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pride month

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Man has the best response after being 'offended' by his neighbor's LGBTQ pride doormat

"I'm writing to let you know that I find your doormat to be extremely offensive.”

A "Gayest Place in Town" doormat.

A TikTok user named Clay came back from a bar and was walking on the third floor of his apartment complex when he came across something that offended him to the core: a doormat in front of an apartment building with the legend “Gayest place in town” on it.

"I don't like that at all," Clay joked in a TikTok video with nearly two million views. “Because it implies that my place is not the gayest place in town." He quickly ordered himself a "Gayest place in town" doormat and then taped a piece of paper with “2nd” written on it so the competing doormat now read: "2nd gayest place in town." He also attached a longer note that included a challenge: "Hello downstairs Gay-bor(s), I'm writing to let you know that I find your doormat to be extremely offensive. I personally believe that MY apt is the gayest place in town and I hereby challenge you to a gay-off,” the letter read, which also contained his TikTok user name.

@claygaiken

And my place IS the gayest place in town 😤😤😤🏳️‍🌈💅🏻💁🏻‍♂️

Man challenges neighbors to a Pride Month gay-off

Clay challenged the offending residents, who he'd learn are Lauren and Cara, a lesbian couple, to a gay-off. "HEY THAT'S MY DOORMAT, HEY NEIGHBOR!” Lauren responded to the TikTok. You will be hearing back from us,” she added. “I look forward to it,” Clay confidently responded. The lesbian couple shot back with a letter on Clay's doorstep that read: "Hi Gay-boy, we have no clue what this entails, but it sounds gay, so naturally we are in—Cara & Lauren."

Commenters on Clay’s TikTok page were excited that the gay-off was on, but some hoped that he was competing with a man. “You need to put out gay decor and then you and your neighbor keep trying to outgay each other's decor and then idk enemies to lovers y'all fall in love,” one person wrote in the comments.

"Everyone assumed the other apartment belonged to a gay man and hoped for an 'enemies to lovers' situation," Clay told Newsweek. "But I had a strong suspicion it was lesbians. I mean, I used to joke that the third floor was the lesbian floor."

Clay posted a follow-up video showing the lesbian couple's response, and they didn’t hold back.

@claygaiken

Replying to @Shareda Mills team Lesbians, you’re up 👀@Lauren Bishop @calabrese101

Clay let the commenters choose the winner, and they overwhelmingly chose the lesbian couple. “We’re sorry, but RAINBOW TINSEL?! Your decor is cute, but they came to WIN,” one commenter wrote. "Yeah, I mean, the door thing they put up is very eye-catching, yours is cute... but... I think they have this round,” another added.

Compared to the lesbian couple, Clay's approach was more subtle. His decor included two small signs that said "Homo Sweet Homo" and "Just a heads up, its really gay in here" and two pride flags taped to the door. But, if you wanted him to win, don't feel bad just yet, there’s still a chance for a comeback. He told Newsweek that he plans on keeping the gay-off going throughout Pride Month. Plus, who knows, this could just be the beginning; next year, they may have to challenge each other to see who has the gayest place in their building once more.

Elderly military veteran comes out as gay in his obituary

While in many ways being part of the LGBTQ community is more acceptable than it used to be, members of the community are still marginalized and are sometimes treated poorly. Many people still experience negative consequences for coming out as anything other than a heterosexual cisgendered person. Due to these factors, it's not surprising that some people choose to hide their identity until they feel safe to reveal it.

Recently an elderly Army veteran's obituary highlighted the difficulty of living with the fear of not being accepted. Col. Edward Thomas Ryan recently passed away in Albany, New York after having lived with a secret his entire life. The obituary for Col. Ryan starts off like any other obituary, reviewing who he is leaving behind, who passed before him and his life's accomplishments.

The veteran was twice retired, once from the Army as a Colonel and again as a firefighter. He had many accomplishments that would make just about any family proud to be related to him, but Ryan requested his family tuck in a note from him to share with the world.


He was gay. Not only was he gay but he was in a relationship for 25 years. All of this was kept a secret as he did not want to be outcast by the people he loved the most so he held who he truly was close to his heart until after his death. Col. Ryan's family printed his confession in his obituary which appears to be his last wish.

The personal note reads, "I must tell you one more thing. I was Gay all my life: thru grade school, thru High School, thru College, thru Life. I was in a loving and caring relationship with Paul Cavagnaro of North Greenbush. He was the love of my life. We had 25 great years together. Paul died in 1994 from a medical Procedure gone wrong. I'll be buried next to Paul. I'm sorry for not having the courage to come out as Gay. I was afraid of being ostracized: by Family, Friends, and Co-Workers. Seeing how people like me were treated, I just could not do it. Now that my secret is known, I'll forever Rest in Peace."

Though Col. Ryan was able witness the public perception shifting about LGBTQ people, he likely still lived with the scars of past treatment of queer people.

Photo credit: Canva


In 1973, homosexuality was pathologized by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) as a mental illness or sickness. It wasn't until 1997 that the adopted a resolution discouraging coercive measures a resolution discouraging coercive measures to change someone's sexual orientation. Progress has been slow going. The APA just recognized that being transgender wasn't a mental health disorder in 2013, and America didn't recognize same sex marriage until 2015.

Col. Ryan's fears were not unfounded. Jim Kisthardt, only came out just a few years ago at the age of 73 after his wife of 51 years died. He tells ABC7, "Times were very different. Being gay would be a curse. Being gay was one of the worst things you could bring to your family, worse than divorce."

Kisthardt explains to the station that coming out when his parents were alive wasn't an option because he thought it would've killed them, revealing that in the 50s and 60s gay people were ostracized and had to move away. While progress for LGBTQ rights may be moving slowly, they're still moving and though Col. Ryan didn't get to live fully as himself, at least he is now resting in peace. It's fitting that he was able to have his final wish granted during pride month.

Identity

Comedian Tig Notaro's 7-year-old son had a beautiful reaction to learning his moms are gay

“I was so stunned because we’ve lived together almost eight years, and I’ve been gay the whole time — even prior!”

Comedian Tig Notaro on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert."

June is LGBTQ Pride Month, a time for celebration for those in the community and their allies. People celebrate the occasion with pride parades, fly the pride flag, and commemorate special events in the gay rights movement, such as the Stonewall Uprising. But so far this month, for comedian Tig Notaro, things have been “a little weird.”

She explained the funny situation she and her wife, actor Stephanie Allynne, recently dealt with on the June 6 episode of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”

Pride month, I’ll be honest, it’s been a little weird. My wife and I found out recently that our sons didn’t know we were gay. They will be 8 this month,” Notaro told Colbert. "Their school is six minutes away from our house, and at minute three we were in the front seat of the car talking about something about gay. Our son Finn leans forward and says, ‘You’re gay?’”


“I was so stunned because we’ve lived together almost eight years, and I’ve been gay the whole time — even prior!” Notaro joked. “So, I was like, ‘Yes! We are.’ I was so shocked.”

@colbertlateshow

#TigNotaro’s sons didn’t realize their moms were gay, but they jumped on board quickly! #Colbert

The couple felt they had to address the big revelation before the kids got to school, but they didn’t have much time. “We’re like three minutes now from the school, and I start explaining what gay is,” she continued. As she explained what it meant to be gay, she felt a little awkward coming out to her sons.

"And then while I was explaining it, I started getting insecure, thinking, 'What if he doesn’t like this?'” she worried. “So, she asked her sons to share their feelings on the sensitive issue. “What do you think about what I just told you?” Notaro asked them.

Her son Finn gave the most beautiful response.

“Oh, I love my family,” he said.

 

The couple were shocked that their kids had no idea what gay meant, even though their mothers were lesbians. “We drop them off at school and we’re like, ‘bye!’ and we truly drove off going like half-a-mile-an-hour, like ‘How on earth do our kids not know we’re gay?’ Because, dare I say, we’re also an iconic gay couple,” Notaro joked.

Allynne and Notaro have been married for over eight and a half years, tying the knot on October 24, 2015, in Notaro’s hometown of Pass Christian, Mississippi. It wasn’t long after that they became parents. On June 26, 2016, their sons, Max and Finn, were born by surrogate.

When the couple first met, it was challenging for Allyne, who wasn’t sure how to label her sexuality. "Everything about her felt right," she told People. "I knew I liked her, I knew I cared about her and that sent me into an identity crisis spiral. I felt the need to label myself. Was I gay? Was I bi? Was I still straight? Was I ever straight?"

"It took me six months to realize those labels were ridiculous. Once I was able to own my true feelings it was all easy and beautiful. I now don’t believe in the labels,” she continued.

Now, things have come full circle and the couple are explaining to their kids what it means to be gay. “I realized that even though there’s pictures of our wedding day and they know they have two moms, that doesn’t mean they know what gay is,” Notaro told Colbert.

A Pride Month press photo from BMW.

June is Pride Month in many countries, including the U.S. Canada, Australia, Brazil, Spain, Germany and the United Kingdom. It’s an entire month dedicated to uplifting LGBTQ voices and celebrating their culture, history and rights.

It’s also a time of year when anti-LGBTQ voices can be the loudest, as evidenced last year by boycotts of major companies such as Target, Kohls, North Face and Anheuser Busch.

And speaking of major companies, Pride Month also erupts in rainbow colors on social media when major brands and corporations give their logos Pride-themed makeovers. However, this doesn’t sit well with some LGBTQ activists who see this as rainbow washing or disingenuously using Pride branding for their gain or to give themselves a deceptive air of often-derided as "virtue signaling."

In 2024, it also seems rather perfunctory for major companies to celebrate Pride Month, because failure to do so could result in them being accused of bigotry.


It’s commendable when companies use their capital and platforms to generously and genuinely support LGBTQ organizations. But there’s something duplicitous about companies that jump on the bandwagon during Pride Month to curry favor with those who support LGBTQ rights and do little more.

One major company is getting called out by liberals and conservatives alike during Pride Month for very different reasons. BMW is taking heat from LGBTQ rights supporters for its public admission that it doesn’t celebrate Pride in the Middle East because of “cultural aspects.” Many right-wing people on Twitter who don’t support Pride Month are enjoying the schadenfreude of seeing a company openly admit to empty virtue signaling.

 

It all started when someone on Twitter asked why BMW doesn’t turn its logo rainbow-colored for its Middle Eastern Twitter feed during Pride Month. “How come you don't proudly display your logos pride colors on your Middle East posts ???” they asked.

 

The car company’s response was cold and corporate. “This is an established practice at the BMW Group, which also takes into consideration market-specific legal regulations and country-specific cultural aspects,” BMW’s Twitter account responded.

 

The response begged a big question: If you don’t support LGBTQ rights in places where they are persecuted, do you really support them at all? In some countries in the Middle East, including Iran and Saudi Arabia, LGBTQ people can be punished by death.

Many accused BMW of hypocrisy for only supporting gay rights where it's good for business.

   

Many thought that if BMW genuinely cared about LGBTQ rights, it would promote them where it matters most.

  

Some thought that BMW’s Pride Month logo gesture was rendered meaningless by its approach to the Middle East.

  

The fact that U.S. companies converted their logos to rainbow-themed during Price Month shows how far this country has come in the last 55 years since the Stonewall Riot kicked off the LGBTQ movement in the U.S. in 1969. However, the fact that companies are afraid to change their logos to rainbow-colored in some parts of the world shows how far we still have to go to guarantee those same rights across the globe.