Kamusha

As some of y'all know I am trans and just happen to teach in the state of Florida. For those who keep up with the news the political environment in Florida is getting kinda nasty towards trans people, especially in the field of education. And now it is against the law for me to even tell students my pronouns. Because of this openly and visibly queer teachers are now being seen as a potential liability by administrators. Last school year we had a new assistant principal come in and she hated me from the beginning. She was very religious and would never make an effort to use my preferred pronouns (which itself is a Title IX violation). I had several students tell me that both the principal and vice principal would openly refer to me as "Mr. _________", and when students would try to correct them they would be dismissive. It was already a bad environment. So at the end of the year, in the middle of a teacher shortage, they chose not to renew my contract with the school. It's the easiest way for a school to let go of a teacher who didn't do anything worthy of being fired. They don't even have to give a reason for not renewing the contract. In my heart I feel like they wanted me gone from the beginning but didn't have a good reason to fire me so they wait till the end of the year to quietly let me go. Firing me for being trans would be a Title IX violation, so if they wanted me gone for being trans then this would be the best way to do it. This summer has been tough as I'm realizing just how difficult it is to find a job as a visibly queer teacher. I've had 11 job interviews with no call backs. And I feel like most of them went very well, actually. I'm pretty charming and disarming in person, and a few of the principals I met with even commented on how I have a great energy about me. But in the end chose not to hire me. It became baffling after the first few interviews, but after 11 it became to feel more and more like discrimination. In the middle of a teacher shortage there should be no reason for this. I never had any sort of difficulty before. While I suspected there would be a time I couldn't teach in Florida anymore, I didn't expect it to be this year. And to be honest, it's probably best for me not to return. I'm currently searching for nonprofit work with an organization whose values align with my own, so I don't have to be worried about losing my job over who I am. Hopefully something works out soon. I wanted to share because I want to raise awareness as to what's happening in Florida and just how bad the environment is for openly queer teachers. It's not something that's being properly covered in the news.

I don’t think any of us did. But openly deriding the teachings of Jesus is a different level of extremism than we’ve have seen before. And I say that as someone who was raised Southern Baptist. This is not normal, even for them.

DeSantis suspends another elected prosecutor in move derided as ‘politically motivated’ - POLITICO WWW.POLITICO.COM The governor suspended a state attorney just a day after reshuffling his campaign. This is the second elected prosecutor that he's removed for political reasons.

100% this. Like, yes, this guy does suck and is still pretty conservative. But the the fact that sucky people like him are alarmed by what's happening is an indication that the evangelical movement is becoming more and more extremist.

Afghanistan could have been done better but it was a long time coming. Republicans seem to forget that now only did Trump promise a withdrawal as well, he also also initially coitized Biden for not pulling out sooner. I make sure to gently remind any Republican of this when they are ranting about Afghanistan. Inflation is a global issue. But yes it sucks, and DeSantis's state has the highest inflation rate in the US. The border issue is only gonna get worse as global warming increases and we have more climate refugees leaving countries they can no longer live in.

Good new for America, bad news for Florida. He seems to think that the only way to bring up his poll numbers is by being more extreme. 8th place amongst black republican voters is pretty hilarious tho.

I agree that he's complicit but someone leaving a cult and speaking out against it is always a good thing. If we want more Christians to speak out against Trump we can't immediately admonish them for not speaking out sooner. I'm not saying we should give him a medal and treat him like an hero, but creating a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario is not going to encourage anyone to leave and speak out.

Can someone explain what “zuck my *tongue emoji*” is supposed to mean?

The Bible makes more sense when you view it as a large collection of books written by different authors in different time periods, chosen to be grouped together by religious leaders for political reasons, and not as a singular work.

Pastor alarmed after Trump-loving congregants deride Jesus' teachings as 'weak' - Raw Story - Celebrating 19 Years of Independent Journalism WWW.RAWSTORY.COM Evangelicals for year have show with their actions that they do not value the teachings of Jesus, but now many are outright saying it.

Joe Rogan explains why backlash to Barbie movie is ‘appalling’ - Dexerto WWW.DEXERTO.COM Joe Rogan discussed the Barbie movie backlash with Post Malone during his podcast, stating he was “appalled” by the outrage. Looks like Barbie has a fan in… Joe Rogan??

I love Woody but this is not surprising. He’s been known as a little loony for a while now, and more recently he’s made anti-vax comments. Woody Harrelson Makes His Fifth SNL Monologue Anti-Vaxx WWW.VULTURE.COM This is a man who once shared the conspiracy theory that 5G spreads COVID, so.

If they haven’t finished the new season or haven’t recorded all or most of his lines then they should just cancel it altogether. You can’t recast him and you can’t have King of the Hill without Dale.

You’re not gonna like this, but the answer is Matthew McConaughey.

Florida Department of Education says districts can teach AP Psych. Does law say otherwise? WWW.JACKSONVILLE.COM The Florida Department of Education said districts could teach AP Psychology. But is that true, under Florida law? While districts are being told they can teach AP Psychology it must be done in a way that is “age appropriate”, however what is age appropriate or isn’t is not clearly defined. Teachers are worried they could still be considered breaking the law by teaching the course in full.

It's a perfectly fine movie with a few moments and sequences that made me giddy as a fan. But very light, with the most memorable part being a song that Jack Black probably wrote in five minutes.

Up until this fiasco I don't think the average Floridian was even aware that Don't Say Gay/Trans had been expanded to all grade levels. It was easier to sell the public on not teaching younger children about sexuality but most people would find banning any mention of sexuality and gender in even a senior level class to be way too extreme.

This is the strangest poem I’ve ever read.

Calling empathy arrogance has to be the most male opinion I have ever read Like it’s so unintentionally satirical that it sounds like something Ken would say in the Barbie movie.

'I can't die like this': Video shows trans man beaten by deputy during stop WWW.LATIMES.COM The incident in Whittier is the latest in a string of controversial force incidents involving Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies.

For what it’s worth the charges against him were dropped.

Hollywood’s Slo-Mo Self-Sabotage | The New Yorker WWW.NEWYORKER.COM Since the streaming era, movies and television feel less special, labor conditions have plummeted, and turbulent mergers and layoffs call into question which legendary... An excellent but very depressing read. Hollywood execs need this strike so that they can be stopped from making such unsustainable decisions. The studios won’t survive if they continue down this route.

I know a lot of women who cried during this movie, myself included.

I’ve never seen The Goonies. I feel like I missed my chance with that one.