Idaho: Last News

When the B-52’s played “Rock Lobster” on “Saturday Night Live” in January 1980, a few months after releasing their debut album, it was a lightning-strike moment for a generation of young misfits and oddballs. The band’s uninhibited dancing, statuesque wigs and absurdist lyrics embraced the ecstatic, and its kinetically rhythmic guitar, precise drumming and bursts of Farfisa organ ensured a good time. Many of their campy, catchy songs celebrated people who seemed to be happily dislocated or disconnected from known dimensions (“Planet Claire,” “Private Idaho”).

Some members of the neo-nazi cult Patriot Front are finally facing charges for planning to storm an Idaho Pride event this June — but does their punishment fit the attempted crime?Idaho police pulled over a U-Haul en route to a Pride in the Park event after an anonymous tipster witnessed the Patriot Front members loading up inside.The caravan of 31 uniformed men armed with riot gear and smoke grenades inside were all zip-tied, unmasked, and arrested for conspiracy to riot.Though the men were all originally charged and held on just over $300 bail, only six will now be facing the charges in court.Related: Patriot Front member’s mom tells him to find new home after Pride arrestIn addition to only affecting a fraction of the planned rioters, the crime they’re charged with is only a misdemeanor. The charge carries a maximum sentence of a fine and five years in prison.While police intervening on behalf of the queer community is a nice surprise, the fact is that most of this violent militia gathered from across the country to target an LGBTQ+ event is being let off largely scot-free, with just a handful of them facing low-level sentencing.The planned descent on the Idaho Pride event was just one of many attacks on queer events this past June; while legislators railed hard against queer people as “groomers“, right-wing Proud Boys tried to break up Drag Queen Storytime events across the country.Related: White supremacists destroyed a Pride mural. The video they made got them arrested.Two of the aforementioned Patriot Front members were also recently arrested for defacing a mural dedicated to Pride in Olympia, Washington; they were taken in after their own recording of the event was discovered by police.In addition to these two,

Imagine thinking you could tell a queer person how to decorate their home.A Boise homeowner’s association really tried it this week, sending Quail Ridge resident Jordan Hall an order to remove a set of rainbow Pride lights from his home.A Boise resident displays gay pride lights at his house. His home owner’s association says it’s a “noxious or undesirable act.” https://t.co/2o8xDbPqmB— The Idaho Press (@TheIdahoPress) July 14, 2022The order for removal cites the association’s repressive CC&Rs (covenants, conditions and restrictions), as well as calling the display a “noxious or undesirable act.”This particular association doesn’t seem to be judging all light displays equally, however; one neighborhood home reportedly uses “thousands of LED lights” at Christmastime, while another has pure red lights and has never heard a peep out of the HOA against them.Related: Community rallies around queer-friendly church after it gets defaced by homophobic vandalsThis is far from the beginning of Hall’s striving for LGBTQ+ visibility.

Imagine thinking you could tell a queer person how to decorate their home.A Boise homeowner’s association really tried it this week, sending Quail Ridge resident Jordan Hall an order to remove a set of rainbow Pride lights from his home.A Boise resident displays gay pride lights at his house. His home owner’s association says it’s a “noxious or undesirable act.” https://t.co/2o8xDbPqmB— The Idaho Press (@TheIdahoPress) July 14, 2022The order for removal cites the association’s repressive CC&Rs (covenants, conditions and restrictions), as well as calling the display a “noxious or undesirable act.”This particular association doesn’t seem to be judging all light displays equally, however; one neighborhood home reportedly uses “thousands of LED lights” at Christmastime, while another has pure red lights and has never heard a peep out of the HOA against them.Related: Community rallies around queer-friendly church after it gets defaced by homophobic vandalsThis is far from the beginning of Hall’s striving for LGBTQ+ visibility.

A radio station in Idaho is pushing back against homophobic listeners, and this tune is hitting just right.Classic rock station 96.6 The Eagle regularly blesses the airways with tracks from queer maestros like Elton John, Pete Townshend and Michael Stipe, just to name a few.The station or its catalogue of feel-good hits aren’t solely LGBTQ focused, of course, but the proud ally traditionally changes its logo in June to rock the rainbow.This year, the inclusive banner received several complaints from homophobic rock fans.Related: Super Bowl fans thought they’d found the perfect bar, but was a VERY different sort of ‘Eagle’The station’s response? One more month of Pride, and maybe more.“Flag stays up for another month, deal with it,” The Eagle posted on Facebook. “If we lose fans that’s fine.

Idaho Statesman reports. Some listeners have made anti-LGBTQ+ comments, but the station isn’t backing down.“Flag stays up for another month, deal with it,” the station posted on Facebook. “If we lose fans that’s fine.

saraa4a00f7b8f—disabledpunks4reprorights—kaiguy—brandim4f4855a85"He revealed that he drove 60 miles to get to the festival and was going to drive 60 miles back, which I thought was really funny, especially with these astronomical gas prices." —katnisseverdeen12345—wynnebo—lucemckenzie—padawanryan"My way of coming out was turning down an 'ally' sticker that was offered to me. I kept telling people who asked, 'Oops, it must have fallen off.'" —area51official—lielo317—mkatherinekelly—miab4e8eaccc7—aditson"If you are in a place, where it's still dangerous to be yourself, remember that baby steps are still steps forward — so just keep walking." —Anonymous, 36, Ukraine"My husband and I have had many lovely days together since, but this still stands out as the most wholesome fun we have had."  —Anonymous, 32, United Kingdom "Oh, how times have changed!" —Anonymous, 30, Québec"Honestly, the love and joy I feel at every Pride event now is heartwarming.

With the first in-person Pride celebration since 2019 finally here, San Francisco Police Department officials are calling on the public to keep their eyes open for any suspicious behavior as they enjoy the festivities. Speaking at a press conference at Harvey Milk Plaza in the Castro June 24, SFPD Police Chief William Scott urged the public to be on the alert."If you see something suspicious, please don't sit on that information," he said.

The increased activities of white nationalists and other right-wing extremists around the country, and particularly recently here in the Bay Area, has San Francisco Pride event organizers and authorities thinking of security at this year's event a little more earnestly than in previous years. Kids attending a drag queen storytime at the San Lorenzo public library in the East Bay were confronted by right-wing protesters June 11, as alleged members of the Proud Boys barged in and harassed drag queen Panda Dulce as she was reading to the children.

If you see something, say something. That appeal to the public gained traction after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and, today, remains relevant as the LGBTQ community prepares to celebrate the first in-person San Francisco Pride events since 2019. The reason, of course, is the uptick in some strange and frightening events over the past several weeks, both locally and across the country.

GLAAD announced today (Wednesday, June 22) the findings of its eighth annual Accelerating Acceptance Study that show a sharp increase in LGBTQ Americans experiencing discrimination, particularly among queer people of color, transgender and nonbinary people and Gen Z LGBTQ Americans.

The Seattle Times that his 20-year-old son Spencer claimed he did not regret being arrested alongside other members of Patriot Front earlier this month in Idaho.Thirty-one men believed to be associated with the white supremacist group were arrested on June 11 in Coeur d'Alene after police received a call from a bystander. The men were seen getting into a U-Haul truck close to a hotel while they wore riot gear, including masks and shields.

LGBTQ+ rights advocates and allies have been so inundated with threats during Pride Month that they have been forced to cancel events and involve local law enforcement authorities after a group of white nationalists were arrested outside a Pride event in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho.

President Joe Biden issued an executive order Wednesday to counter what he called discriminatory legislative attacks on the LGBTQ+ community by Republican-controlled states.

Spurred on by a Twitter account known for its provocative nature, @libsoftiktok, a cadre of alleged Proud Boys members stormed into the San Lorenzo library in the East Bay June 11. Their target was a "Drag Queen Story Hour" event hosted by local drag artist Panda Dulce.About 10 or so of the group marched in, calling the host and others homophobic and transphobic slurs.

Sick of cops treated as the enemyOn Saturday, June 11, authorities in Idaho arrested 31 alleged white nationalists who were reportedly planning a riot near a Coeur D'Alene Pride event. The police chief said they received a complaint from a local resident and stopped a U-Haul truck 10 minutes later that was filled with men. Police recovered at least one smoke grenade and an "operations plan" as well as shields and shin guards, all of which made their intentions clear.

Jared Boyce, Patriot Front member arrested in Coeur d’Alene

Utah was among the 31 people arrested Saturday over a plot to disrupt a Pride celebration in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Boyce, along with 30 other members of the white nationalist group Patriot Front was found, thanks to a tipster who called in suspicious activity, in the back of a U-Haul truck dressed in riot gear complete with shields, masks, and smoke grenades.

pic.twitter.com/oWjpYQJVvv— Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) June 13, 2022Idaho Police Release Mugshots Of Neo-Nazi Group – https://t.co/kA5S7ASNhW pic.twitter.com/HMWVh3qmOw— JoeMyGod (@JoeMyGod) June 13, 2022Related: ‘Proud Boys’ try to disrupt drag queen story hour in CaliforniaKaren Amsden is the mother of alleged Patriot Front member and Springville, Utah resident Jared Michael Boyce, 27. She spoke exclusively to the Daily Beast, saying she’s now told her son to “Pack your stuff and get out of my house.”Amsden is a licensed clinical social worker.

Kamala Harris is showing her support for the LGBTQ+ community! The Vice President made a special appeareance at Capitol Pride in Washington where she was joined on stage by Rupaul’s Drag Race Season 13 winner Symone, becoming the first Vice President to attend a Pride event.During her speech, Harris talked about the 31 people arrested in Idaho during a Pride event, for conspiracy to riot. “No one should fear going to a Pride celebration because of a white supremacist,” she stated.The Vice President was accompanied by her husband Douglas Emhoff, and she took a moment to reference the deadly Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando where 49 people were killed, as it was the sixth anniversaty of the tragedy.“No one should fear going to a nightclub for fear that a terrorist might try to take them down,” Harris said, adding “No one should fear loving who they love.”“Our children in Texas and Florida should not fear who they are,” she delcared, denouncing the controversial ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill.

CNN. Ten minutes later, police pulled over the truck and searched it, seizing a smoke grenade and riot gear from the truck.“I don’t think this would have been as successful had we not had one extremely astute citizen who saw something that looked very concerning to them and reported it to us,” Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White said during a news conference.White also said it was “clear,” based on the gear in the truck, as well as paperwork seized from the group that was “similar to an operations plan that a police or military group would put together for an event.” He said the group planned to riot in downtown Coeur d’Alene, where a six-hour-long “Pride in the Park” event, featuring booths, food, live music, a drag show, and a small march of about 50 participants, was being held at City Park.The 31 individuals — who hailed from 11 different states, and only one of whom was from Idaho — were arrested for conspiracy to riot, a misdemeanor.

While death threats aren't anything new to gay state Senator Scott Wiener, they took a decidedly chilling turn June 12 when he received an email telling him bombs had been placed in his home and office. "We placed bombs in his office and his house," the email read.

ABOVE: Vice President Very-Not-Pence.

charged with conspiring to riot in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho as the city's Pride in the Park was taking place.But it has now emerged that details of a planned demonstration were reportedly revealed by another group, the Panhandle Patriots Riding Club, more than a month earlier, during a meeting in a church hall on April 28 hosted by Scott, the representative for Idaho's 1st district. There is no suggestion that the Panhandle Patriots are linked to the Patriot Front, or that Scott was aware of the group's plans beforehand.During the event, which mostly focused on the speakers' opposition to children's books featuring stories with gay or transgender characters, Scott handed the floor over to two members of the Panhandle Patriots bikers who then discussed the organization's plans to target the upcoming Pride event.Footage circulated online showed one of the men, who was not identified during the clip, telling the crowd: "That very same day [as Pride], we intend to go head-to-head with these people. A line must be drawn in the sand.

Thirty-one members of the racist, neo-Nazi Patriot Front, including the group's founder, were arrested in the city after police stopped a U-Haul truck filled with the suspected would-be rioters. The members are being charged with conspiracy to riot — a misdemeanor offense.According to White, a tipster called authorities around 1:38 p.m.

Patriot Front. The concerned citizen that tipped off law enforcement said they "looked like a little army".The group is suspected of planning to riot at an Idaho Pride event being held in the city on Saturday.

Thomas Ryan Rousseau. Mug shot from the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office in Idao.

31 white supremacists were arrested for planning a riot near an Idaho Pride event.

were arrested by police in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, under suspicion of conspiring to riot at a nearby Pride celebration.“No one should fear loving who they love!” the Vice President said. “Our children in Texas and Florida should not fear who they are! Black and brown and women of color — transgender women — should not pay [with] their lives! We should not have to be dealing with three hundred laws in states around our country that are attacking our LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters!…“We will continue to build unity, we will continue to build coalitions, we will always be fueled by knowing we have so much more in common than what separates us,” she concluded.

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — Dozens of members of a white supremacist group were arrested on Saturday in Idaho before they could act on plans to riot at a local Pride event, the police said. After receiving a tip from a concerned citizen, the police detained and charged 31 people who belonged to a far-right group known as Patriot Front, said Lee White, the chief of the Coeur d’Alene Police Department, at a news conference.

detained by police in Coeur d'Alene after a concerned citizen reported seeing dozens of masked individuals who "looked like a little army" loading riot gear into a U-Haul. Only one of the members was from Idaho, according to the Idaho Statesman.

Twitter by Syrian journalist Alissa Azar, who claimed that it showed numerous Patriot Front members being detained and arrested by police. According to her account bio, Azar covers right-wing violence in the Pacific Northwest.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorThe Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is stepping out for LGBTQ Pride.Variety can exclusively report that the Academy will march for the first time in the Los Angeles Pride Parade on June 12 in Hollywood. A giant Oscar statuette will be along for the ride on a specially-designed trolley.“We’re proud and excited the Academy will participate in the L.A.

The 2020s aren’t the first decade in which the LGBTQ+ population has endured an epidemic, of course, but the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted many a twenty-something’s “adulting” years. In fact, Reddit user u/GodMadeAdamAndSteve said he feels like his 20s have been ruined by the coronavirus crisis. He writes:I just turned 24 when COVID started, and I was just finding myself.

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster has signed a bill banning trans athletes from competing in school athletics into law.

Tina Kotek, the current Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives, as the party’s nominee for governor.Kotek, who may be slightly favored in the general election in the Democratic-leaning state, is now on track to become one of the first out lesbian governors in U.S. history, along with Maura Healey, the Massachusetts Attorney General who is now running to be the Bay State’s next governor.If successful in November, Kotek will succeed Gov.

The relocated petroglyphs at BLM Indian Rocks Area Many of the former park’s petroglyphs are no longer there. The freeway rest stop that once drew thousands of visitors to view them is gone, too. The park closed in 1983, and the boulders were relocated five miles away to protect them from carelessness and outright vandalism.

Today is Lesbian Day of Visibility, a day when we celebrate and uplift every lesbian, no matter where they live or how they identify. Today is a day of joy, yes, but this celebration goes much deeper. We are celebrating being out, proud, and seen – things that often don’t come without pain and sacrifice. To me, being out and visibly queer is a way to continue towards progress, as representation of the complex identities within the LGBTQ community is vital to the well-being of queer individuals. I know this firsthand. 

Via MrMan:

California legislators are once again pushing forward on a number of bills aimed at improving the lives of the state's transgender and nonbinary residents. And due to the legislative attacks on trans children in several other states, lawmakers in Sacramento are also focused on assisting those youth and their parents who are trying to access gender-affirming health care.In addition to improving transgender medical care in the Golden State, lawmakers have introduced bills that will require California community colleges not to deadname their trans and nonbinary students, faculty or staff; require the governor to annually proclaim November 20 as Transgender Day of Remembrance; and create an advisory body for a statewide pool of funds for trans services that would be renamed the Transgender, Gender-Variant, and Intersex (TGI) Wellness and Equity Fund.Other bills would protect LGBTQ people who want to become foster parents, establish a pilot project to assist LGBTQ youth receiving child welfare services, and require affordable housing builders to contract with LGBTQ-owned businesses.Tuesday, April 19, gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) released the language for the bill he plans to officially introduce this month that will make California a refuge for trans kids and their families persecuted by their own governments in states such as Texas and Idaho.The Idaho House of Representatives passed legislation last week to make it a felony for parents to allow their children to receive gender-affirming care, while similar policy is under consideration by lawmakers in Louisiana and Arizona.

tweet earlier this week that the legislation would not prevent mental health counseling for those struggling with gender dysphoria.“If an adult wants to self-mutilate in pursuit of the fiction they can defy G-d and science, more power to them — as they don’t expect me to pay for it. But no child should be put in the position of making life-altering decisions before they are of the age of majority,” Fine tweeted.“I can say I’m a porcupine, but that doesn’t make it so,” he continued.

NBC News reports. The law took effect immediately thereafter. It affects students from sixth grade through college.Beshear, a Democrat, vetoed the bill last week, saying it is not only discriminatory but ignores the steps taken by the Kentucky High School Athletic Association to assure that no student-athlete who has an unfair advantage can compete.

SACRAMENTO — After the governor of Texas ordered state agencies to investigate parents for child abuse if they provide certain medical treatments to their transgender children, California lawmakers proposed a law making the state a refuge for transgender youths and their families. When Idaho proposed a ban on abortions that empowers relatives to sue anyone who helps terminate a pregnancy after six weeks, nearby Oregon approved $15 million to help cover the abortion expenses of patients from out-of-state. As Republican activists aggressively pursue conservative social policies in state legislatures across the country, liberal states are taking defensive actions.

A post shared by Penn Athletics (@pennathletics)“It means the world to be here, to be with my best friends and teammates and be able to compete,” Thomas told ESPN after her win. Thomas joins former Franklin Pierce runner CeCe Telfer as the only out trans athletes to win an NCAA championship across all divisions.The historic victory comes as Thomas remains a reluctant focus of transphobic arguments and efforts aimed at limiting the participation of trans women in women’s sports.

Weyant acknowledged Thomas' win by shaking her hand in the water. While conservatives argue that transgender women's physical differences give them an unfair advantage in sports competitions, LGBTQ supporters say measures keeping them from participating in sports hurt all women.Thomas, who competes for the University of Pennsylvania, made history Thursday by becoming the first transgender NCAA champion in Division I.

easily passed the Republican-majority House, but Senate GOP leaders released a statement Tuesday saying while they continue to oppose “any and all gender reassignment and surgical manipulation of the natural sex of minors,” they decided to stop the measure from advancing because it amounts to government overreach and could affect care unrelated to gender transition.“We believe in parents’ rights and that the best decisions regarding medical treatment options for children are made by parents, with the benefit of their physician’s advice and expertise,” reads the statement from the Idaho State Senate Majority Caucus. “It is against medical advice in Idaho and is counterindicated by the Idaho Medical Association (IMA).

Republican legislators in Idaho have blocked a bill that would have made giving trans children gender-affirming care a crime.

Cheaper by the Dozen — and criticized the film’s studio, the Walt Disney Co., albeit without mentioning the studio’s name.Union, star and executive producer of the film, is stepmother to a transgender child, Zaya Wade, the daughter of Union’s husband, Dwyane Wade. Speaking about the Florida bill, which would restrict classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity, she told The Hollywood Reporter, “I don’t want to say shock because hatred doesn’t shock me at this point. I’ve been a black woman in America since ’72.