“THERE ARE NOT TWO SIDES” -- CHILLING NEW HRC VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS TRUMP’S EMBRACE OF RACISTS, ANTI-SEMITES, NEO-NAZIS AND HOMOPHOBES: Donald Trump has left no question this week as to where he stands - with white supremacists, bigots, anti-Semites and homophobes, and their violent, deadly actions in Charlottesville.  Trump has been normalizing and encouraging hatred and violence for far too long. With his despicable comments in the aftermath of Charlottesville, and his embrace of advisors affiliated with the white supremacist movement -- Steve Bannon, Sebastian Gorka and Stephen Miller -- Trump is embracing and defending the worst undercurrents of our society. Watch the powerful video here.

This is the hate & violence you're inspiring & defending, @realDonaldTrump. Abhorrent. pic.twitter.com/72kjWfJaRh

— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) August 17, 2017

• This morning, Trump doubled down on his embrace of racists and white supremacists, tweeting a rant against the removal of racist statues and monuments.
• The President’s Strategic and Policy Forum and Manufacturing Advisory Council, Trump’s business advisory groups, have disbanded over his reckless and dangerous comments in the wake of Charlottesville. More from Axios.
• A resolution to censure Trump over his response to Charlottesville will be introduced in Congress. Only three presidents in our nation’s history have been censured. More from BuzzFeed.

PENCE STANDS WITH TRUMP AND HIS NEO-NAZI, RACIST, ANTI-SEMITIC SUPPORTERS: Mike Pence has now indisputably aligned himself with Donald Trump and his neo-Nazi, racist, anti-Semitic supporters, saying to reporters during an appearance in Chile yesterday,  “I stand with the president and I stand by those words.” Pence was responding to a question about Trump’s comments this week on the events in Charlottesville, including his unhinged assertions that there were “fine people” in the mob of white supremacists and anti-Semites who gathered there last weekend. To stand with the President is to stand with white supremacy. More from Deadline.

There are no two sides, @mikepence. You either stand with @realDonaldTrump and racists, anti-Semites, bigots or you stand up to them. https://t.co/0SiTDh8j9Z

— Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) August 16, 2017

MOTHER OF DOMESTIC TERROR VICTIM HEATHER HEYER --- “WE’RE GOING TO MAKE HER DEATH COUNT”: Yesterday, the world came together to honor Heather Heyer, murdered by a domestic terrorist in Charlottesville, as she was laid to rest. Heyer’s mother delivered a powerful eulogy, saying, “They tried to kill my child to shut her up. Well, guess what? You just magnified her… I’d rather have my child, but, by golly, if I got to give her up -- we’re gonna make it count.” More from ABC.

• Standing on the right side of history: At a vigil on the University of Virginia campus last night, there was an outpouring of love and unity, in contrast to the white supremacist hate on display there just days ago. Watch here.

The scene at UVA. Wow. #Charlotteville pic.twitter.com/hsSnyxMyUP

— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) August 17, 2017

HRC’S GROUNDBREAKING CONFERENCE SUPPORTING LGBTQ YOUTH TO BE HELD IN ORLANDO: The HRC Foundation, in partnership with the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Counseling Association (ACA), will hold its nationally-acclaimed Time to THRIVE Conference February 16-18 at the Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek in Orlando. Toyota will again be a presenting sponsor. “As we approach the back to school season, counselors, teachers, social workers and other professionals know they are on the front lines of creating safe and inclusive spaces where our LGBTQ youth can live, learn and thrive,” said Vincent Pompei, Director of HRC's Youth Well-Being Project and Time to THRIVE conference chair. More from HRC.

THROWBACK THURSDAY: TIME and the ACLU have teamed up with transgender trailblazer Laverne Cox (@LaverneCox) to create a stunning video history of the transgender movement, titled “Time Marches Forward & So Do We.” The video, which begins at the historic Stonewall Uprising, shares the message, “They remind us of our courageous history of resisting institutionalized bullying and oppression.” Watch here.

ICYMI -- TEXAS LEGISLATURE ENDS SPECIAL SESSION WITHOUT PASSING ANTI-TRANS BILL: The Texas Legislature adjourned its special session on Tuesday, and, due to the outpouring of opposition from Texans from all walks of life, anti-transgender legislation is dead for this session. Yesterday, HRC and its coalition partners -- Texas Freedom Network and  Transgender Education Network of Texas -- joined for a rally in Austin to reaffirm that they will continue to thwart any attempts in the Texas legislature to discriminate against LGBTQ people. All while recognizing that this was a difficult session for many Texans -- especially for women and immigrants -- and several harmful bills did get signed into law. HRC has had more than a dozen staff on the ground in Austin, and, with scores of volunteer organizers, has been leading field organizing efforts around the state to defeat these anti-LGBTQ bills. More from HRC, Glamour and BuzzFeed.

A chorus of opposition helped prevent an anti-transgender bill from becoming law in Texas. #txlege #yallmeansall https://t.co/PzGHCyup1T pic.twitter.com/VfNTXhilwQ

— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) August 16, 2017

• Check out HRC’s graphic highlighting the thousands of voices that spoke out against TX’s anti-LGBTQ legislation here.
• Congressman Joaquin Castro (D-TX) sent a special message to LGBTQ Texans and the countless people who spoke out against anti-transgender bills during the special session. Watch here.

LOUISIANA GOVERNOR APPEALS RULING BANNING LGBTQ-INCLUSIVE EXECUTIVE ORDER: Governor John Bel Edwards is appealing a ruling by Judge Todd Hernandez of the 19th Judicial District Court striking down an executive order protecting LGBTQ state workers and contractors from discrimination. More from The Associated Press.

MAN ARRAIGNED ON HATE CRIME CHARGES FOLLOWING HORRIFYING THREATS: Daniel Silvera threatened to sexually assault New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, murder her family and murder the city’s LGBTQ police officers. More from The Associated Press.

UGANDA PRIDE CANCELED FOLLOWING POLICE THREATS: The organizers released a statement saying, “Sadly, even all the courage and determination that we carry in our hearts is not enough to put the lives of so many innocent people at risk. This morning, we woke up to a tirade of police surrounding the venue of the opening gala and later in the day even as talks with Police and other relevant authorities were ongoing, more deployment was made to the venues of the events that were to follow.” Read the full statement here.

AUSTRALIAN ANTI-MARRIAGE EQUALITY COALITION MISTAKENLY USES BISEXUAL PRIDE FLAG AS LOGO: More from Independent.

NIGERIAN LGBTQ ADVOCATE GRANTED ASYLUM IN UNITED KINGDOM: Aderonke Apata had been seeking asylum in the country for 13 years, but was thwarted several times by a judge who asserted Apata was “faking” her sexual orientation. More from Reuters.

LIBYAN LGBTQ ADVOCATE GRANTED ASYLUM IN GERMANY: The advocate, who asked that his name not to be published, was quickly granted asylum. He left Libya -- one of the countries included in Trump’s Muslim travel ban -- after being targeted by ISIS. More from Washington Blade.

READING RAINBOW

HRC Welcoming Schools shares resources for teachers and school administrators on creating LGBTQ-inclusive environments; Advocate lists the 50 most influential LGBTQ people in media

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