COVID-19 vaccines: the dilemma when thinking as a patient

What is the truth about the conspiracy theory of the COVID-19 microchip vaccine? The outbreak of the COVID-19 witnessed a vicious race of pharmaceutical firms to develop a vaccine that ends this disaster. Claims were forwarded that some firms funded by well-known foundations are in the process of developing such a vaccine so people wide world can be tracked. Such claims may have been based on Mr. Bill Gate’s announcement in an interview that through vaccination "we will have some digital certificates" which would be used to show who had recovered, been tested and ultimately who received a vaccine but he made no mention of microchips. The conspiracy theory is spreading around the world and its supporters are on the increase among the public as well as many healthcare professionals. The spread of the virus has been attributed to the introduction of 5G technology and many religious leaders attributed the crisis to punishment from God to the spread of local wars and mass killing, torturing and killing of Muslims in China and Myanmar gay and lesbian movement and marriages.

“Caring for Our Own”

This article traces the founding of Senior Action in a Gay Environment (SAGE), the nation’s oldest and largest social service organization for LGBT elders. Drawing on archival documentation as well as interviews with SAGE founders and early members, the article shows how SAGE was born of two largely disconnected social transformations: the gay and lesbian movement and the national expansion of services and programs for the elderly that was enabled by the Older Americans Act of 1965. SAGE’s institutionalization and its relationship with the state allowed it to grow in an increasingly conservative political context while ensuring that the organization would not take a broadly intersectional approach to the challenges gay and lesbian elders faced. Despite its political limitations, however, SAGE provided a setting in which some white gay and lesbian elders began to see themselves as agents of social change.

Hellish Evil, Heavenly Love: A Long-Term History of Same-Sex Sexuality and Religion in the Netherlands

This chapter offers an overview of changes in Dutch perceptions of, and attitudes toward, same-sex sexuality and the part religion played in them. It discusses landmark events and publications from 1730—when “sodomy” became a public issue—until the present. It describes the evolution of discourse on same-sex sexuality, with special reference to the earliest publications on “homosexuality,” alias “Uranism,” which often referred to religion. In the twentieth century, Roman Catholic and Protestant opposition to homosexual emancipation gradually gave way to sympathy, and in the 1960s some pastors were vocal advocates of acceptance. In the early 1970s, homosexuality became a doctrinal issue, a religious identity marker. Polarization was exacerbated in the late 1970s, which saw the rise of both the gay and lesbian movement and religious fundamentalism. “Discursive associations” between religion—including Judaism and Islam—and homosexuality are brought to light partly by means of quantitative content analysis of newspapers.

Activism in Southwestern Queer and Trans Young Adults After the Marriage Equality Era

In 2015, marriage equality in the United States was a big win for the gay and lesbian movement. Marriage equality as a primary focus of the movement, however, was not without its critiques, particularly as an issue affecting mostly white, gay, economically secure individuals. Given the history of the movement, it is essential to ask what is next. Young queer and trans people represent the next generation of potential activists and advocates for queer and trans liberation, yet little empirical attention has been paid to their goals for the movement and motivations to be actively involved, particularly among young adults in rural, conservative states. Therefore, this study sought to understand the social, economic, and environmental issues deemed important by queer and trans young adults (aged 18–29), as well as their motivations to get involved in activism efforts. Data came from a mixed-methods program evaluation, which presents a picture of the issues and motivations that led study participants ( n = 65) toward activism in one conservative, highly rural, Southwestern state in the United States. The findings of this study are discussed in light of theoretical and empirical literature and then implications for the queer and trans movement, activists, and organizers are offered.

The Politics of Authenticity: Civic Individualism and the Cultural Roots of Gay Normalization

This article examines the politics of authenticity by focusing on civic individualism and the cultural roots of gay normalization. It introduces the notion of a “cultural code” to understand something of the cultural grounds of postwar gay and lesbian politics and argues that “civic individualism” has been a dominant cultural code in contemporary America. The article begins with a discussion of the founding moment in the gay and lesbian movement: the appearance of the first national political organizations in the 1950s. It then considers the emergence of gay liberationism in the late 1960s and early 1970s that challenged the American culture of civic individualism. It also looks at the rise of a politics of mainstreaming for lesbians and gays during the 1970s and 1980s as well as the triumph of the politics of virtue for the movement during the 1990s.