The Daily Moth 8-7-201
Trump visits Dayton and El Paso; Boy Scouts of America accused of sexual abuse cover-up; Cyntoia Brown released from prison; “The Stand” director defends hiring of hearing actor for deaf role; Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf 2019 Conference
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Hello, welcome to The Daily Moth! It is Wednesday, August 7. Ready for news?
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Trump visits Dayton and El Paso
President Trump visited Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas today to meet with local leaders, first responders, hospital staff, and to visit and console survivors of mass shootings. His visits were met with people protesting against him. There were people rallying in support for Trump as well. Democratic leaders also continued to criticize Trump, saying he has caused hate and division in the country.
In Dayton, Trump went to the Miami Valley Hospital and remained mostly out of sight of cameras. A representative for Trump said he and First Lady Melania spent almost two hours at the hospital and that there were powerful moments.
Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley (D) met with him briefly. Both said they told Trump there needs to be an assault-weapons ban and stronger background checks.
The Dayton Police Chief said the gunman who killed 9 people at a bar, Connor Betts, had an obsession with violence and mass shootings and had expressed a desire to commit a mass shooting. Authorities said they do not know what motivated him to shoot. ABC News reported that Betts also showed views that were very misogynic (anti-women).
A Twitter account linked to him shows left-wing political views, supporting antifa, being against police officers, and some statements of support for Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
President Trump said this morning that he doesn’t blame Warren or Sanders for the Ohio shootings. He said it is a mental problem.
After Trump’s Dayton visit, he flew to El Paso, which is the home of Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke, who has pointed at Trump as being partially responsible for inspiring the El Paso terrorist suspect, who appeared to have wrote an anti-immigrant manifesto. Trump tweeted at O’Rourke last night and told him to “be quiet!” O’Rourke replied that he will not be quiet.
During the flight, cable news aired former Vice President Joe Biden giving a speech in Iowa in which he said Trump has fanned the flames of white supremacy with his language and code. Trump responded on Twitter that Biden was very boring and would cause media to die in the ratings and clicks.
As of the time I am signing this news, President Trump arrived in El Paso. He went to the University Medical Center of El Paso to visit medical professionals and victims.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-lashes-out-at-beto-orourke-and-the-media-ahead-of-visits-to-el-paso-and-dayton/2019/08/07/b0aa8afc-b8fb-11e9-b3b4-2bb69e8c4e39_story.html
https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/05/us/connor-betts-dayton-shooting-profile/index.html
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/president-trump-visit-el-paso-dayton-wake-shootings/story?id=64807321
https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/dayton-el-paso-shootings-trump-visit/index.html
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1159177811573166081
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Boy Scouts of America accused of sexual abuse cover-up
About 800 men in the U.S. have accused scout leaders from the Boy Scouts of America of sexual abuse and of covering it up. There are several lawsuits against the organization.
Attorneys say there is a crisis in the BSA and that the organization has covered up abusers and still continue to protect them. A group of lawyers named Abused in Scouting said they have identified 350 scoutmasters and volunteers who are predators.
The BSA admitted that they have not always responded to allegations in the past and said they are now working with law enforcement. They said they do have a file of names of people who are alleged predators, but it appears that many of those names were never reported to police.
The BSA is one of the largest nonprofit organizations in the U.S., but could be forced to file for bankruptcy protection because of mounting lawsuits.
BSA: https://www.npr.org/2019/08/07/749041591/new-lawsuit-reveals-more-sexual-abuse-allegations-against-boy-scouts-of-america
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/boy-scouts-america-have-pedophile-epidemic-are-hiding-hundreds-its-n1039661
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Cyntoia Brown released from prison
Cyntoia Brown was released from a Nashville prison today after serving 15 years of a life sentence for shooting and killing a man who paid her for sex when she was 16.
Brown’s defense team and supporters have argued that the killing was self-defense and that she was a sex trafficking victim.
She received clemency from former Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam (R ) a few months ago. Haslam said the sentence was too harsh because she was a juvenile.
Brown was adopted as a child and ran away from her family when she was 16. She said she lived in a motel with a man who raped her and forced her to be a prostitute.
In 2004, A 43-year-old man, Johnny Allen, met Brown at a Sonic Drive-In, offered to pay her $150 for sex, then took her to his home.
Brown said that at one point in his bedroom, she thought Allen was reaching for a gun to kill her. Later, when Allen was asleep, Brown used her own handgun, which was in her purse, to shoot and kill Allen. She took money and two guns and fled.
She was arrested and tried as an adult on a first-degree murder charge and other charges. Prosecutors said she shot Allen as a part of a plan to rob him. Her defense team said it was to protect herself. In 2006, she was convicted and sentenced to life in prison, with her being eligible for parole in 2055.
In the years that followed, she started to receive media attention and a documentary about her life was released in 2011. Several celebrities including Rihanna and Kim Kardashian West spoke out in support for her. While in prison, Brown earned her GED and a bachelor’s degree. All this led to former Gov. Haslam’s decision to commute her sentence.
Allen’s family was opposed to this decision.
Now Brown is out of prison, but is still under supervised parole until 2029.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/07/us/cyntoia-brown-release.html
https://www.npr.org/2019/08/07/749025458/cyntoia-brown-released-after-15-years-in-prison-for-murder
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4MZMK-wVTo
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“The Stand” director defends hiring of hearing actor for deaf role
A Deaf man from Los Angeles, Jared Perez-DeBusk, had a brief conversation on Instagram with Josh Boone, the director of CBS’ upcoming “The Stand” series, which is based on a Stephen King novel.
They talked about the casting of a hearing actor, Henry Zaga, for a role of a deaf character, which has sparked backlash from multiple well-known Deaf actors.
Jared shared the exchange in a vlog and showed screenshots in the comments section.
He told Boone that he really hopes Henry Zaga will respect the character of Nick Andros and give the role to a talented Deaf actor so there can be 100% authenticity.
Boone responded that his intention is to honor King’s book. He explained that the deaf character, in his dreams and when he turns into a ghost, can speak and hear, so it is okay to have a hearing actor because the character is both deaf and hearing depending on whether he is asleep or awake. Boone said Henry Zaga is a dedicated actor, have been hard at work learning ASL, and that there would be consultants who are deaf on set.
Jared replied that as a deaf actor, it is almost impossible for him to book a job, and is very disappointed because this was a huge and rare opportunity to work with Boone. He said deaf actors can’t keep on being ignored.
Boone replied that Andros’ role was not as simple as hiring a deaf actor and that he was sorry for the frustration.
Jared said in his vlog that he was not able to change Boone’s mind. He questioned why it couldn’t be the other way — why not work with a deaf actor and work on his “hearing side?” He closed his vlog with telling Boone to spend less time feeling sorry and more time changing the world.
CAD Media said on Twitter that there would be a meeting today between “The Stand” team and CBS.
Jared’s Vlog: https://bit.ly/2KmlTYX
https://variety.com/2017/film/news/stephen-king-talisman-movie-writer-josh-boone-1202587687/
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6723114/
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Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf 2019 Conference
On July 16 to 21, the Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf (RAD) hosted a national conference in Austin, Texas at a DoubleTree by Hilton hotel.
RAD is a nonprofit organization established in 1977 that seeks to establish and maintain a society of deaf lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and other identities, to foster fellowship, defend their rights, and promote their social welfare.
The Daily Moth did an interview with RAD President Paul Kiel, who became the new president, taking over from the previous president Henry Carter.
ALEX:
How many people went and from which states and countries?
PAUL KIEL:
101 people showed up. Some were from Canada and from U.K. Most were from the U.S. It was a great crowd. The conference is biannual and is to help us know more about each other through workshops, meetings, changing the bylaws, to increase awareness of others, and to be together. That’s the purpose of our conferences since 1977. It was the 26th and the next conference will be the 27th.
ALEX:
You did mention in a previous discussion that it is important to support young LGBTQIA, that you don’t want to see them go into the wrong crowd or they might be going through hard times. Can you expand on this topic of deaf youths?
KIEL:
That’s a good question. It’s a crucial time in this year and this generation. Many young people are kicked out of their homes. Parents reject them, churches reject them, or friends reject them. They end up being alone. What happens to them? Their mental health might decline. What happens next? We must go and save their lives and show that we have a home. We’ll take care of you and help you with your identity. We’ll work with you as you grow up to become a leader of tomorrow. They can be leaders. It’s important to work with young people.
Alex: The conference had a keynote presentation by Michael Turgeon and four different workshops.
One workshop was led by José-Ovi Velasquez with the topic, “LGBTQUIA: ASL and Identification.” Here is a brief video from him on this topic.
JOŚE-OVI VELASQUEZ
I’m gay. But do I use this sign? No. I am gay. What is the difference between the sign and spelling it out? The signs for lesbian, what is the difference? How do you identify yourself? Suppose there is a same-sex husband couple who has a nephew and niece. Do they sign “uncle” twice? How do you identify yourself? “He’s my partner.” Or “He’s my husband?” Or “He’s my other half, his name is Shawn?” Which one? Which vocabulary do you use? What is the correct sign to identify yourself?
Alex: Another workshop was led by Taniel Stamatovic Wood with the topic, “The Greatest Misconception: LGBTQI vs Religion.” Here is a brief video from him on this topic.
TANIEL WOOD:
We are puzzled at why religious people are still prejudiced against us. Where is this coming from? It is an intense fear. Some parents have kicked out their teenagers or refuse to attend a same-sex wedding to celebrate. Where is this from? I will share my experiences of being in an independent, fundamentalist church. I used to be a part of it but quit it for good. I learned later and was shocked that they only use six verses to preach against us out of 31,000 Bible verses. That’s where it’s coming from. I will share how I protect them and myself from the prejudice. This workshop will clear up the misconceptions with the right tools and information so you can know what to do.
Alex: The conference honored Claudia Morton as the “Woman of the Year.” There was an entertaining “PHUN” event and attendees went out to visit several places in San Antonio and Austin.
Here are some images of the conference, which was provided by RAD.
[Images of RAD conference goers attending workshops and socializing]
Nice, that looks like a great time. Let’s go back to the interview with Kiel.
KIEL:
Bisexual, gay, lesbian, transsexual, and other people, please contact us and we can help you with your identity, to look into who you are and come out. If you’re “hidden” or whatever, you still know where you can ask for more questions and get answers on your sexual identity. We’ll help you with your identity. We’re here for this purpose.
We ask straight allies and those who are unsure about people’s sexual needs and desires to contact us and we’ll be happy to explain. Also, please call out those people who hurt us or bully us. We are innocent. We love people. We are peaceful. That’s all. If we are being bullied, we ask you straight allies to confront them.
Alex: Thank you for your time, Kiel. The next RAD conference will be in 2021. It has not yet been determined where it will take place.
If you’re interested to become a member of RAD or to learn more about the organization, you can go to their website at www.deafrad.org.
Website: www.deafrad.org
https://www.facebook.com/groups/RAD2019/
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That is all for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light!