 I'm Linda Quinlan. All Things LGBTQ. It is Friday, May 25th, and we'll hook them. So I think we'll start with our headlines. Anna, you ready for the headlines? I certainly am. OK. Here they are. They're kind of, you know, it's been a down week in many places around the world. But MOLTA strengthens its top spot in the European Equality Ranking for LGBTI people. The UK Parliament shuts down the bid for marriage equality in Northern Ireland. French government minister Mounir Mahjabi comes out as gay. Minister Lakoto halts Uganda's 2018 event in honor of the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biophobia. And this worldwide event occurred on May 17th. And various countries had various responses that I'll tell you about. LGBT supporters in Tbilisi rally in honor of this day, despite fears of violence. Tbilisi, as you know, is in Chechnya. Violent far-right nationalists attack an event in Kiev. In the fate the police failed to intervene. 25 men arrested and camera roomed. Costa Ricans, this is good news, can now change their name and gender on official documents. I have two stories out of China. And the following headlines I probably won't get to the stories of, Lebanon's Gay Pride Week brought to a halt after a crackdown. LGBT Pride in Cuba, this was thousands turned out. I have a picture before you of Mariela Castro, Raul's daughter, who's a great LGBT activist and ally. She's in the car as thousands march joyfully in Havana. Pakistan's transgender rights law has been passed. Activists say it's a battle half one, because homophobia persists. But there's legal backing now for transgender rights in Pakistan. A Namibian organization opens the first LGBTI drop-in center on the international day against homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia. An Indian transgender wedding makes history. It's the first in India. And I have a picture before you now of Sunya and Ishan, Kay Sean, the happily married couple. Gender non-binary model, Mathusa Pasarelli, was killed in real. I have a picture of her. She was an art student and a model. She was 21. Her body was found burnt to death in a favela. And the clear indication, sorry, that it was a hate crime. They have a lot there, and it's really not a good place for transgender people or anybody else. Right. One person is killed every day in Brazil as a result of a hate crime. It's amazing. It's just horrible, horrible. Those are my headlines. All righty. I have, and we all remember Cynthia Nixon, I think, probably if you've seen Sex in the City. And she's running for governor of New York. So I wanted to start the headlines with her campaign slogan, which is, vote for the homo, not for the Cuomo. Cuomo, as we all know, is the president governor of New York. And he's been sort of in the pockets of the Republicans in Albany. So there's been a lot of criticism of his administration. Yeah, because even though it is a primarily Democratic representatives and stuff, somehow they can't get much done because of this coalition between, I think, him and the Republicans. So good luck, Cynthia. And people criticize her and say, oh, she's just an actor. But she's been an activist for many years. And people in New York know that, certainly So for those of you watching in New York, please vote for the homo, not the Cuomo. And the Trump administration will stop collecting data on LGBTQ issues, which for AIDS or any of that kind of thing is not very good. Bill, making it legal to be an LGBTQ people from adopting has passed in Kansas. Lesbians and bisexual women have an elevated risk for type 2 diabetes. And I guess that's partly because of the stress and discrimination, fear of violence, all of that. So that's something that needs to be looked into a little more. Outing a GOP governor cost lesbian politician her job, her new job. A despicable representative, Gemina Savandia, filmed herself confronting a trans woman in a public restroom. She is running in California's 44th District. She posted on Facebook her whole altercation with this trans person. And she said that this was a problem of the Obama legacy. And she will fight to get this right repealed, which was the right to use the bathroom of your choice. The teenage son of two lesbian moms who took on Ohio House of Representatives is all grown up. Marilyn bans harmful fake therapy and pray the gay away. Joe Biden launches a national program to help LGBTQ youth. The FOMA vice president has joined forces with the YMCA of the USA for a good cause. Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallon has a long anti-LGBTQ record. And she is about ready to sign a discriminatory bill this week, more on that. Our governor, Phil Scott, signs a gender and neutral restroom bill. All single user public restrooms in the state must be marked as gender neutral, a boon to trans people. And of course, Keith will have more when he's back next time, since he's so intimately involved in what goes on in the legislature. And if I may promote our show, in all the footage of the signing, several of our former guests appeared, Becca Ballant, Deanna Gonzalez, Brenda Churchill, and Nathan DeGroote. So three cheers for them. Absolutely. And we have some issues with Scott, we have to say. Oh, yeah. You know, he has some good social stance, but in terms of other things, we have some issues with him. But in this particular case, it was a good thing. Although the activism in gender that I wouldn't come in, he signed it. Yeah, he signed it. There was a lot of work that went into that on the grassroots level. Two lesbian witches are about to take over your TV. And there will be some other stories. One about Gavin Grimm, which we recall was a young transgender man who had issues with the bathroom. And we'll talk about that a little more. So go ahead. Let's go to Malta. Let's go back to Malta, this top-ranking country. The rainbow and index has ranked Malta top in this equality classification by the European gay rights and advocacy group, International IGLA Europe, International Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans and Intersex Association, is what that acronym stands for. With a score of 91%, Malta leads second place Belgium, which registered 78.8% on the index. The index covers 49 European countries and measures legislative progress on equality for LGBTQ people in various aspects of life, ranging from family rights to anti-discrimination provisions. Malta's top spot was further strengthened last year with the introduction of marriage equality and the X gender markers on official documentation for people's passports and identity cards. The ranking is sort of interesting. The top five countries are Malta, Belgium. Third is Norway. Fourth is the UK. And fifth is Finland. Not too many surprises there. The bottom five also is almost predictable with one exception. 45th ranking went to Russia, known for its imprisoning of gay people. No surprise there. I know it. And the anti-propaganda law and all the terrible things they're doing. But number 46, which was a surprise to us, is Monaco. They got a 9.8% percentage. Yeah, I'm surprised. It is. Turkey is 47. Armenia is 48. And 49th, bottom of the list, is Azerbaijan. Now, there are a lot of other countries not in Europe who would also be at the bottom of the list. But that's the coverage of this particular index. The UK parliament, even though it's gotten, UK's gotten a ranking of number four on this index, shuts down a bid for marriage equality in Northern Ireland. It delivered its decision on marriage equality on May 11. The problem here is the Democratic Unionist Party, which is very conservative, allied with the Tories in England and supporters of the British Prime Minister Theresa May blocked the bill. Northern Ireland's office says the government's policy is to allow a free vote on matters of conscience and equal marriage. But they're affiliated with the Tories. They have a deal. And so marriage equality has been stalled. Despite the efforts of Amanda McGurk and Cara McCann, who are pictured before you now, they're a lesbian couple and they want to get married, they say. We don't have the same rights as people who live in the same country as us. This is McGann speaking. The Democratic Unionist Party has repeatedly blocked marriage equality in Northern Ireland. They used a petition of concern, a voting mechanism designed to protest the rights of minorities in Northern Ireland. As a kid, Cara says, as a kid, you don't dream of getting a civil partnership. You dream of getting married. I want to call a man to my wife. So they have civil marriage in Northern Ireland, but they don't have marriage. So good news from France, where the French government minister, Mounir Majoubi, has come out as gay. And we have a picture of him. He's 33. He serves as Secretary of State for the digital sector and was a key member of President Emmanuel Macron's underdog political movement that swept the country in 2017. He came out in honor of the International Day against homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia on May 17. He said that while he wishes to live a private life, I could pass on the message to younger people, emphasizing it with my personal experience. I think I need to do that. France legalized same-sex marriage in 2013. Since taking office, Macron has vowed to make sure the country stands up for LGBT rights, both at home and on the global stage. This minister originates from Morocco, and homosexuality is still illegal there. He's moved to France and is making his statement. Shall I continue? He'd better not go back. No. One more from you, and then we'll move on. What's next? Uganda. Uganda. OK. In the International Day against homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia was supposed to be observed in Uganda, but the government called it off on the morning that the event was supposed to occur. Sexual minorities, Uganda, had to cancel the celebrations just minutes before they started. The minister who's become notorious for his name is Simon Lakhodo, has become notorious for infringing on the freedoms of expression and association of LGBTQ Ugandans. He sent his men to hold off the event, claiming, as he always does, that the gathering was aimed at promoting homosexuality. However, it should be understood that the smug, which is the acronym of the rights organization, the executive director, Dr. Frank Mugisha, had attained permission from the area of police for the event to take place, just as the Public Order Management Act requires. And now we have a picture of Dr. Mugisha arriving for the celebrations that did not occur. So they knew all along they were never going to be. Oh, sure. Sure. They found it as notoriously homophobic. May I just add one? Sure. Speaking of homophobia, last time I reported on the film Rafiki made by a Kenyan filmmaker, a lesbian love story that was banned in Kenya and went to the Cannes Film Festival, where it got a standing ovation. And I would add that a friend of mine lives in Nairobi. And he says that the newspapers are full of it and that homophobia, condemnation is public. So he's going to come. He's lived in Kenya for a while, but he's going to come back in part because of the homo. And he's not gay, but the atmosphere is terribly ugly. And so it's coming out soon, right? So we should all get to see him. What's the name of it again? Rafiki. Rafiki. I showed it quick last time. And speaking of Cannes, this is a digression. But I'd like to call your attention to the speech at the festival made by Asya Argento. Oh, that was fabulous. It was wonderful. She said she was raped at Cannes, that the festival has been a breeding ground for sexual violence. And she called out people in the audience and said, you know. We know who you are. We know who you are and you know who you are. It was very moving. So if you get a chance, you can look that up on YouTube, right? Sure. OK. And now we're going to go to Trump and Republican leaders spout off about how they are the biggest, the best, the most brightest, the most wonderful people in the universe. However, the best to them is the most ideologically far right. And of course, they're financial bank backers. Mitch McConnell, the Senate Majority Leader, appointed Tony Perkins to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. Now, you might think religious freedom is a good thing, but in this case, it isn't. Unless you know Tony Perkins. Unless you know Tony Perkins, who is this commission is to monitor and review reports of religious freedom violations throughout the world and to make policy recommendations to the president and the secretary of state. Perkins heads the Family Research Council, which according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, lists as a hate group. The FRC often makes false claims about the LGBT community. And Perkins has argued that gay men are more likely to abuse children. So he's kind of a despicable character there. And we've talked about him before. And we've talked about the use of language. What's it called, the Center for Religious Freedom? Which is a hoodwinking use of language to disguise the malevolent intentions of this group. They're not promoting religious freedom there. They're promoting repression. Yes, exactly. Yeah, exactly. And not just, I mean, as far as LGBT, but other communities as well. Sure. And they go to other countries and promote this. It's just half the reason Uganda has so many issues. We can think of Scott Lively, but we don't want to give him any more attention. No. And outing a GOP governor cost lesbian politician her new job. Patricia Todd, former Alabama legislator, said she was leaving office. As she was leaving office, she said of the current governor, K.I.V., someone should out that woman, referring to her, K.I.V. Todd was hired as executive director of one Orlando Alliance and LGBT group in Florida. However, the board confirmed that Todd's recent comments are not aligned with their value. So they took away her job. And that's a perpetual concern in the LGBT community. Went to out someone, went not to. When is it OK? When is it not OK? Some people say it's OK if the person that you're outing is doing harm to your community. Other people argue it's never a good thing. So she lost her job over that comment. And the teenage son of two lesbian moms who took on the Ohio House of Representatives is all grown up. We all may remember him. I don't know what year that was, but I remember we listened to it, and we had a son and two sons. And his aunt said it could have been us they were talking about. But this young man is running. His name is Zach Walls. When he was 19, he used to be in front of the Iowa House to speak out for marriage equality. Walls went on to become the best-selling author of My Two Moms, and along with his sister created the Woman Cards, 15 original hand-drawn portraits of American women who changed the world. Walls, as a former Eagle Scout, waged a successful campaign to get the Scouts to drop their BN on LGBTQ people. Now, he's hoping to win votes for the Iowa State Senate. So if you're in Iowa, I would vote for him. I would vote for him, definitely. And may I interject something? When he made that public presentation in Iowa, I showed the clip to my classes. And I hadn't had a chance to come out to those classes. And this clip gave me the opportunity. So public statements like that have a ripple effect. And it was all very positive experience. Yeah. I said, this could have been me. My partner and I have two sons. Yeah. It was a very moving speech, as I recall, too. Yes. And we have an unfortunate and a very awful story about Nino Forston, 36, a transgender man who was fatally shot in Atlanta. And when the police were nearby, executing a traffic stop and rushed to the scene, but Forston later died at the hospital, police are searching for the suspect. And sadly, the police are also misgendered Forston. Community members and allies took to social media to mourn the loss and use the hashtag justice for Nino to call out local news for misgendering him. Now I know it's the 10th known homicide this year. And his death is the first known homicide of a transgender man in 2018. So this crisis from in the United States and all over the world is continuing sadly. And we will go on to some more violence. International news. In Georgia, in Tbilisi, again, they were trying to celebrate the international day of homophobia, transphobia, biphobia. And there were several dozen people gathered, and police were on the alert, canceled the event. But some fearless activists came anyway. And I have a picture of them lining up. As they rallied, the Greek Orthodox, the Georgian Orthodox Church is very violently homophobic. They organized a day of purity, or a day of family purity on the same day as this May 17th LGBT event. And on this day of family purity, there were 300 heterosexual weddings. And this is very violent here in Ukraine. I will not show you a picture of Nazis standing up to protest the LGBT presence. Studies suggest that of all the minority groups in Georgia, homosexuals are under the greatest pressure with more than 80% of survey respondents expressing strong negative attitudes. Georgia ranked as the third most homophobic country in the World Value Survey, with some 93% of Georgians saying they would be against the idea of having a gay neighbor. Although homosexuality and gender change are legal in Georgia, society's view of the LGBT minority remains negative, with hostile attitudes towards gays strongly influenced by traditional stigmas, taboos, and as we said, by the values promoted by the Georgian Orthodox Church. Religions, no damn good, Ian, that's all I can say. Although, you know, the Pope just... Well, yeah, but the Pope is... Yeah, I wouldn't... You have also a bad scene in Ukraine. Police failed to intervene when Pride marchers were attacked. The Ukraine sort of made overtures to the international community because they wanted to be admitted to the European Union in the wake of their 2014 revolution. They hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2017, and the mayor of Kiev told Pink News that the city was tolerant and welcoming toward LGBT visitors. The city administration also admits an annual Pride march, Kiev Pride, which has been allowed to go ahead after long periods of resistance. However, there's also been a rise in far-right nationalism and anti-LGBT sentiment in the country with the surge of reported attacks targeted at LGBT events and other minority groups. Amnesty International, which organized the event where the activists were attacked and the police didn't do anything, says that in recent months, there have been 30 attacks by members of far-right groups on women's rights defenders, LGBTI, and left-wing activists and Roma families. So a lot of tumultuousness in the Ukraine. I would like to show you now a picture of a prison in Cameroon where 25 men were arrested for being gay on May 16th. They were, isn't that a bleak-looking prison? They were arrested on suspicion of homosexuality. Police raided a well-known gay bar and cinema in the capital, Yonge, in the early hours of May 11th, where they arrested 25 men. Along with homosexuality, police arrested the men for failing to carry national ID cards and drug possession. Sounds like pure harassment. Cameroon outlawed gay sex under Article 347-1 of the Penal Code. People convicted of homosexuality faced jail terms of up to five years. Police released two of the men shortly after the detention and the remaining 25 remained in police custody until they were released on the following Sunday. Bad news from Cameroon. The men's arrest came just a week after five LGBTI activists from an HIV organization were released from police custody and managed to avoid exams, penal exams to determine their homosexuality. Good news from Costa Rica. Monday, the gender-assigned birth will no longer appear on identity documents. It's a ruling by Costa Rica's Supreme Electoral Court allows citizens to change their gender. The gender-assigned birth will no longer appear on identity documents to avoid discrimination or stigma against those who transition. The process will be accomplished through a simple and free procedure the court declared. Costa Rica doesn't have marriage yet, but it's moving forward. Security guards, I'd like to go to China, if I may. We can't go to China. I don't think we're running out of time. Where does the time go? Look. Well, I think we have nine more minutes. Right. Okay, because I have this China clip. I know. Do you want to show the China clip? Of course. I want to go on to China. Well, we don't have time. Sorry. This is my last story. It's two-fold. Security guards punching and knocking down two Chinese women attending an LGBT gathering in Beijing has caused outrage. They were wearing rainbow badges. One of them, they were entering Beijing's 798 art district and the police tried to arrest them for the badges. Someone was distributing them. One of the women gave the police the finger apparently and then the police beat them up. This was an honor. This distribution of the rainbow badges was an honor of the International Day Against Homophobia. Transphobia and Bifobia. Similarly, events throughout China were broken up or stopped. Finally, I'd like to turn to a clip of Ryan O'Shaughnessy singing the song Together, which was a contestant in this year's Eurovision broadcast. Good clip. Why this is significant is that China banned it. The broadcasters censored this gay-themed content and it fueled an outcry on Chinese social media. The European Broadcasting Union severed its relationship with China as a result of this mango TV bandit and it's unclear whether the government ordered it or the broadcaster did it. But Eurovision responded immediately. Social media was up in arms and protested this. It's two gay male dancers. You see, it's a very innocuous tape, but it caused consternation in China. Well, at least they all get on the internet there and protest. It's a very active social media presence despite these attempts at censorship. They seem to do a good job with that. Okay. I have about Hollywood is using the morality clause, which could be a bad thing for LGBTQ actors in the wake of the Me Too movement that has shaken Hollywood and has a ghost form, a ghost from the past and it has begun to surface and it's called the morality clause, which was used often against LGBTQ actors of your, so we'll see how that works. Netflix, Everything Sucks, reminds us of being gay in the 90s. One of the stars in this upcoming coming-of-age story is a 14-year-old Peyton Kennedy who plays Kate Masner, high school sophomore, principal's, daughter, and lesbian. So that's something to look for on Netflix. ACLU of Oregon reaches Oregon, reaches sweeping settlement with North Bend School District over LGBTQ Bible readings and that was where transgender person was forced to read Bible verses when they had some minor infraction. I don't remember what that infraction was, but... Interesting, the Oregon governor is bisexual too and I think she's beginning to take action about some of these cases. That's good, because I think eastern Oregon can be a little bit on the conservative side, unlike Portland. In fact, there was an incident in an Oregon school where the principal's son harassed two lesbians. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. And the governor fired the principal out. I mean, there were bureaucratic channels there, but the principal got fired. Good. And as we know, we've talked about Gavin Grimm here before, but he has won a federal case against Virginia School Board, a federal court ruled in favor of trans teen Grimm against the Gloucester County School Board. District Court of Virginia ruled that both Title IX and the U.S. Constitution allows trans students the right to use restrooms with their gender identity. Grimm has spent most of his teenage years fighting for his right to use the boy's room after Gloucester High School barred him. Grimm, now 19, said he was moved to tears when he found out that he won. So, good for you. I have two clips. Oh, and one I was going to show with this... Let me see. Oh, I have a conversion therapy clip done by Alex Cooper. She said she endured physical and emotional pain during her ordeal. I felt like they got, like, some sort of weird joy out of torturing children. So I came out to my parents when I was 15. They kicked me out of the house. A couple weeks later, they told me I was going to go stay with my grandparents for a few weeks, and instead they dropped me off at a conversion therapy camp where they signed over their parental rights and guardianship to this family who promised to make me straight. Conversion therapy is the idea that you can use physical pain and emotional pain to make somebody change their sexual orientation. For me, a lot of the therapy was wearing a backpack full of rocks to fill the physical burden of being gay. This family made me face a wall for sometimes up to 18 hours. When I kept fighting, they would add more rocks, and then more rocks and more rocks got up to be 40 pounds, and they didn't start taking rocks out until I decided to give up on fighting and start playing along. There were two boys there when I first got there that both identified as gay. They had to fight each other to be more manly, and if they weren't hitting each other hard enough, then the man who helped run the conversion therapy camp would step in and do the punching for them. So it was in their best interest to hit each other as hard as they could. I went to the same church as my grandparents every single Sunday, and they were told that for this conversion therapy to work, they couldn't look at me, they couldn't speak to me. That was really, really, really hard. It made me feel like God was punishing me. I felt like that I couldn't change being a lesbian, but that I could just conceal it. I was finally allowed to go to school after eight months. I wasn't going to tell anybody what was going on because every single time I reached out for help, it just backfired. And then one day they got a call saying that I had been late to one of my classes, and so they told me I couldn't go to school anymore, and I had to put the backpack on and face the wall. I stood there for about seven hours, and they fell asleep, and I just left. I didn't take anything. It was like three in the morning. I might hit in some bushes until the buses started running, and then when I got to the high school, I immediately went to my English teacher, and we called the police. It gets better no matter what you're going through. There are people out there who want to help you. You just got to find the right people. I like to think of impact as a rock being thrown into a still pond. Even the smallest rock can make the biggest ripples. Being that person who reaches out to somebody who's in trouble or needs help can influence that person's life in the biggest way. We can all be that change. Then after that, I have a very funny, I think, anyway. Video, Comic Routine by Randy Rainbow and Mayor Giuliani. Or is it Giuliano? Giuliani, who was mayor of New York City and is now the illustrious attorney for Donald Trump. And noted deplorable. And noted deplorable. So here's that clip, and I hope you enjoy it and put you in a good mood. And joining me now, former New York mayor and newest member of Donald Trump's legal team. For now, Rudy Giuliani. Rudy Giuliani. Thank you for being here, Mr. Mayor. Tell us, what is the latest regarding the president's legal trouble? We hardly hear anything about it these days. Well, the special counsel would like to interview the president. There's no secret about that. Every lawyer in America thinks he shouldn't be. You have set your own parameters for this potential meeting of no more than two to three hours, arguing that anything longer would cut into the president's golf practice and also general hospital, which the president likes to watch in real time. You think Robert Mueller will agree to those terms? Here's what it's all about. It's real simple. And American people can follow this along with me. Right now, a lot of things point in the direction of they made up their mind that Comey's telling the truth and not the president. When you look at those questions about what does the president think? Nothing. What does the president feel? Nothing. What does the president really desire? Absolute power resulting in the annihilation of democracy and the love and affection of a man he never received from his own father. I'm just spitballing. This is a completely tainted investigation. Speaking of taint, let's move on to the $130,000 in hush money paid to Stormy Daniels, which apparently was, what, funneled through Michael Cohen's law firm? Funneled through our firm and the president repaid it. He repaid it? Yep. I thought we were pretending he didn't know anything about it. This has become a witch hunt, like the president said. Mr. Mayor, many people are surprised by this bromance. I mean, after all, Donald Trump is a washed up, paranoid, egocentric, attention-craving, three-time divorcee from Queens, New York. And you're, you know, you're from Brooklyn. You know President Trump. I don't know her. It breaks my heart. This is our best president in my memory. He fired Comey because Comey would not. Tales about his crimes, taller than a tree. Michael Cohen defends, then on Fox and Friends, Rudy spills the tea. There was something, a one-time affair. Now the story's changed. He was definitely embarrassed. Now his credits decreased, both a bit uncoothed. Neither tells the truth. Rudy and the bee. I've told the president you're going to get the Nobel Peace Prize. That's great. And if he's getting the Nobel Peace Prize, I'm taking home this year's Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a F***ing Musical. Crushing all his claims. I'm giving you a fact now that you don't know. Bleaking all his lies. And he wasn't totally familiar with everything. Still as Bud's their best. Watch out, Kanye West. Here comes Crazy Eyes. What a big reveal. He was entirely reimbursed out of personal funds. Look who signed the checks. This was information that the president didn't know at the time. Sadah Huckabee, nearly shit when she learned he paid for sex. The president's new lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, accidentally tells the truth. And if he's locked up, not to be released, he can thank the jewels. What a pair of tools. Rudy and the bee. He won't outlast the mooch. For now, Mr. Mayor, the president is a lucky man. With you at the helm of his defense team, he'll be in jail by August. He's our president. Well, we'll see. This has become a witch hunt. Stay out of the West Wing, girl. Hi, and now Ann Charles is going to read a book review. The book is called So Lucky, and it is written by Nicola Griffith. You can see it in the Lambda Literary Review if you go online. But of course, you'll hear it here. So spread the word. Thank you. Go ahead, Ann. Thank you. In the first stages of Nicola Griffith's latest novel, 30-something narrator Mara Tiglorelli's wife of 14 years announces the end of their marriage. Mara starts a new relationship with an old friend, and she's diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The rapidity of this change of events provides a clue to the pace of this work. In the time span of a year, this narrator goes from a high-profile job as executive director of the Georgia AIDS Project to the founder and administrator of a 501C3 organization called Cripple's Action Team with a social media list of 28,000 members. If this career trajectory seems far-fetched, it may be because the plot while requiring a willing suspension, a certain suspension of disbelief, seems almost secondary in this clear-eyed call to break the narrative of helplessness and dependency imposed on those who are rendered other in this ableist culture. Upon sharing her diagnosis with the chair of the board of her agency, Mara registers her new position. I was now on the other side of the divide, no longer one of us but one of them. Days later, she's asked to resign. Yet Mara refuses to be a victim. She navigates the world of condescension, pity, and self-help platitudes with an angry defiance that challenges expectation and sometimes worries and alienates those close to her. MS is personified from the first word of the book. It came from me in November is the way the novel begins. MS becomes transmuted to a grinning monster, a figure with which Mara grapples in the final pages of the novel. This image emerges with Mara's meeting in an MS support group with a 91-year-old woman named Juni who is accompanied by a yappy yellow pug that as Mara later learns, only she and its owner can see. After illustrating that her dog represents MS, Juni addresses Mara, yours now. Yours ain't a small dog. Never seen anything like your great grinning thing. The older woman's follow-up, you're scared, you should be. It's aiming to kill you. And I doubt you'll stop it. Drives Mara from the room and stays with her for the rest of the novel. Besides the woman and the dog, another recurring trope Griffith employs draws on Mara's two-year-old sister's pastime of digging up worms in the family garden. Mara recalls, when she didn't squish them by mistake, she dropped them in one of those miniature plastic buckets and crooned to herself while they hauled their way up the smooth sides to freedom, fighting for every quarter inch. When they got to the top, she'd flick them to the bottom again. They kept trying over and over. When she got bored, she ate them. A more optimistic emblem occurs when Mara's ex-wife Rosie, in a tarot reading of Mara's cards, produces Osiris as the card representing Mara's current attitude, influences, and future. Though Osiris is nominally the king and judge of the dead, Rose or Rosie, explains that the card often signifies unexpected change. It could mean loss, too. But it's more about transformation. It's a very strong metaphor. This tarot reading points to the shifts in Mara's attitude that the novel traces. She used to scoff at tarot reading. Now Mara urges Rose to stay engaged with the practice. In another context, when Mara is initially diagnosed and informed of the MS Society's yoga class, the former martial artist responds, yoga, chanting and crystals and goodwill to all men. I'd rather hit things. Yet when she attends the yoga class sponsored by the MS Society a year later, she reflects, I felt good in a way I hadn't experienced since that night when I reached for the milk and fell down, which is the episode resulting in her diagnosis. An unusual plot twist involving serial killers and a string of hate crimes enables Griffith to explore again the gray area between the real and the imagined. Afraid that she will be the next victim, Mara buys a gun and says to herself, I think I'm being hunted or haunted. But I don't believe any of that. Belief is not data. It's not real. Again, self-doubt and actuality inform one another in this probing novel that provides no easy answers. The world of Nicola Griffith so lucky is governed by ableist misconception and ignorance, but also marked by hope and human connection. Magic realism is freely employed and crisp, clear language evokes the natural surroundings of the Atlanta in which Mara Taglorelli moves. Ms. Rip, the kitten shows him because she fights, is a compelling addition. It's a narrative that at once informs, confronts, puzzles and engages. I have little doubt that readers who take it up will be rewarded. Thank you, Anne. It sounds very interesting. It was. So, we should say good night now. Okay, we'll see you in two weeks. In the meantime, resist.