I keep the pulse on newsy stories that impact LGBTQ lives, with a loose focus on stories that shape our travel experiences. In this month’s travel update: queer Brits share their views on travel safety, a Connecticut town bans Pride flag displays, and the no-longer-secret bisexual fantasies of Moms for Liberty co-founder Bridget Ziegler.
Queer Brits Speak Out About Travel Safety
So much of the conversation about LGBTQ travel safety comes from allies warning us about safety issues.
One UK pub passed the mic to queer Brits, who shared how they feel about international travel, including to places not known as LGBQ-friendly. The TLDR is that anti-queer sentiment shapes the way we travel, as much as we wish it didn’t have to.
One trans traveler acknowledged her relative privilege over same-sex couples, and how she ends up feeling like a fraud. In presenting herself in ways that affirm her identity, she “passes” as a cis woman and gets to explore places that are openly hostile to trans and nonbinary people.
“I feel like a fraud because I visit and enable travel to places where my LGBTQ+ sisters and brothers are under attack for pseudo-religious reasons, or by political groups directing hate at minorities, simply through ignorance and misplaced vitriol.”
Melissa Tilling
One gay traveler speaks to the additional legwork queer travel requires:
โItโs ironic that the first time I said the words โI am gayโ to someone was when I was in Indonesia, a country with a mixed record on LGBTQ+ rights and attitudes. Now, I might think twice about returning, as Iโve learnt that I have to look into a countryโs attitudes and laws before planning a trip โ rather than being able to stick a pin in a map and go anywhere like everyone else does.โ
Jack Watson
Please go read the whole article you wonโt be sorry.
โDonโt Say Gayโ Architect IsโฆBi?
Proving that homophobia is sometimes an inside job, “Moms for Liberty” cofounder Bridget Ziegler, who helped DeSantis design that horrendous law, apparently likes FFM threesomes in her spare time.
A sex tape of one such threesome was unveiled when the third party, an unnamed woman, accused Ziegler’s husband of rape. A SECOND sex tape showing Ziegler enjoying some same-sex activities also made its way into the hands of Florida police.
Iโll leave the last word to Nicholas Machuca of Equality Florida, the stateโs LGBTQ rights organization:
โBridget and Christian Ziegler have stepped on the backs of marginalized communities across Florida. They have demonized people. Bridget Ziegler is an architect of Moms for Liberty. It is not a grassroots movement. It is a cynical sick tool hatched by the Zieglers to sell fear and division for political gain.”
h/t Florida Center for Government Accountability
CT town bans Pride flags
Even the most LGBTQ-friendly states have pockets of anti-queer bias.
Take Connecticut. The northern Connecticut town of Enfield, on the border with Massachusetts, banned Pride flags from display after a rightward shift on the town council.
The townโs attorney borrowed a page from ye olde โfirst comes gay marriage, then comes dog marriageโ fear mongers when he proclaimed that if the town raised a Pride flag, ISIS would also want their flag displayed.
This comes while Connecticut attempts to pivot their snoozy reputation with a โFind Your Vibesโ campaign that paints the state as diverse and creative. I spend a lot of time in Connecticut and it’s definitely grown more diverse over time, but hateful remarks like that don’t surprise me.
Would this Pride flag kerfuffle make you think twice about visiting the state?
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