Idaho bill would ban Pride flags from classrooms, including all gender- and race-based banners
A Republican representative would like to ban Idaho public schools from displaying political banners and flags, but would still allow the flags of foreign nations to be flown.
State Rep. Edward Hill (R) earlier this week introduced House Bill 10, which would limit the kinds of flags and banners that would be allowed in public elementary and secondary schools.
The bill pertains to the display of such material on school property as a whole and would ban flags or banners "that represent a political viewpoint."
The list of flags or banners includes but is not limited to material relating to a political party, race, gender, or a "political ideology."
At the same time, an extensive list of what could be flown or displayed was also provided in the bill.
The American flag, the official state flag of Idaho, and the flags of any county, municipality, public university or community college, school district, special district, or "any other political subdivision" would be allowed.
School flags (including mascots and school colors), official flags of any military branches or units, and official flags of Indian tribes were also included.
Schools would also be allowed to display banners recognized by the Idaho Department of Education in relation to achievements.
Other state flags could also be flown, but so could the flags of other "recognized foreign nations."
'This a neutral environment conducive to education and learning.'
As reported by the Idaho Statesman, an identical version of the bill was submitted in 2024, but while it passed in the Senate, it was held up in the House Education Committee.
Former State Senator Chris Trakel (R) said at the time that his daughter was "extremely uncomfortable" with the flags due to her religious beliefs.
Trakel told a Senate committee hearing, "Somebody could take offense to the LGBTQ flag, and they might. Somebody of a religious origin would find that offensive to them, and they have to sit in the classroom and be offended the entire time."
“The whole point of this isn’t to discriminate against anybody. [It] is to make this a neutral environment conducive to education and learning," Trakel added.
Flags have become a hot-button issue in recent years given the rise in political ideology pushed in classrooms.
For example, in 2024 an Oklahoma teen was told he wasn't allowed to fly a giant American flag on his truck on school property. More than 50 cars arrived at the school the next Monday morning at 7 a.m. sporting American flags in protest.
Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters eventually stepped in and created a mandate that required schools to allow U.S. flags to be "flown and displayed on all school campuses without infringement."
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Pride or punishment? Canada fines town for refusing to celebrate Pride Month
As America takes a step in the right direction with a Donald Trump victory, under Justin Trudeau, Canada is only getting worse.
And by worse, we mean the country is now pushing for mandatory Pride celebrations. One town, Emo, Ontario, was even fined $10,000 for declining to proclaim June as Pride Month and refusing to fly the LGBTQ2 rainbow flag, despite lacking a flag pole.
These transgressions left the town accused of violating the Ontario Human Rights Code by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario. In addition to the $10,000 fine, officials from the town were ordered to complete mandatory human rights training.
“First of all, I’m shocked that a town in Canada even refused to fly the flag,” Pat Gray of “Pat Gray Unleashed” comments. “But then to get fined for it, that’s just asinine.”
“You’re not an ally, by the way, if you’re forced,” he adds.
The decision to cite the town began in 2020, when the town was approached by a group called Borderland Pride. The group requested that Emo declare June as Pride Month and included a draft proclamation that contained clauses such as "pride is necessary to show community support and belonging for LGBTQ2 individuals" and "the diversity of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression represents a positive contribution to society."
“They’re not asking you not to discriminate against them. They’re asking you to embrace them, to promote them,” Gray comments, disturbed.
Mayor Harold McQuaker has stood firm in his refusal to celebrate Pride Month, which has now landed him with a $5,000 fine as well.
“You’re influence peddling,” Keith Malinak says. “You’re saying that they have to vote the way you want or else you’re going to see monetary damages. Go to hell.”
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English soccer star warned by officials for writing 'I love Jesus' over Pride armband
Soccer player Marc Guéhi and his team received an official warning from league officials after he wrote a religious message on his arm band.
Guéhi is the captain for Crystal Palace, a team in England's top division, the Premier League. Each team has one player on the field wear a designated captain's armband, with teams all assigned a rainbow armband to show "support for LGBTQ+ inclusion in sport" last weekend.
However, Guéhi, a devout Christian, decided to write "I love Jesus" on his armband. This prompted a warning from England's Football Association about wearing religious messages on a jersey.
'He's no child, he's an adult, he has his opinion and we respect it.'
According to ESPN, the FA's uniform rules state that "the appearance on, or incorporation in, any item of clothing ... any political or religious message" is forbidden and "disciplinary action may be taken" for any breach of the rules.
The rules also state that "for any offence the player and/or the team will be sanctioned by the competition organizer, national football association or by FIFA."
While Guéhi will avoid a fine, his Crystal Palace manager was quick to reaffirm that his team stands for "integration" not "discrimination."
"Everyone now is about integration, no discrimination and Marc as well," Oliver Glasner said. "We spoke about it. He's no child, he's an adult, he has his opinion, and we respect it."
Specific rules surrounding the armbands also exist, and the guidelines state players must "wear an armband, which is simple and conforms to the requirements ... relating to slogans, statements, images and advertising."
The rainbow armband campaign comes from Stonewall, a gay English charity that says it stands for "lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer, questioning and ace (LGBTQ+) people everywhere."
While it is indeed odd that the sexuality-driven campaign is not considered political or religious, Guéhi was not the only player to take a stand during the set of weekend games.
Ipswich Town captain Sam Morsy, a practicing Muslim, refused to wear the rainbow armband and instead wore a typical plain black version.
Ipswich Town's Sam Morsey refused to wear a rainbow armband, while Crystal Palace's Marc Guéhi wrote 'I love Jesus' on his.Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Shockingly for Morsy's decision, the FA claimed it was a club matter and did not issue a warning.
Ipswich Town still issued a groveling statement.
"Ipswich Town Football Club is committed to being a fully inclusive club that welcomes everyone."
"At the same time, we respect the decision of our captain Sam Morsy, who has chosen not to wear the rainbow captain's armband due to his religious beliefs," the team continued.
"We will continue to grow an environment where all are valued and respected, both on and off the pitch."
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Walmart Agrees To Dump Policies Pushing DEI Racism, Gender Ideology
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'Aligning your brand with the values that make the Center special'
Classic game RuneScape removes gender options, replaces them with pronouns and 'body types'
A massively popular computer game has sparked confusion and outrage after it spontaneously added pronouns while removing gender options at the same time.
The game Old School RuneScape was launched in 2013 and was meant to maintain the 2007 version of the game. It is heralded as a classic by gaming fans and costs about $80 annually to play.
Peaking at 205,000 concurrent players as recently as November 2023, fans have rejoiced over how developers seek their opinion through polls then modify the game accordingly.
That is until recently when developers decided remove the option to choose male or female when creating a character in the game, and replaced it with "Body type A" and "Body type B."
'Body type A and body type B? Have you been living under a rock for the past decade?'
Furthermore, developers decided to add in pronoun selections, providing the options "He/him," "They/them," and "She/her."
"We didn’t vote on this!" a user said to the game's moderators on X. "I play RuneScape to escape from this bulls**t not to be forced to see it! This WILL cost you players... I'm debating on canceling my membership."
A moderator, who goes by the name Mod Ash and has over 140,000 followers on X, responded to the user and said he didn't expect players to see the text so often.
"Thanks for letting me know you no longer wish to play due to players having that text option. All the best with your future gaming," he added with a smiley face.
I wouldn't have expected you to see it very often unless you're switching up at the Makeover Mage really regularly, but thanks for letting me know you no longer wish to play due to players having that text option. All the best with your future gaming :)
— Mod Ash (@JagexAsh) August 14, 2024
'You poll this but not pronouns?'
Just hours before that moderator's response, a fan actually predicted that concerns about the change would be shrugged off by the RuneScape team:
"Body type A and body type B? Have you been living under a rock for the past decade? Gamers don't want this garbage," the irate user wrote. "Well I'm done: 18 years a player but I'm done," they continued.
"You're gonna say 'good riddance, no one forces you to play you fascist bigot.' but guess what: I don't think I'll be the only one. Good luck with this 'new and inclusive' direction you're going in."
More fans took issue with the fact that the inclusion of pronouns and removal of gender was not a topic that developers polled their customers about. This move by the game creators proved to be even more puzzling due to the fact that other polls are conducted for the most miniscule of details.
"You poll this but not pronouns?" one fan asked, attaching an image of a poll that asked ""Should the green pixel be removed from the Construction skill icon?"
Over 50,000 gamers responded to that particular pool showcasing just how responsive the fanbase is.
Another user who has an account that is over 8,200 days old (22 years) noted that he didn't think he would be renewing his membership due to the recent controversy.
"I'd been thinking about renewing my membership and playing OSRS again after taking a break for a year or so. I don't think I will be doing that any time soon."
I'd been thinking about renewing my membership and playing OSRS again after taking a break for a year or so. I don't think I will be doing that any time soon. https://t.co/pscg74avlI pic.twitter.com/I0LKNtH61f
— Dave Shrigley (@dshrig) August 15, 2024
Production company Jagex has a history of activism that has caused blowback in the past.
In 2017, a Pride update was widely mocked for its use of rainbows and has since become an infamous event in the game's history.
At the time, developers asked users in a poll whether they wanted a "gay pride event." Users overwhelmingly rejected the idea with 66% of the respondents saying "no." Over 20,000 people participated in that poll.
On its website, Jagex also gives an annual "gender pay gap report" that touts "the importance of a diverse workforce" and complains about the lack of "industry-wide female representation."
However, in its latest report, the company was only able to lower its own pay disparity by 0.1%.
The website reads, "In the report issued for 2022-2023, our expectations that our gender pay gap would decrease were met with a reduction in our Gender Pay Gap from 25.9% to 25.8%."
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Kamala Harris Is The Most Queer-Promoting Presidential Candidate Ever
Trans agenda OBLITERATED when man exposes LGBTQ hypocrisy at NYC Pride
Lionel McGloin might just be a genius.
McGloin is known for his “man on the street” style interviews that expertly point out the hypocrisy of the interviewees — and his latest string of interviews at the New York City Pride Festival might just be his best yet.
In one clip, McGloin interviews a young woman clad in a little rainbow Pride-themed dress.
“All these beautiful trans women out here, tell us about your transition, how it went,” he says in a classic deadpan demeanor.
“Can I hold this please,” the woman says, frustrated and reaching for the mic. “I have a question for you. Why are you asking me those questions?”
“We’re interviewing like trans women and stuff like that,” he answers.
“I’m not a trans woman,” she responds angrily.
“We’re fully supportive, fully supportive,” he continues, refusing to back down. “We just want to like talk about like the transitions, like the various challenges we’ve had.”
“I’ve never transitioned because I was born a woman,” she says.
As McGloin continues to purposely misunderstand her, she gets increasingly frustrated — to the point that she says exactly what conservatives have been saying all along.
“You thought I was a man?” she asks, offended.
Dave Rubin of “The Rubin Report” couldn’t be more impressed with McGloin’s work.
“Oh, so you do think there’s a difference between men and women,” Rubin says, adding, “When someone thinks that you were a trans woman aka man, then it suddenly gets offensive.”
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