Don’t Be Dumb at Brunch: A Roseanne Conundrum, Welcome the NFL’s Male Cheerleaders
Happy Sunday! Happy Easter! Happy April Fools’ Day! Do we wish people “Happy April Fools’ Day”? This week seemed to be all about Roseanne Barr and the reboot of her show. We cover that. as well as stories about Dan Reynolds of Imagine Dragons, the newest L.A. Rams cheerleaders and a new gay cruise. As always, we bring you our Whack Job of the Week. See who it is below.
Here are the week’s 5 news stories that’ll keep you looking well-informed at brunch:
1. The Roseanne Conundrum
The long awaited Roseanne reboot premiered this week to huge ratings. Over 18 million people tuned in to watch the Trump-loving Roseanne Barr, which makes it the most watched sitcom in more than three years.
Barr has been an outspoken supporter of Trump and the show certainly embraced that fact. Many in the LGBTQ community refused to watch the show and are boycotting it because of Barr’s transphobic views — even though they may have been fans of the original show.
We’ve seen quite a few back and forths on social media about this conundrum. After all, it’s executive produced by openly gay Sara Gilbert and the openly gay Wanda Sykes is its head writer. At least our side has the always funny Hillary supporter, Aunt Jackie, played by Laurie Metcalf. Plus we have our Thursday night reprieve in Will and Grace.
Of course, one person loved that the show had such HUGE ratings. Yup, the one and only President Trump called Barr to congratulate her on the ratings success. But let’s be honest, it’s more about his ego than Barr’s ratings. Let us know what you think. Are you watching?
2. Dragon Love
Dan Reynolds, lead singer of Imagine Dragons, waved a LGBTQ flag on stage in Brazil this past week as he continues to be a vocal supporter of the community. Reynolds, who was raised Mormon and is well aware of the orthodoxy, said, “I believe we all can be educated on the matter to create positive change.”
As a young man doing his missionary work in Omaha, he knocked on thousands of doors and told people being gay was a sin. Now, he can regularly be seen at events supporting The Trevor Project and GLAAD, where he tells the crowd he wishes he could re-knock on all those doors and tell them he was wrong. Reynolds was honored with the Trevor Project’s Hero Award last year and on stage he said, “Being gay is beautiful and right and perfect.” We’re believers and we love his story!
3. Let’s Hear it for the Boys!
Two openly gay California natives, Quinton Peron and Napolean Jinnies, will be the first men ever on a National Football League (NFL) cheerleading squad. These classically trained dancers were among 76 finalists who auditioned for the Los Angeles Rams.
“They really just fit the bill to be a Los Angeles Rams cheerleader. They are intelligent, they are eloquent, they are more than qualified to be ambassadors out in the community,” says Rams cheerleader captain Emily Leibert. “They bring so much energy, and there’s something so magnetic about their performance, you really can’t take your eyes off them.”
They will step onto the field when the official 2018 football season starts on Sept. 6. Check out their adorable audition video below:
4. Fall Plans?
Looks like Atlantis, the company that specializes in gay cruise adventures, has some new competition. This fall, the LGBT-friendly hotel chain Axel and one of Europe’s largest cruise lines, Dreamlines, are launching Open Seas Cruises.
Their first voyage sets sail on Sept. 29 in Barcelona, heading off on an eight-day adventure through the Mediterranean, including a two-night stay in Ibiza. Open Sea Cruises plans to offer great entertainment, fun parties and cool excursions. Plus contestants from RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars will be joining. Sign us up!
5. Our Whack Job of the Week: Pop Singer Aaron Carter
In a recent interview with the podcast The Hollywood Life, Aaron Carter says things were misconstrued last year when he came out as bisexual, and he isn’t open to the idea of dating a man in the future. His reason? Well, he wants to have a family. We guess Aaron is not aware of any LGBTQ people having families?
As we collectively shake our heads at Aaron, our community leaders need to call him out for his comments and make every effort to educate him on the fact that his comments are not helpful. He can certainly have a family in the future as a bisexual or gay man.
Carter needs to clarify his comments so that they do not demean the thousands of LGBTQ families out there who continue to fight for acceptance in their communities. If he is just uncomfortable with who he is or how he identifies, that’s another issue and there are plenty of resources to help him through that process.
