An Alabama judge blocks anti-trans legislation, a Lyft driver stands up to racist passengers & Kendrick Lamar’s “Auntie Diaries” got the people talking – Wednesday, May 18, 2022

An Alabama judge blocks part of the most transphobic legislation passed to date. A Lyft driver kicks racist passengers out of his car & Kendrick Lamar’s “Auntie Diaries” didn’t hit for the queers

00:00 – Welcome & Intro

00:45 – NECANN  Ad, Cannabis convention coming to Chicago June 10th & 11th https://necann.com/illinois/ 

01:28 – Intro Music by Aina Bre’Yon

02:09 – An Alabama judge blocks part of the most transphobic legislation passed to date

03:42 – A Lyft driver kicks racist passengers out of his car

05:17 – Kendrick Lamar’s “Auntie Diaries” didn’t hit for the queers

07:07 – Anna’s Got A Word

Things for you to check out 

Join the QCrew

Watch the Lyft Driver Video

I don’t know who this Lyft driver is but he deserves an award and a seat in Congress. pic.twitter.com/8uvYSUBqne

— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) May 15, 2022

Kendrick Lamar Commentary

If you think deadnaming, misgendering, and wielding slurs is the pinnacle of LGBTQ+ allyship, you’ve got a lot of work to do, boo.

— Raquel Willis (@RaquelWillis_) May 13, 2022

Just listened to Kendrick's "Auntie Diaries." I want to reflect. I'm thankful he spoke in favor of love & acceptance of trans sibs — even after admitting what society did to them first. The "faggot" threw me off because it isn't his word to use. But that's his point at the end.

— Preston Mitchum, he/him (@PrestonMitchum) May 13, 2022

Kendrick Lamar's "Auntie Diaries" off #MrMoraleAndTheBigSteppers is an incredible song about trans acceptance & intersectionality but a lot of people are hung up on some of its problematic elements. Here's a thread attempting to clear up the confusion. 💜🧵 1/x pic.twitter.com/N1UgZFviEV

— conure 🐦🖤 (@conureCC) May 13, 2022

Sign the Petition – Secure Brittney Griner’s Swift and Safe Return to the U​.​S.

https://www.change.org/p/secure-brittney-griner-s-swift-and-safe-return-to-the-u-s

We expect The @WhiteHouse to use all options available to immediately and safely bring Brittney home. This will help protect the sanctity of sport and support the confidence of all athletes traveling abroad. [2/2]#WeAreBG

— Lindsay Kagawa Colas (she/her) (@kagawacolas) May 13, 2022

---

Listen to More Queer News

---

Transcript

Family, this is your favorite queer radio personality Anna DeShawn with our queer news for today. If you enjoy what you hear please consider joining the QCrew. The QCrew is our monthly membership program we just started to help us grow the podcast. I want to bring on a producer, an editor, and travel around the country to tell our stories. If you’re down with it check the link in the show notes for more information. Now for the news.

An Alabama judge blocks part of the most transphobic legislation passed to date. A Lyft driver kicks racist passengers out of his car. Kendrick Lamar’s “Auntie Diaries” didn’t hit for the queers

Our leading story for today is coming out of Alabama. Back on May 8th Alabama’s anti-trans law passed which punishes adults who help our trans fam access gender-affirming healthcare. Alabama was the third state to pass such a law and first to include criminal penalties. Doctors, if found guilty, could actually face 10 years in prison for prescribing puberty blockers or hormonal treatment to our trans fam under 19. The governor of Alabama Kay Ivey said, “I believe very strongly that if the Good Lord made you a boy, you are a boy, and if he made you a girl, you are a girl.” Good grief. I’m so over this argument especially in politics. Where is the separation of church & state? We supposedly have the right to religious freedom but every argument on the right is coming from conservative supposed Christian ideology. It’s not right and a judge agrees. Judge Liles C. Burke, who was appointed by 45, has temporarily blocked parts of this law that make it a felony to prescribe hormones and puberty blockers to trans youth. He said that the law is likely to cause irreparable harm if it goes into effect while the lawsuits make their way through the courts. Now this ban is temporary but its something while the fight continues in one of the reddest states in the country.

In refreshing news, given all that’s happening in the world, a Lyft driver out of Pennsylvania stood up against a couple of racist passengers. So when he picked up the couple the woman got in first and said, “You’re like a white guy… Are you, like, a white guy?” The driver was confused and immediately questioned her. I mean he did not hesitate. He said, “Excuse me” and she replied, “like a normal guy, like you speak English?” and patted him on the shoulder and said “sorry” when she felt his energy wasn’t receiving her racist rhetoric. The driver said “No, you can get out of the car…that’s inappropriate. It’s completely inappropriate.” He went on to question her and the passengers were shocked. The guy who was accompanying the woman told the driver he was an a hole, that he was going to punch him in the face and told him he was f’ing n-word lover. Wow. The Lyft driver told the passengers they were being recorded and that he was calling the police because the passenger had threatened him. Let me tell you as a former Lyft driver you’re in a very vulnerable place in that driver’s seat with your seatbelt on etc. It took some real courage to stand up to those passengers. I’m sure he felt a little protected because he had a camera rolling but that’s only proof, it doesn’t help you in the moment. Here’s to more white folks having the courage to stand up to other white racist folks just like this. It’s not easy but it must be done because it hits different coming from them. 

For our last story of the day, let’s talk about Kendrick Lamar and one of the tracks off his latest album. The track is called “Auntie Diaries” and while the video of him morphing into various people was making its rounds around social I was talking to a few queer and trans folks about Auntie Diaries. Now this song hits in a lot of ways. He takes you on a journey of him accepting his trans family but it is incredibly problematic along the way. The misgendering, the deadnaming, the use of of the gay f-word a lot. I mean a lot. When I heard it I heard all of that and I heard the love, the acceptance, the understanding that came in time. Which is honestly the case & the journey for some. For so many cis folks, their journey of truly embracing their trans family is problematic & harmfull. I see the song as a reflection that in its most honest and ugly ways. I’ve heard he could have executed it better. I’ve heard it’s art. In this case, I think it can be both at the same time. At the end when he compares anti-gay and anti-Black slurs I hope that impacts the cis people who listen to his music. I hope they can receive the message he’s making and never use that f-word again. I hope that cis men listening to that track can take in the honesty of Kendrick’s journey and see the point of acceptance & reconcillation. Now could he have done it without the misgendering and the deadnaming, yes one hundred percent. Do I hope some cis men listen to this song and change their behavior in the same ways the song suggest Kendrik has, yes one thousand percent.   

Let’s close out the podcast with a word about fear. Fear held me back for a long time. Fear of quitting my job. Fear of speaking my truth. Fear of being disliked. Fear of going against popular opinion. If you allow it, fear will hold you hostage and keep you from stepping into your full self. Allow me to be honest. Fear still tries to hold me back. I have learned to recognize it and then put into practice some of the tools I’ve learned over the years. Breathing, writing reflections, exercise, using my voice. It’s a process that demands you to give yourself grace. A lot of grace. Who you are is perfect with all of the imperfections. Just remember to give yourself the same grace you offer others. Till tomorrow family, peace

Sources

Alabama governor signs bill criminalizing transgender health care for minors

https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/alabama-governor-signs-bill-criminalizing-transgender-health-care-mino-rcna23674

Federal judge stops Alabama from throwing trans-supportive doctors in jail

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/05/judge-blocks-alabama-law-imprisoning-doctors-assigning-medications-trans-youth/

Lyft driver shuts down racist passengers in viral video

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/05/lyft-driver-shuts-racist-passengers-viral-video/