Welcome, GO readers, to our revamped weekly roundup of the biggest lesbian, bisexual, queer, and transgender women’s news and entertainment stories! We’ll be recapping the biggest hits each week and talking to the newsmakers, movers, and shakers behind them.
Harvey Weinstein Allegedly Told Cara Delevigne She’d Never “Make It” If She Was Gay
The New York Times reported late last week on a number of women who accused movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment and assault. Ashley Judd, Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie are just a few who detailed allegations in which Weinstein invited them to meetings at a hotel and acted inappropriately. In another report that followed in The New Yorker, writer Ronan Farrow spoke with three women who alleged that Weinstein raped them. The investigations follow roughly two decades of rumors that have followed the producer, who is known for his outsize presence in Hollywood.
Now, out actress and model Cara Delevingne has added her voice to the chorus of women who’ve come forward. In an Instagram post, Delevingne wrote that early on her in career, Weinstein allegedly called her and warned her about her sexual orientation. “…he said to me that If I was gay or decided to be with a woman especially in public that I’d never get the role of a straight woman or make it as an actress in Hollywood,” she wrote. About a year after the call, Delevingne wrote that Weinstein invited her to a hotel room with another woman. “He asked us to kiss and she began some sort of advances upon his direction…He walked me to the door and stood in front of it and tried to kiss me on the lips,” she wrote.
Delevingne’s accusations underscore how LGBTQ women also face sexual harassment and how Weinstein allegedly attempted to weaponize rumors about Delevingne’s sexual orientation against her. While Weinstein presents a unique scope of accusations — and businesses that allegedly knew about his behavior — the accounts are a reminder that we live in a rape culture. There are so many women who, unlike many of Weinstein’s accusers, don’t have their names on marquees, and face harassment and gender-based discrimination. The women who have come forward in Hollywood and beyond are, simply put, courageous.
Happy National Coming Out Day!
Wednesday was National Coming Out Day, a celebration of being out and proud in the world. Many lesbians, bi, trans and queer women posted on Twitter about their experiences. “Come out as gay. Come out as trans. Come out as supporting equality. We need your voices now,” Ellen Degeneres wrote. In the spirit of the day, I came out to my family as bisexual and queer about seven years ago. It was hard — and awkward — but I’m proud to be my authentic self in all aspects of my life. I wouldn’t say that I came out “of the closet.” Rather that, in not loving queer people, the world built three walls and a door around me.
Why Everyone Is Talking About Netflix & The Marsha P. Johnson Documentary
Over the weekend, Netflix released a documentary about the mysterious death of trans icon Marsha P. Johnson. The film, The Death & Life of Marsha P. Johnson, was directed by David France, who was behind the Oscar-nominated documentary How To Survive A Plague. In response, Reina Gossett, an activist and director of the film Happy Birthday, Marsha!, accused France of ripping off decades of her research on the topic, while France posted that he’d be working on the film before he knew of her work. With an op-ed for Teen Vogue and THEM, Gossett is inspiring a larger conversation about who gets to tell stories about lives on the margins. “It is more important now more than ever for trans and gender nonconforming people to be the architects of our own narratives,” Gossett wrote.
International Lesbian Day Is, Perhaps, The Best Day
October 8th was, possible, the most major and iconic day of the year… It was International Lesbian Day, a day to celebrate all things sapphic (I mean, even though some of us celebrate every day). Gorgeous lesbians from around the world tweeted about the community, sharing moments of history and visibility. After some seriously rough news, we can all use more celebrations of queer women in our lives.
Attorney General Jeff Session’s Memo On Religious Freedom
Another week, another time when the Trump administration walks back the rights of queer people in America. Sessions issued a guidance that federal agencies should protect religious liberty, including a “loophole” allowing them to ignore federal rules against gender-based discrimination and LGBTQ people, BuzzFeed reported. Advocates condemned the memo, saying that it makes it easier to discriminate under the guise of religion. In September, the Justice department sided with a Colorado baker who refused to provide services for a same-sex couple. It’s hard to keep up with all of the administration’s moves, but let’s stay vigilant, fam.
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