Gay couple’s farm vandalized with medical waste & human feces on election night

As Virginia Democrats celebrated big wins both at home and in other closely watched races across the country following Tuesday’s off-year elections, one gay couple in the state woke Wednesday morning to find that their farm had been vandalized — and not for the first time.

“It’s medical waste that is strewn all the way across the entrance of our farm,” Kevin Graham, the owner, along with his husband Dragan Kurbalija, of Gardening Gays Farm, told The Advocate. “There are bedsheets that have human feces and urine on them. You can smell the human waste while you’re out there standing near it.”

The couple, who bought the 27-acre farm on U.S. 301 in conservative King George County four years ago, told the outlet they believe this was an intentional act of anti-LGBTQ+ hate.

“It does not appear to be an accident,” Graham said. “You look up and down the roadway, and everywhere else is completely clear. The trash is only at our entrance.”

“Nobody puts human feces in a regular trash bag and drives it on the back of a truck to the dump,” Kurbalija added. “It definitely feels personal.”

King George County residents voted Gardening Gays Farm the county’s Overall Best Business, Best Family-Owned Business, and Best Agricultural Business this year.

But at the same time, this isn’t the first act of defacement they’ve endured. In a video posted to the farm’s Facebook account, Kurbalija explained that the couple found trash strewn at the farm’s entrance a few weeks ago.

“It seemed like an isolated incident, perhaps,” Kurbalija says in the clip, “but today, this is very intentional, very deliberate.”

The fact that the latest incident came on the heels of a Democratic sweep in Tuesday’s elections is not lost on Graham and Kurbalija. In Virginia, former U.S. Rep. and LGBTQ+ ally Abigail Spanberger (D) beat outgoing Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears to become the state’s first female governor. Democratic candidates also won the races for the state’s lieutenant governor and attorney general, and Democrats also increased their majority in the Virginia House of Delegates, flipping at least 13 seats.

But, as The Advocate notes, Earle-Sears — whose campaign leaned heavily on anti-trans rhetoric cribbed from the president’s 2024 campaign — managed to carry King George County by a double-digit margin.

“We don’t lean into or talk politics with anybody,” Graham told the outlet. “But the fact that this happens after an election day, with what took place here in Virginia last night, really rubs you the wrong way even more than it would’ve on any other regular Wednesday.”

Still, Graham said he and Kurbalija are confident in their community’s support for Gardening Gays Farm. “They have our back, and there are people in this town who speak up for us when we’re not in the room.”

In the video posted to the farm’s Facebook account, Kurbalija explained that the couple called their business “Gardening Gays Farm” to make it clear to anyone who comes through their gates exactly who they are.

“When we moved into this community four years ago, we came, pulled up our boots, and got right to work, providing a safe space, providing a service, providing something that we thought this community needed and wanted,” Kurbalija said. “None of this is ever going to stop us from what we’re doing.”

November 6, 2025 0

Jonathan Joss Dead at 59; Husband Alleges Hate Crime

*This is reported by Instinct.

Actor Jonathan Joss, best known as the voice of John Redcorn in King of the Hill, has died following a fatal shooting in San Antonio, Texas. He was 59. The tragic news was first reported by TMZ, citing a dispute between neighbors as the initial cause of the altercation.

Joss, also known for his role as Ken Hotate on Parks and Recreation, was shot on the afternoon of June 1 near his home on Dorsey Drive. According to a police report from the San Antonio Police Department, officers were dispatched to the scene in response to an active shooting. When they arrived, they found Joss with gunshot wounds to the neck and torso. Witnesses say three shots were fired. He later succumbed to his injuries.

The suspect, identified as Sigfredo Ceja Alvarez, was alleged to have shot Joss after what appeared to be an altercation. Though early police statements cited a disagreement as a possible motive, Joss’s husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, has since claimed the shooting was a hate crime fueled by ongoing homophobic harassment.

In a heartfelt public statement shared via Joss’s official Facebook page, Tristan detailed the harrowing moments leading up to the shooting. He wrote that the two were at the site of their former home, which had burned down earlier in January. While retrieving mail, the couple came across the skull and harness of one of their beloved dogs, sparking visible grief.

“We began yelling and crying in response to the pain of what we saw,” Tristan said. “While we were doing this, a man approached us. He started yelling violent homophobic slurs at us. He then raised a gun from his lap and fired.” Tristan claimed Joss saved his life by pushing him out of the way.

Tristan went on to describe years of harassment from individuals in the area and repeated threats to burn their home down, which he says were reported to law enforcement but not acted upon.

The San Antonio Police Department, however, has publicly stated that there is currently “no evidence to indicate that Mr. Joss’s murder was related to his sexual orientation.” The statement posted to X (formerly Twitter) emphasized that SAPD investigators “handle these allegations very seriously” and will reclassify the charges if new evidence supports a hate crime motive.

Still, the area’s residents noted that Joss had struggled publicly in recent months. SAPD confirmed that they had responded to at least 40 calls involving Joss’s residence since January 2024, ranging from mental health checks to neighborhood disturbances and a house fire. Yet between February and the fatal June incident, no additional calls were logged.

Despite these complexities, many neighbors expressed sadness over Joss’s death. One long-time resident told San Antonio News,

“He was just very loud, very loud. But we knew how he was… we wouldn’t disturb him. Even if he looked at us, talked mess to us, we just ignored him because we knew that’s how he was.”

For fans around the world, Joss will be remembered as a cultural icon who gave voice to underrepresented communities. His performances — rich, bold, and deeply human — left a mark on television history. His husband’s words paint a picture of a man who, despite personal struggles, deeply valued love, community, and legacy.

“He gave me more love in our time together than most people ever get,” Tristan said. “Jonathan saved my life. I will carry that forward. I will protect what he built.”

Joss’s death is currently under active investigation.

June 3, 2025 0

Police arrest suspect accused of attempting to set fire to queer bar just days after its opening

This blog is originally appeared at LGBTQ Nation

“There are many people who clearly do not want us to be here.”

Police in Santa Cruz, California, have charged 45-year-old James Eason with vandalizing The Neighbor’s, a queer bar, just days after it opened. Eason faces charges of vandalism, arson, and committing a hate crime.

The incident occurred early last Tuesday morning when a suspect set fire to a button panel outside the bar’s front door, which is used to assist disabled patrons. The vandal also attempted to push burning napkins through the door’s cracks and carved a homophobic slur into the glass, according to bar owner Frankie Farr, who spoke with Lookout.

“I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding, we’re not even open a week,’” Farr said. “[We are] still a bit in shock that it happened so quickly… There are clearly many people who do not want us to exist.”

They contacted the police, and detectives were able to identify the suspect after reviewing surveillance footage from nearby businesses. At the time Eason was named a suspect in the vandalism, he was already in custody at the county jail for an unrelated offense.

The bar opened in early December with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley, City Councilmember Sonja Brunner, and more than 100 patrons eager to explore the new space.

Although the city is home to LGBTQ+-inclusive businesses, Farr felt there was a lack of dedicated spaces for queer individuals to meet, socialize, and build a sense of community. In addition to offering food and serving as a performance venue for regional DJs, queer performers, and drag artists, Farr hopes the bar can also support environmental and social movements and attract LGBTQ+ tourists to Santa Cruz.

“It’s pretty depressing to think of all these people driving over the hill or all the way to San Francisco just to find [queer] community when we have it right here,” Farr said.

Months before the opening, Farr shared, “I really want [the bar] to be a place for people who aren’t out or in unsafe situations where they can’t disclose their sexuality to family or others they live with—where they can give a sly little wave and say, ‘I’m just going to hang out at The Neighbor’s.’”

Despite the attack, the bar resumed normal business hours right away. Farr expressed gratitude that the incident wasn’t worse.

“We’re very fortunate that nobody was inside,” Farr said. “However, there are apartments above, and those residents don’t deserve this either. They could have been seriously injured.”

January 13, 2025 0

Neo-Nazis Learned That Not Every Black Man In Florida Is On Board With Their Nonsense

This blog is originally appeared at The Root

A clip shared on social media over the weekend shows a Black individual confronting a Neo-Nazi group in Orlando, Fla.

Trigger Warning: This story contains quotes of racist and homophobic slurs.

Those neo-Nazis just can’t help but spread their racist, sexist, homophobic, bigoted, and white supremacist views wherever they go.

But over the weekend, one Black individual who came across them was not having it.

On Saturday, a neo-Nazi group was spotted marching off a highway near a suburb of Orlando, Fla. In videos recorded by residents and journalists, the Nazis, holding swastika flags, can be heard repeatedly shouting “Faggots!” and “White Power!” while also performing the Nazi salute.

More than halfway through the clip, another demonstrator can also be heard shouting, “Vote for Ron DeSantis!”

As a Black man drove past the demonstration, he slowed down to voice his opinion, using a speaker in his car to shout at the neo-Nazis. In the video, when it became clear he was stopping to confront the group, several of the marchers began shouting, “Nigger! Nigger!”

In response, the Black man, driving a Black truck, smiled and shouted, “Why y’all got on masks though?! Why y’all got on masks though?! Why y’all got on masks though?!”

According to Newsweek, the individuals “protesting” are members of the Goyim Defense League (an antisemitic hate group) and the Blood Tribe (a neo-Nazi group).

As more details emerge about the shooter in the tragic Jacksonville incident, and with Newsweek reporting that the Orlando area has seen an increase in far-right protests, it’s clear that members of these hate groups are growing increasingly brazen—masking their faces, but still making their presence known.

Ryan Christopher Palmeter, the individual responsible for fatally shooting three Black people in Jacksonville, Fla. last weekend, used an assault rifle adorned with a swastika and hurled racial slurs at his victims before killing them.

As we’ve seen with other hate crimes, it only takes one dangerous white supremacist to inflict a lifetime of pain on communities they view as outsiders.

December 3, 2024 0

Alleged Assault at Shake Shack: Gay Man Reportedly Beaten After Kissing His Boyfriend

This blog originally appeared at LGBTQ NATION.

A video of the incident shows the disturbing assault, with multiple men stomping and kicking the victim as he defensively curls into a fetal position.

A gay man in Washington, D.C., was allegedly assaulted by a group of Shake Shack employees in Dupont Circle after sharing a kiss with his boyfriend while waiting for their food. The incident occurred on Saturday when 28-year-old Christian Dingus, a D.C. resident, attempted to defuse a confrontation between an employee who had objected to the kiss and his boyfriend, who was upset by the employee’s remark.

While we were back there in the restaurant — just for a moment — we began to kiss,” Dingus told NBC News. “At that point, a worker approached us and said, ‘You can’t be doing that here, can’t do that type of stuff here.

Dingus’ boyfriend defended their actions, stating they had done nothing wrong, which led to the two men being escorted outside. As tensions escalated, Dingus told an employee not to speak disrespectfully to his boyfriend. It was then that the Shake Shack employees allegedly began attacking him.

“One of the men forcefully pushed me on my shoulder,” Dingus recalled. “Next thing I know, that seemed to spark the rest of them. They all just started attacking me, dragging me across the floor and continuously punching me in the head.”

A video taken by another patron captured the assault, showing Dingus being knocked to the ground and assaulted by several men, who are then seen running outside to continue the attack.

“There was a clear desire to be violent towards me, and I think it’s very evident in the video,” Dingus remarked.

Dingus explained that after being thrown to the ground, he curled up into a “fetal position” and waited for the attack to end. While he wasn’t sure who stopped the beating, a woman dining at Shake Shack came to his aid, and the person who recorded the video offered it to him.

The incident is being investigated as a hate crime, with police classifying it as a simple assault with an anti-gay bias, according to the Metropolitan Police Department’s report.

A Shake Shack spokesperson stated that all employees involved were suspended pending further review. “We are aware of the incident on Saturday, Aug. 17, at our Dupont Circle location and are taking it very seriously,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “At Shake Shack, the safety and well-being of our guests and team members are our top priority, and we have a zero-tolerance policy for any form of violence.” The company is committed to taking appropriate action based on the findings.

Though an ambulance arrived on the scene, Dingus declined to take it. Later that day, after experiencing severe pain in his jaw, he visited the emergency room, where he was diagnosed with a concussion and trauma to his jaw. The emotional impact of the assault has also been significant.

“You hear all the time that this stuff happens, but I had started to believe it didn’t,” Dingus shared. “I’d been thinking of progress and how great the community is here, and for that to all be shattered like this—it really sucks.”