romantic/platonic relationship with another person.

Asexuality In Media:

• There are historical characters who are often read as being asexual such as Sherlock Holmes. Since Sherlock Holmes was written long before Asexuality was a term being used we can never know if Sherlock really was Ace but many of his interpretations portray him in a manner that could mean he is Ace. 

• Now more than ever before there a books and story lines that include ace characters. Like stories that involve other members of the LGBTQ+ community some of these are in name only, some are harmful (spreading the negative idea that if someone who is ace finds the right person they will no longer be ace), and some are positive explorations of the complexities of being asexual.

• A great example of asexuality being handled in a positive fashion is this clip from season two of the show Sex Education. (Of course this is a representation of one experience of being Ace and others who are ace might describe it completely differently)

Friday Afternoon In The Loop

Today I had a nice adventure in the Chicago Loop

I got to the The Chicago LGBT Hall Of Fame exhibit

At the Harold Washington branch of the Chicago Public Library

Picked up this months grab and go art project

Was walking down the street and found Mindworks 

"The world's first lab and interactive discovery center dedicated to behavioral science"

 And my brain shows I am more into the social sciences

(Or I do not know my complete heritage and I have a few extra country's somewhere LOL)

Got to an small art gallery and got to watch a painter painting

Boy Chicago is getting creative when it comes to getting us all vaccinated.

Found a new museum which is soon to open

Only in a big city like Chicago

But a good FYI for any authors interested in the topic

Another Halloween Walk

Been busy with a few projects so today's post is another Halloween Walk. 

This dinosaur is excited to meet you.

A Visual Tour