Quickies: Scotland to Recognize Non-Binary Genders, The Simpson’s Smither’s Comes Out, More Anti-LGBT State Bills

• Scotland FM Pledges Transgender Law Reforms – Under First Minister Nicola Sturgeon proposed reforms, Scotland will recognize nonbinary genders on legal documents such as passports and birth certificates, and it will become easier for transgender people to change their birth certificates.
• The Simpsons‘s Smithers Finally Comes Out – “When Waylon Smithers Jr. finally comes out Sunday night after 27 years in the closet on “The Simpsons,” he won’t be the only one celebrating. Longtime show writer Rob LaZebnik tells The Post he penned the episode in support of his own 21-year-old son, Johnny, who is gay.”
• Mississippi Legislature Passes Draconian “Religious Freedom” Bill – “This law not only protects discrimination against LGBT people, but against any person who has sex outside of marriage. It also makes it easier for employers and schools to strictly police the way you dress to make sure it’s masculine or feminine enough. If your boss thinks proper ladies wear make-up, he can cite “religious freedom” as a reason to force you to do so, and the law will protect him for it.” The governor has not yet signed the bill into law, but he has indicated his intent to do so.
• Same-Sex Couples Can Now Adopt in All 50 States – “A federal judge on Thursday ruled the only remaining same-sex adoption ban in the country — in Mississippi — unconstitutional, halting enforcement of the ban.”
• George Mason U to Rename Law School in Honor of Antonin Scalia – Apparently, it was Koch Brother money that convinced them to do it.
• North Carolina Risks Federal Funding With Discriminatory Law – “The Obama administration is considering whether North Carolina’s new law on gay and transgender rights makes the state ineligible for billions of dollars in federal aid for schools, highways and housing, officials said Friday.”
• “The Myth of the Queer Arab Life” – “Like everywhere else in the world, sexual identities in the Middle East intersect with class, gender, and the complex interplay of private and public, making it impossible to speak of a singular ‘queer Arab’ experience.”
• GLAAD Honors Caitlyn Jenner and Jazz Jennings – Jenner and Jennings both won awards for their respective reality TV shows. I had to smirk when I saw that Jenner was heckled during her acceptance speech.
• Jenner to Appear on Season 3 of Transparent – Speaking of out of touch transgender people and projects…
• Sweden Shows Pride with Rainbow Postage Stamp – “The postal service serving Sweden and Denmark is issuing what it believes is the world’s first postage stamp featuring the LGBTI rainbow pride flag and will make it available to customers as soon as 4 May.”

Featured image from The Simpsons