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

This episode focuses on significant LGBTQ+ issues and events, highlighting the celebration of Pride Month and the challenges faced by the trans community.

1. Pride Month is a time for celebration and remembrance, emphasizing the LGBTQ+ community's resilience.
2. Corporations like Walmart can play a pivotal role in supporting LGBTQ+ rights through meaningful engagement and visibility initiatives.
3. Local stories, like that of a teen denied entry to prom for wearing a suit, spotlight the ongoing struggles for acceptance and equality.
4. Initiatives like the "Sports Bra" bar exemplify cultural shifts towards greater inclusion and recognition of women in sports.
5. Campaigns like "Here We Are" are crucial for enhancing the visibility of trans individuals and combating misinformation.

1. Introduction

Anna Deshawn introduces the episode with reflections on Pride and its significance. Full Name: "Anna Deshawn: There's no place like the Cube family."

2. Remembering Darri Moore

Discussion on the tragic fate of Darri Moore, emphasizing the violence faced by trans individuals. Full Name: "Anna Deshawn: Dory Moore, we speak your name today."

3. Prom Dress Code Discrimination

Exploration of a discriminatory prom incident, highlighting societal challenges against LGBTQ+ youth. Full Name: "Anna Deshawn: But on this day for prom, they all had something to say."

4. Corporate Support for Pride

Walmart's support for the LGBTQ+ community is discussed as a positive example of corporate responsibility. Full Name: "Anna Deshawn: And maybe I'll walk into Walmart again and go buy me some pride gear."

5. Cultural Spotlight

Coverage of the "Sports Bra" and the "Here We Are" campaign, showcasing proactive support for the LGBTQ+ community. Full Name: "Anna Deshawn: It is something special to see what the sports bra has done."

1. Support LGBTQ+ businesses and creators to help foster a more inclusive economy.
2. Educate oneself and others about the issues facing the LGBTQ+ community to combat ignorance and prejudice.
3. Participate in or organize community events that celebrate and support LGBTQ+ rights.
4. Advocate for inclusive policies in schools and workplaces to ensure fair treatment for all.
5. Amplify the voices of marginalized communities by sharing their stories and supporting their causes.

This week on the Queer News podcast Anna DeShawn talks about Pride and why it’s still so important. We remember Darri Moore, a Black trans woman found alongside the Mississippi River in Missouri. In Florida, a teen is denied entry to their prom because they wore a suit. Walmart is standing behind their pride collection. The Sports Bra is expanding and a new campaign called “Here We Are” celebrates our trans siblings. Let’s go!

People

Darri Moore, Sophie

Companies

Walmart, Sports Bra

Books

None

Guest Name(s):

None

Content Warnings:

None

Anna Deshawn
There's no place like the Cube 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, 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 now. Family, don't forget queer news has a tip line. It's always open. I want you to report on stories that are happening in your local areas that don't make the news or a blog. A link is in the show notes Q crew, what's going on? Thank you so much for helping to financially sustain this podcast. And if you don't know, the Q crew helps us supplement the costs of this here pod. Hosting, editing, marketing, pr, travel. If you believe in the work we do, if you believe LGBTQ stories need to be amplified, if you love and respect how I report on the news and tell our stories, join the Cube crew. A link is in the show notes and family, don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel at e three radio and turn on the notifications 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 Dory Moore, a black trans woman found alongside the Mississippi river in Missouri. In Florida, a teen is denied entry into their prom because they decided to wear a suit.

Walmart is standing 2ft 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 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 when 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 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 hope for those who you can't be. Out.

We like to say that pride started because of the Stonewall uprising, the riot 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 pride.

Dory Moore, we speak your name today.

Dory 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.

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 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 Dari'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.

Dari's good 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.

Dari 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 doing good in their community and just trying to survive. Just trying to survive.

And Dari 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, you can leave an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers at 866-371-8477 that's 866-371-8477 Dori 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 her high school career, she walks up to the prom, and she's immediately stopped. Stopped because they said she did not dress according to the dress code. The dress code says women are 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. Well, Sophie was really taken aback because she had worn this same 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, wearing pants. What if I'm a girl 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 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.

Now, let's take a quick break and when we get back, we're gonna jump into some more culture and entertainment news.

Derek
Hey, queer news fans, its Derek from eat the 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 community. And thats exactly what we set out to do with this monthly showcase, queer open mic. With future talents such as musicians, DJ's, poets, and more head over to our YouTube channel ephreeradio to catch the latest episode. And before you go, make sure to hit that subscribe button, turn on your notifications and share, share, share. Thats it for me. And thank you for joining us in celebrating queer talent. Peace family.

Darrin
I'm Darrin.

Esther
And I'm Esther.

Darrin
And this is second Sunday, a podcast about black queer folk finding, keeping, and sometimes losing faith.

Esther
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.

Darrin
The Saints ain't ready for this, but.

Esther
We'Re still gonna talk about it.

Darrin
Second Sunday. Find it wherever you get podcasts.

Esther
Second Sunday is a Cube original podcast and is part of the PRX Big Questions Project.

Anna Deshawn
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, 2ft down on the ground behind their Pride collection this year, which is honestly refreshing. After coming out 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 ten company put 2ft down on the ground. And support of Pride means a whole hell of a lot. Family, they wrote on their Instagram. Not just a slogan, hash. 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, if they keep this up, 2ft 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.

Mm hmm. 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.

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 Sports Bra 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 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 near them. So if you're listening to this podcast and you like, I might be that person, I encourage you to reach out to Jenni and the sports bra and get on the list, okay? Because it is something special to see 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. No, I have to tell them what channel it's on. Okay. But this is a place that centers women and sports, and I love 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 wanna tell y'all about a campaign called here we are. It was launched by GLaad and ground media. Now, I know y'all know who GLAAD is, but let me tell y'all about ground media. They are an award winning strategic storytelling studio, and they've partnered with GLAAD to combat unchecked misinformation about trans folks and as they put it, supercharge transgender visibility.

I love that word, supercharged, 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 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 we're told. And in a world where 70% of people say that they have never met a trans person, 70%.

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 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. And 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 is one of them. And I want to close with Gio's story because I thought he just said everything that needed to be said, 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 Gio. You'll hear what I believe. Okay? And we gonna kick off pride month strong. You understand?

Yes, you do. I love y'all. Happy pride. And I'll talk to y'all next week.

Gio
71% 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.

Gio's Family Member
It was a lot of people in and out. It kind of prepared us just for embracing all kinds of people in the.

Gio
World as transgender people. Sometimes we forget that the journey is not just ours, but my family. No matter what, we always loved each other.

Gio's Family Member
It 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.

Gio
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.

Gio's Family Member
We can all just live freely if we respect and honor one another.

Gio
We all have the right to be ourselves without fear. Help us share this story.

Anna Deshawn
If you've enjoyed what you heard, rate and review us inside your favorite podcasting app. This podcast is written and produced by me, Anna Deshawn. Podcast editing by Ryan Woodhull and brought to you by e three Radio and distributed on thecube. We are queer news done right.