JMU football player accused of false imprisonment of a woman and Ariana Grande accused of queer-baiting: feminist news stories of this week

Co-written by @wranglergirl1

Local News

JMU Football Player Pleads No Contest After False Imprisonment Charge

JMU is back at it again with sexual assault cases. Senior football player, Riley Stapleton, has plead no contest to false imprisonment of a woman in Pennsylvania. He held her in the bathroom at a mutual friends birthday party and wouldn’t let her out. Luckily someone knocked on the door and she was let go, but charges were filed against him.

National News

2020 Presidential Candidates Fast Facts

2020 here we come. CNN has put out a list of candidates for next year’s election. There is no shortage of Democrats running with some almost 20 running. For the Republicans though there is a lone wolf, none other than 45th President Donald Trump. Are other republicans scared to run or do they just really want Trump to be president again?

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders believes those imprisoned should be able to vote while behind bars

When on his campaign trail in Iowa, Sen. Bernie Sanders was asked if people who are imprisoned should have a right to vote, which is already legally allowed in Maine and his home state Vermont. To which he responded, “I think that is absolutely the direction we should go. In my state, what we do is separate. You’re paying a price, you committed a crime, you’re in jail. That’s bad, but you’re still living in American society and you have a right to vote. I believe in that, yes, I do.” This issue is particularly prominent in Iowa because Iowa and Kentucky are the only states to completely disenfranchise convicted felons. It’s also worth mentioning that African Americans are five times more likely to be imprisoned than their white counterparts. (NAACP)

International News

Human Rights Lawyers & Gay Rights Activists Request that the Vatican Denounce the Criminalization of Homosexuality

In a Vatican meeting on Friday, human rights lawyers and gay rights activists ask the vatican for a clear and unambiguous statement denouncing the criminalization of homosexuality, following the United Nations statement that Brunei is violating human rights for allowing death by stoning for homosexuality. Lawyers and activists gave Vatican secretary of state a study on the criminalization of homosexuality in the Caribbean and requested a clear statement that criminalization is wrong in order to protect human rights.

Culture News

Kim Zolciak-Biermann’s Plastic Surgery

20 is the new 40 according to Kim Zolciak-Biermann. Known from the original Housewives of Atlanta she has been photographed with her daughters and and you almost can’t tell who’s who. Is it just good genes or does money really solve all our problems? Some argue she has a right to do what she wants with her body and face but others argue that since she’s in an influential position, she should be more sensitive to the messages she’s sending women and girls about aging and body image. What do you think?

Is Ariana Grande “queer-baiting?”

In Ariana Grande and Victoria Monet’s new song “MONOPOLY,” one of the lyrics is “I swerve both ways, dichotomy. I like women and men.” This left many fans speculating on her sexuality. One twitter user tweeted “ariana ain’t gotta label herself, but she said what she said.” To which Ariana replied, “i haven’t before and still don’t feel the need to now which is okay.” Some have accused her of “queer-baiting” or using her ambiguous sexuality to profit off of queer culture while being straight. Others have come to her defense saying sexuality is fluid and she doesn’t owe us anything. What do you think?

Have any thoughts on these stories? We’d love to hear them in the comments below!