Happy Pride 🌈 we remember Darri Moore,  Walmart stands behind their pride collection, and new campaign celebrates our trans siblings – June 3, 2024

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Family, it’s your favorite queer radio personality, Anna DeShawn, and this is Queer News, your favorite weekly news pod where race and sexuality meet politics, [00:00:30] culture, and entertainment. And when I hear that song, I’m coming out. And Diana Ross, it puts me in the spirit of Pride Month. It makes me smile. It makes me feel proud.

And I hope you started smiling. I hope you feel proud when you heard it too. And maybe as big of a smile when you heard Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts. But come on Pride Month, let’s go![00:01:00]

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So you don’t miss a thing. We got new videos dropping every week. Now for the news, let’s talk about pride and why it is so important. We remember Darri Moore, a black trans woman found alongside the [00:02:00] Mississippi river in Missouri. In Florida, a teen is denied entry into their prom because they decided to wear a suit.

Walmart is standing two feet down on their pride collection this year. The sports bra is expanding. And a new campaign called Here We Are celebrates our trans siblings. Let’s go!

Family, happy pride. Happy pride. Allow me to be one of the first to tell you [00:02:30] this month, happy pride. Whether you identify as LGBTQ or not, if you stand with us, if you’re a comrade in this fight, happy pride. Pride isn’t just what people see on television with the parades and the rainbows and the parties.

Pride is so much more than that. Pride is a time where we can say who we are. It’s a time where we can say we’re proud to be who we are. It’s a time that’s set apart to [00:03:00] celebrate. Despite the atrocities, despite the 500 anti LGBTQ and anti trans bills, despite the pulling back of corporate dollars. Now let’s be clear, I’m not here for the capitalism of pride, but I’m also very cognizant.

When capitalism chooses to support and when capitalism chooses not to support pride is a time where we get to reclaim exactly who we are and to be a beacon of [00:03:30] hope for those who can’t be out. We like to say that pride started because of the stonewall uprising, the riots. That happened that night, but there was so much more to pride.

There was so much more that led up to that moment. Years of protests, years of police raids, and people were just fed up. The black and Brown trans women in Stonewall Inn were just fed up. And they said no more. And that is why we celebrate [00:04:00] pride. Darri Moore, we speak your name today. Darri was a 23 year old black trans woman who was found dead alongside the Mississippi River.

She’s from St. Louis, but she was found 60 miles away. 60 miles away. They say that her body has been in the water for two weeks, which of course makes it nearly impossible to not [00:04:30] only identify her, but to figure out what happened to her. The police report they were only able to identify her Because of her fingerprints, initial police reports say that foul play was not a factor here, but Darri’s family does not agree with that.

Her mother says there’s no way that she would have ever committed suicide. There’s no way that she would have ever just walked into that water. Darri’s good [00:05:00] friend, Izzy Baker told KMOV. That somebody knows more and they’re not telling us. I just pray and hope that somebody comes forward to tell us what happened.

She has a story and I want her story to be heard. Darria was involved in her community with organizations like the Metro Trans Umbrella Group and the Community Wellness Project. And so often, this is the story that I just keep telling trans folks who are murdered, who have been [00:05:30] doing good in their community and just trying to survive.

Just trying to survive. And Darri has been misgendered up and down news outlets in Missouri. She’s misgendered on the GoFundMe set up to raise money for her homegoing services, and right now the police really have no leads and no answers. But if you’re listening to this and you’ve got connections in Missouri, if you think that there might be someone who can help this family find some resolve as to who did this.

[00:06:00] You can leave an anonymous tip through Crimestoppers at 866 371 8477. That’s 866 371 8477. Darri Moore, we speak your name today. Now in Florida, a teen was ready to go to prom. Okay. She don’t do dresses. So she had on her suit, looking fly with a fresh haircut excited about this milestone in [00:06:30] her high school career.

She walks up to the prom and she’s immediately stopped. Stop, because they said she did not dress according to the dress code. The dress code says women or girls have to wear dresses. They cannot wear suits. And the vice principal doubled down and said that the moment they bought a ticket, that they signed on to agreeing to the policies at hand that said that women and girls have to wear dresses.

They cannot wear suits. [00:07:00] Well, Sophie was really taking her back because she had worn the same suit. suit to a Valentine’s Day dance and nobody turned her away. Nobody had anything to say, but on this day for prom, they all had something to say. I share this story because one it’s important for us to remember the things we’re fighting for here.

Something that so many of us take for granted in States that we live in. We must recognize that even the smallest thing of wearing a suit. What if I’m a girl [00:07:30] that just doesn’t like skirts and dresses and I just want to wear pants? I wouldn’t be allowed in. These are the types of fights that are happening around the country.

These are the ones that matter so much in local communities. Sophie was so elegant when she spoke about this, and Since this moment, she’s gotten so much positive feedback from people that support her. She’s had two or three folks, even from her high school, come up and say, thank you, because I hate [00:08:00] wearing dresses, but I just didn’t know what to do.

A local vendor gifted her with five new ties and taught her how to tie a special knot. She has a supportive mother who is also fighting on her behalf. Something that a lot of folks also don’t have. And so family, during this Pride Month, I want y’all to remember Sophie’s story. I want y’all to remember the people that came to Sophie and said, thank you, because this is why we celebrate Pride, and this is who we’re fighting for.[00:08:30]

Now let’s take a quick break, and when we get back, we’re gonna jump into some more culture and entertainment news. Hey Queer News fans, it’s Derek from E3 Radio here to tell you all about our latest show, Queer Open Mic. One of our missions is to uplift and support the incredible talent within the LGBTQ plus community, and that’s exactly what we set out to do with this monthly showcase.

Queer Open Mic will feature talents such as musicians, DJs, poets, and more. Head over to our YouTube channel at E3 Radio to catch the latest episode. And before you go, make sure to hit that [00:09:00] subscribe button, turn on your notifications, and share, share, share. That’s it for me. And thank you for joining us in celebrating queer talent.

Peace family. I’m Darren. And I’m Esther. And this is Second Sunday, a podcast about Black queer folk finding, keeping, and sometimes losing faith. This season’s full of candid conversations. We’re talking to theologians, artists, activists, and community members living at the intersections of faith, spirituality, and identity.

The Saints ain’t ready for this, but we’re still going to talk about it. Second [00:09:30] Sunday, find it wherever you get podcasts. Second Sunday is a Qube original podcast, and it’s part of the PRX big questions project

family. Welcome back to the show. Now let’s jump into some more culture and entertainment news. First up is Walmart, which is not a name that you hear me say very often on this here podcast, but Walmart is doubling down. Okay. Two feet down on the ground behind their pride collection this year, which is [00:10:00] honestly refreshing.

After coming off the Bud Light scandal with Dylan Mulvaney. After coming off of Target minimalizing Pride across its stores this year. So many corporations pulling back funding. So to see a Fortune 100, Fortune 50, Fortune 10 company put two feet down on the ground in support of Pride. means a whole hell of a lot family.

They wrote on their Instagram, not just a slogan, [00:10:30] hashtag pride always is a reminder to lead with love featuring five queer designers who have products as part of their collection this year. The CEO of Walmart told its shareholders last year that the company doesn’t wake up in the morning, wanting to go out and make social and political statements.

We are a retailer and we want everybody to feel comfortable shopping with us. And we want everybody to feel comfortable and excited about working at Walmart. Well, [00:11:00] if they keep this up two feet down on the ground, standing up for pride, I’m sure that is exactly what will happen. And maybe I’ll walk into Walmart again and go buy me some pride gear.

Maybe I will. I also want to share this story because this is such a cultural moment. There’s a bar called the sports bra, not the sports bar, the sports bra. It started in Portland, Oregon, and it’s a bar that only plays women’s sports. [00:11:30] It’s amazing. And because of their success, they now have additional investment to start franchising the sports bra across the country, where you can go in on any given day and watch women’s sports.

Jenny Nugent, the CEO of Sportsbrah, said, Things have happened at light speed compared to my forecast. This tiny spot that I built for my friends and I to go watch games and give female athletes their [00:12:00] flowers means so much more. And not just to me, but to a lot of people. That’s what Jenny told the Associated Press.

And now there are investors across the country and business owners who are interested in bringing the sports bra to a city near them. So if you’re listening to this podcast and you like, I might be that person. I encourage you to reach out. Out to Jenny and the sports bra and get on the list. Okay.

Because it is something special [00:12:30] to see that what the sports bra has done to highlight women’s sports and what’s happening right now with the W with soccer, every sport that a woman touches right now is on fire. And I think this is so dope. Cause when I go on the sports bars, I have to ask, can you please turn on the W?

Can you, can you turn? I have to tell them what channel it’s on, okay? But this is a place that centers women in sports. And I love [00:13:00] it. I love it. Congratulations, Jenny. Congratulations to the sports bra. And we love this for the culture, don’t we? We absolutely do.

For our last story today, I want to tell y’all about a campaign called Here We Are. It was launched by GLAAD and Ground Medium. Now, I know y’all know who GLAAD is, but let me tell y’all about Ground Medium. They are an award winning, strategic storytelling studio. And they’ve partnered with GLAAD to [00:13:30] combat unchecked misinformation about trans folks.

And as they put it, supercharge, transgender visibility. I love that word supercharge, you know, that accelerates acceptance and affirms trans folks out here in the world. The founder and creative director of Ground Media, David said this, helping real people tell their authentic stories is one of the most powerful tools we have.

To build a better world and that they’re proud to partner with GLAAD [00:14:00] and a new wave of storytellers to produce a campaign that our research has proven is making a measurable impact. I love this. Y’all know I’m a storyteller. I believe we live through the stories that were told and in a world where 70 percent of people say that they have never met a trans person.

70 percent it is so easy to demonize and vilify people that you do not know that you feel like you don’t have a connection to. And so this [00:14:30] campaign is so beautiful. I actually watched the videos. I went to the website, I’ve included a link to the site in the show notes so you can go check it out. It’s immersive.

It’s colorful. It’s everything. I really, really loved it. And the videos are so good. The messages are so powerful. That’s actually how we’re going to close this episode today, is with an excerpt from Gio, who’s one of the highlights. They’re highlighting three queer folks, three trans individuals, to tell their stories.

And Gio’s one of them. [00:15:00] And I want to close with Gio’s story because I thought he just said everything that needed to be said. Everything that needs to be amplified from the mountaintops. That trans folks just want to be loved. They just want to be seen. And they just want to live and be. And so that’s what I want to leave y’all with.

That is Anna’s word today. So y’all listen to G. O. You’ll hear what I believe. Okay? And we gonna kick off Pride Month strong. You understand? Yes, you do. I love [00:15:30] y’all. Happy Pride. And I’ll talk to y’all next week. 71 percent of Americans say they have never met a transgender person. Here I am. Growing up was fun.

My friends were always over. My cousins were always over. It was a lot of people in and out. It kind of prepared us just for embracing all kinds of people in the world. As transgender people, sometimes we forget that the journey is not just ours. My family, no matter what, we always loved each other. It [00:16:00] wasn’t hard for me to accept my brother.

It was definitely an adjustment. Is transgender a real identity? 100%. Is it the end all of who people are? Absolutely not. Trans people are just people. We’re joyful and we just want to live and thrive and be. I just want people to understand that literal lives are at stake. We can all just live freely if we respect and honor one another.

We all have the right to be ourselves without fear. [00:16:30] Help us share this story.

If you’ve enjoyed what you heard, rate and review us inside your favorite podcasting app. This podcast is written and produced [00:17:00] by me, Anna DeShawn. Podcast editing by Ryan Woodhull and brought to you by E3 radio and distributed on the Qube. We are Queer News Done Right. Thanks for listening to Queer News Done Right.

I’m Ryan Woodhull.