LGBT

Lance Armstrong's opinions on transgender athletes have rubbed a lot of people the wrong way recently … including a pair of his "Stars on Mars" castmates, who actually confronted him about it all while he was on the competition show.

The former cycling star has shared his two cents on the matter over the last few weeks repeatedly ... especially after filming an episode of his "The Forward" podcast with Caitlyn Jenner.

On the pod, he and Jenner spoke about trans women competing against biological females -- and the two appeared to share the opinion that there should be a separate category for the parties, due to what they believed was an unfair advantage of being born a male.

While filming "Stars on Mars," Armstrong made no attempts to distance himself from that stance ... telling Ronda Rousey he doesn't see why it'd be "unfair" to introduce a new category to the sports competition landscape to assuage the issues.

Quickly, however, Tinashe jumped in to confront him over the thought process.

"We just have to care about if you other-ise people," the "2-On" singer said on the new Fox show. "It's not good for their mental health."

When Armstrong asked her to expound, she added, "Like, kind of, like, exclude them from the same spaces and places that everyone else is."

Armstrong swore he wasn't trying to exclude anyone with his ideas ... saying, "I sound like a right-wing lunatic. I'm not. I'm the most liberal person -- but from a sporting perspective ..."

But, Tinashe wasn't having any of it ... later telling Fox cameras, "I definitely didn't think that he should be the spokesperson for that."

Adam Rippon -- an openly gay figure skater -- also chimed in on Armstrong's remarks ... making it clear he was not a fan of them either.

"That is so disheartening," he said.

Rippon further explained he believed Armstrong's words could shake up the whole dynamic of the show going forward.

Billy Porter and his husband, Adam Smith, have called it quits ... making the tough call to separate after spending more than half a decade married.

The "Pose" star and Smith "have made the sad decision to end their marriage," according to Billy's rep, Simon Halls ... who told People the split was a mutual decision made after a lot of consideration.

He added the exes will "continue to love and support each other as they embark on this next chapter." It's unclear if either party has filed legal docs for separation or divorce.

Billy and Adam met in 2009 and briefly dated, breaking up the following year ... only to rekindle their relationship in 2015.

They tied the knot in 2017 -- only 16 days after Billy proposed in the U.K. during a double date dinner. Adam claimed Billy wanted to make it official while President Obama was still in office.

Jackie Chan might not be the father social media thinks he is -- after a viral clip with his "daughter" blew up -- cuz it's actually only a scene from a movie ... and his real daughter says he's a nasty homophobe.

The famed martial arts star trended this weekend after a video of him watching his old onscreen stunts -- alongside a woman many believed was his daughter -- made the rounds. And for good reason ... it plays as incredibly touching/sentimental, complete with tears.

The only problem ... this clip isn't actually real, meaning it doesn't depict Jackie next to his real-life flesh and blood. It's actually just a scene from a recent movie of his -- "Ride On" -- in which he plays a famous former stuntman-movie star who just so happens to be watching a Jackie Chan reel. Yes, it's very meta -- so much so, it fooled the Internet.

Here's the cold reality of Jackie's familial sitch ... he and his actual kiddo, Etta Ng Chok Lam, are estranged. She's accused him of abandoning her, claiming he hates the fact she's a lesbian.

Jackie had Etta out of wedlock ... and according to her, she hasn't had any contact or help from Jackie for several years -- at times, even, having been left to live on the streets and fend for herself ... despite her famous tie.

What makes this dynamic even more cringe-worthy is the fact that Etta has accused Jackie of homophobia -- suggesting that's part of the reason he wants nothing to do with her.

Many people on Twitter were aware of Jackie's past with Etta, and responded with a ton of harsh words for Jackie as the clip continued to grow in popularity.

Jay-Z's mom has tied the knot, and if her son and his wife, Beyoncé aren't big enough names for ya ... the whole celebration was a who's who of A-listers -- partyin' it up late into the night together.

Tyler Perry and Kelly Rowland were just a couple of the big names that came through for the big day in NY Sunday night ... also packing the house were the likes of Robin Roberts, Corey Gamble, and Beyoncé's mom, Tina Knowles.

And yes, Bey and Jay were both front and center for Gloria, who said "I Do" to marry her partner, Roxanne Wilshire.

We're told the whole thing wrapped around 1 AM -- so there was plenty of fun to be had by all.

As we reported, Jay-Z's been extremely supportive of Gloria, who came out as a lesbian in his 2017 track, "Smile" ... where she jumped on the song to talk about "living in the shadows" as a gay woman.

He ended up shouting her out at the 2019 GLAAD Media Awards, thanking her for letting him tell her story.

Presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis and his team might wanna take things back to the drawing board because one anti-Trump Pride Month ad just didn't quite stick the way they had hoped.

A video shared by the official DeSantisWarRoom campaign account on Twitter with the caption, "To wrap up 'Pride Month,' let’s hear from the politician who did more than any other Republican to celebrate it…"

The video went on to show images of Trump posing with a rainbow flag, talking highly of his friend, Caitlyn Jenner, and vowing to protect the LGBTQ community.

Whether or not Trump has kept those promises is another discussion ... but Twitter users unleashed on the DeSantis campaign, confused about how they truly thought the whole thing would land.

Some of the most popular comments included, "Is Ron Desantis running for President of Iran?" "Lol bro this just made me like trump for 2 minutes." "This is the most Trump thing DeSantis has ever done ... keep it up" and "This might as well be a pro-Trump ad."

Jonathan Bennett is raising a glass to his Palm Springs estate ... he just sold the pad he dubbed Mai Tai Manor for seven figures.

According to property records the "Mean Girls" actor sold the home Tuesday for a cool $1 mil.

The sale price is a little under the listing price ... as we first reported, Jonathan put the home on the market back in March for $1.15 million, but the good news for him ... he bought it in 2020 for $625K. Nice job!

The home screams Palm Springs ... it's a ranch design built in the 1970s, and there's a pool with some colorful lounge chairs in the backyard, which is lined with palm trees and views of the mountains.

The place is 1,296 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms ... and it's where Jonathan and his husband, Jaymes Vaughan, got engaged.

Jonathan put the place up for sale because he and Jaymes were simply becoming too busy to spend enough time there to justify a second home.

Mai Tai Manor is famous in its own right ... the place has been featured in several publications, including "Celebrity Homes Unlocked" on The Design Network, plus MTV ... just to name a couple.

Michael Imperioli isn't happy with the Supreme Court's decision in further allowing business owners to turn away customers from the LGBTQ+ community ... making his outrage clear.

The former "Sopranos" star took to social media this weekend to blow off some steam over the mega-ruling that came down Friday -- with a majority of the justices siding with a web designer who refuses to work on a gay couples wedding sites on religious grounds.

In the end, they said she has every right to refuse gay couples her services ... on account of the First Amendment. Remember, another ruling for a wedding cake shop owner also seemed to back that up ... albeit in not nearly as clear terms as this one was. In any case, MI's pissed.

He posted a photo of the web designer in question with a headline attached, and then added this commentary ... "i’ve decided to forbid bigots and homophobes from watching The Sopranos, The White Lotus, Goodfellas or any movie or tv show I’ve been in."

Mike adds, "Thank you Supreme Court for allowing me to discriminate and exclude those who I don’t agree with and am opposed to. USA ! USA!" He went on to say hate and ignorance were not a legitimate POV ... and America was becoming dumber by the minute.

The response he's getting to this is interesting ... seems like a lot of people who agree with the high court's decision are not on board with his take, and many appear shocked he was this passionate about the topic.

Welp, Michael's made no bones about where he stands on this -- and considering that conservatives appear to be boycotting anything they consider "woke" ... ya gotta wonder if they'll take him up on his suggestion and stop watching his TV shows and movies.

AEW star Anthony Bowens says the outpouring of support he's received following his viral "I'm gay" moment at Rampage last week has been incredible ... telling TMZ Sports he hopes it serves as inspiration for those who fear being themselves.

Bowens -- who came out in 2017 -- had fans going wild after making a joke about his sexuality in the ring in a response to Harley Cameron ... after she claimed she could tell the Acclaimed tag-team member was into her.

"Very, very serious question," Bowens responded to the Australian commentator. "Did you get kicked too many times in the head by a kangaroo when you were a kid?? Because I don't know if you can see my gear, lady ... I'm gay!!"

The whole crowd erupted in encouragement ... chanting "He's gay!!"

We spoke with Bowens about how special it was to be his true self inside the ring and get that sort of response from the fans ... and he said the whole experience was surreal.

"I wish I could go back and tell 17, 18, 19-year-old Anthony Bowens that everything would be okay, because I spent a lot of time, a lot of fear, a lot of anxiety of what my career would be if I ever came out," Bowens tells us.

"And to fast forward and to have that moment and to have that reaction I did -- I've been getting messages every single day from people all over the world, from other athletes thanking me just for simply saying it."

"People, a lot of times, either just insinuate it or maybe make it a joke -- I was like, screw it!! You just gotta say it sometimes."

Even though the exchange was silly, it is a major step in the right direction for the LGBTQ+ community ... and Bowens understands the gravity of the situation.

"I think it struck a chord with a lot of people and I couldn't be any more thrilled."

Anheuser-Busch is defending itself against claims the company abandoned Dylan Mulvaney after the rollout of its transgender-influenced beer campaign crashed and burned.

AB issued a statement Thursday in response to Mulvaney, who claimed company executives failed to support her after she was dragged online by trolls in the aftermath of the ad blitz. She continued, "For a company to hire a trans person and then not publicly stand by them is worse than not hiring a trans person at all."

A spokesperson for AB says the brand is "committed to the programs and partnerships we have forged over decades with organizations across a number of communities, including those in the LGBTQ+ community."

The rep continued ... “The privacy and safety of our employees and our partners is always our top priority. As we move forward, we will focus on what we do best – brewing great beer for everyone and earning our place in moments that matter to our consumers.”

However, the company still doesn't seem to address Mulvaney's claim ... that the brand never reached out to her when the hate got so vile it was beyond her comprehension.

As we reported, Mulvaney posted an ad campaign for the Bud Light on her Instagram page which included a custom can with her face on it. The whole thing sparked a host of controversy nationwide -- causing the brewing manufacturer to lose a whopping $20 billion-plus in market value after conservatives vowed to boycott the brand.

Dennis Rodman pulled up to Houston's Pride parade on Sunday rockin' a skirt ... a move that apparently didn't sit right with some "fans," prompting the NBA legend to clap back online!

62-year-old Rodman shared several photos from the event along with the caption ... "Love will Always Win🌈Happy Pride #gaypride #loveislove #pridemonth"

The 5x NBA champ was wearing a green, pleated schoolgirl skirt, along with a black t-shirt, featuring a photo of Rodman's head, complete with his rainbow hair.

As you might expect given the current climate, some people weren't thrilled with Dennis' attire at the parade.

The Hall of Famer clearly heard some of the criticism ... and responded online, writing "Do your research guys #beenhim🦍," pointing to other times he's worn women's clothing, including the time he put on a wedding dress in 1996 to "marry himself."

While things were a little testy online, Dennis was all smiles at the Pride event ... taking pics and giving autographs to fans!

Lance Armstrong wants to have his say on the transgender sports debate -- and he's partnering with Caitlyn Jenner to do it ... but people online are telling him to shut it.

The former champion cyclist -- whose accolades were, by and large, rescinded after he was found to have been doping through a decent amount of his career -- teased a new project he appears to have in the works ... one in which he's getting into the polarizing topic.

His key subject, it seems, is going to be Caitlyn ... who's been very outspoken on having trans women competing in women's sports, and who's obviously transgender herself.

Right off the bat, LA's tone to this whole thing has turned people off. He writes, "Have we really come to a time and place where spirited debate is not only frowned upon but feared? Where people’s greatest concern is being fired, shamed, or canceled? As someone all too familiar with this phenomenon, I feel I'm uniquely positioned to have these conversations."

He followed up with more tweets, sorta answering his own Q ... and plugging this new series he's got coming out. One tweet that's got a lot of reaction reads, "Is there, not a world in which one can be supportive of the transgender community and curious about the fairness of Trans athletes in sport yet not be labeled a transphobe or a bigot as we ask questions?

He continues, "Do we yet know the answers? And do we even want to know the answers?"

Now, Lance is trending on the Bird app ... for all the wrong reasons. You can hop into the trend to see what people are saying for yourself -- but it essentially boils down to ... dude, you're the last person who should be commenting on fairness in sports. Like, c'mon.

Of course, they're referring to his PED scandal in the early 2010s ... which he denied for a long time -- but ultimately confessed to. As most of us know, a majority of his titles between '99 and 2005 were stripped ... and his legacy as an inspirational winner was dinged.

Starbucks baristas are preparing to go on strike at more than 150 stores in protest over allegations the coffee giant banned Pride decorations in some locations.

Union leaders for Starbucks workers announced the strike plan Friday, saying 3,500 workers will walk off the job next week all across the country.

The union is demanding all Starbucks locations allow workers to use Pride decorations to show support for the LGBTQ+ community ... and there's a new union contract they want Starbucks to recognize.

While the union claims Starbucks banned some stores from putting up Pride decorations and asked other locations to take down existing decor, the coffee company denies that, and is accusing the union of spreading a false narrative.

One hotbed for controversy is Oklahoma City ... where one store manager reportedly told union workers to trash Pride decorations as a result of a decision made at the regional level.

Riley Gaines is taking her fight to keep transgender women out of women's sports to our nation's capital ... testifying for a Senatorial hearing about her encounters with lightning rod athlete Lia Thomas.

The former collegiate swimmer -- who competed for the University of Kentucky, and who also raced against Lia on the NCAA level -- described to U.S. senators what it was like having to change in the same locker room as Thomas ... who's a transgender woman.

She describes seeing Thomas' male genitalia and how jarring it was for her and others, saying nobody ever asked for their consent or input -- they, the NCAA, just let it happen.

In Gaines' eyes, this was a clear violation of their right to privacy, and she went on to pose the question -- what does this trend mean for women's sport? And, more importantly, does anyone care how it impacts cisgender women? By letting Thomas compete with them, she argues the powers that be have proven they don't.

Interestingly, Gaines says she's not advocating for trans athletes to be banned from sports altogether. On the contrary, she says they can and should be athletes -- but it sounds like she's suggesting they have their own classification and not be lumped in with cisgender competitors.

Now, as far as how the lawmakers reacted ... it pretty much fell along party lines. Dems pushed back on her characterization -- and Republicans, by and large, embraced her.

Saucy Santana being a no-show for his Memphis Pride event is potentially about to cost him a bundle -- the event organizers are demanding the money they already paid.

A rep for One Memphis One Vision tells TMZ Hip Hop they paid "Material Girl" rapper half the $25K advance of the performance for this past weekend -- but, in light of his absence, they want all of it back ... even if that means installments.

So far, the company says Saucy hasn't ponied up a cent.

We're told they booked Saucy, and he even helped promote the event on IG -- but then he missed the performance ... apparently, due to a flight delay.

OMOV tells us it shelled out thousands on a personal vehicle -- because Saucy refused to use Uber Black -- which Saucy's team paraded around in all day, despite his absence.

The rep thinks Saucy has no respect for their nonprofit, which advocates for youth battling HIV/AIDS ... and they even griped about his fancy schmancy tour rider!!!

Saucy's tour rider didn't win him any friends either -- we're told his list of needs includes several bottles of tequila, cans of Red Bull, and boxes of chicken. OMOV says it provided all of the above, and it wasn't cheap.

The organizers say the sole purpose of the event was to get people tested, and while fans flocked to the doors ... OMOV says they dipped out once they realized Saucy was a no-show.

OMOV says it's prepared to file a lawsuit this week if they don't get a refund.

We reached out to Saucy's team, but mum's the word so far.

Rebel Wilson is NOT planning a blowout wedding at Disneyland, despite a report to the contrary ... she says she's getting married somewhere else, and it's not related to an old Mouse House ban.

The actress, who attended the launch party for her new dating app, Fluid, on Thursday, tells TMZ ... she and her fianceé Ramona Agruma's decision to forgo a Disney fairy tale on their big day has nothing to do with the fact Rebel was once banned from Disneyland for 30 days.

It's pretty obvious Rebel holds no grudge ... she popped the question to Ramona while at the Happiest Place on Earth for Valentine's Day -- but she tells us she was never planning to exchange their nuptials there, despite a recent report she's planning a "no-expenses-spared wedding" at Walt Disney's OG park.

Instead, Rebel tells us she and Ramona will say "I do" somewhere else -- they don't know exactly where yet, but it won't be Disneyland.

Rebel, who hosted the party with her best friend, Emmy-winning TV presenter Carly Steel, says their engagement was epic and special, and she's thankful park officials roped off a section on a busy day ... so she could propose in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle.

As for that old ban -- if you're unaware, Rebel revealed earlier this year that she once snapped a selfie while inside one of the park's secret bathrooms -- a big no-no -- and was shut out for 30 days.

She says it was a few years back, and Disneyland honchos actually asked her when she wanted to serve the 30 days, and she picked a month when she was busy filming.

Bob Huggins was arrested for DUI in Pennsylvania -- and his bosses at West Virginia University are already well aware of it.

The WVU men's basketball HC was busted Friday night in Pittsburgh after cops observed a vehicle in the middle of a road with a flat tire -- which turned into a suspicious scene for Pittsburgh PD after they say they saw Huggins struggling mightily to get his car to the side of the road.

Suspecting he might be intoxicated, the officers initiated field sobriety tests ... which they say BH failed. At that point, they threw on the cuffs and hauled him to jail on suspicion of DUI.

WVU addressed his arrest, saying ... "West Virginia University is aware of an incident last night involving Head Men’s Basketball Coach Bob Huggins, for which he was charged with Driving Under the Influence (DUI) in the City of Pittsburgh."

They add, "We are gathering more information and will take appropriate action once the review is complete." BTW, reports say the SUV he was driving was a lease ... courtesy of West Virginia University.