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Toronto Musician's Apartment Blaze, Firefighters Save Valuable Guitar

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Hollerado's Menno Versteeg is safe after a fire yesterday destroyed his apartment in Toronto yesterday.

Shortly after that initial tweet the group added a bit more info.

An incredibly strange coincidence happened yesterday afternoon while the band was going through old combat footage for use in a music video.

"It's funny we're working on a new music video right now (for 'So It Goes') and it's a song about my grandfather during World War Two in Holland and we're going to Holland in like a week to shoot it," Versteeg told Huffington Post standing outside the remains of his and his wife's apartment Tuesday afternoon. "The director and I were on the east side of town and we were looking through archival footage as we're mixing archival footage with visiting the places where my grandfather fought.

"We were looking at these photos of Rotterdam being bombed and everything's burning. The director was saying, 'Imagine that. Everything you own being scorched in one second. Everything you know.' I was like, 'Yeah you could never imagine.' And obviously it's a totally different scale, but two seconds later my wife's phone rang and it was our buddy calling saying, 'I think your house is on fire.' So we raced back to the west side, it took us like 45 minutes and by the time we got there it was out but everything was demolished."

Versteeg said nobody was in the apartment when the fire broke out but he did lose some of his "favorite" gear that he plays around the house and doesn't take with him on tour. He also said he entered the burned out apartment and found a 1964 Gibson Melody Maker guitar which was wrapped in a blanket.

"I came out of there holding it saying, 'Yes, this is amazing!'" he said, adding a firefighter wrapped it up to try to keep it safe. "He's got the wherewithal to care about my guitar to try and see if he could keep it safe."

The musician also said he had content insurance and was very thankful for that.

"I was so nervous calling the insurance company," he said. "I know I've been paying it, but I don't know what that means. I think it's really going to be okay. I'm not worried at all. It's just stuff."

Versteeg lists the biggest material losses as a house plant "that was a good buddy of mine," a teddy bear his wife owned for years and an autographed photo of Michael Jackson from the Bad tour.

He also said he wasn't surprised by the support by fellow Toronto bands. Members of Tokyo Police Club were in the parking lot watching the fire and quickly tweeted that Hollerado needed some support.

And they literally gave the clothes on their backs to Versteeg.

"It's amazing how many people have offered their house, their food, their clothes," Versteeg said, adding TPC keyboardist Graham Wright gave him a sweatshirt so he wouldn't have to wear a Hollerado hoodie.

As far as any fundraising drive or Kickstarter campaign, Versteeg said he's not considering anything like that despite the fact it will take two months to even begin the reconstruction.

"We're fine, I don't want to make a big deal about it."

Radio station 680 News reported three firefighters were injured in the fire which began on Dundas Street West near Keele Street Monday afternoon. Fire officials said the blaze started on a balcony on a second floor unit before spreading. One firefighter went to hospital with an ankle injury while the other two had heat exhaustion and went to hospital as a precaution.

Hollerado spent a good chunk of time earlier this year on a cross-country trek supporting Billy Talent on the band's headlining jaunt. They also performed a free concert in Ottawa last weekend. An offshoot project of Hollerado dubbed Stella Ella Ola are slated to play Toronto's Silver Dollar this evening.


PHOTOS: Pippa Let Her Shoulders Loose... Sort Of

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Pippa Middleton is ready for summer, and so are we -- even if the weather hasn't quite caught up yet.

Kate Middleton's stylish sister was spotted shopping in London's Kensington neighborhood on Tuesday in a skimpy outfit for these transitional temps. Pippa wore a strapless minidress in a bold nude and black print, cinched in with a wide waist belt. The brunette warmed up her look with a light khaki jacket, keeping her bare shoulders just out of sight.

Pippa, you temptress. Hinting at the shoulders beneath your clothes, yet keeping them out of sight. What's she hiding -- Michelle Obama muscles? A killer tan? Perhaps we'll find out once the mercury rises.

Have a look at Pippa's low-key strapless dress below. What do you think of this patterned look?

PHOTOS:

pippa middleton strapless dress

kate middleton strapless dress

How does this dress compare to the rest of Pippa's closet?

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Michael Bay's Pirate Show Gets A Premiere Date

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Michael Bay's pirate drama "Black Sails" will premiere in January, Starz announced Tuesday.

The series follows Captain Flint (Toby Stephens) and his crew 20 years before the events of "Treasure Island," when the captain first takes on the young John Silver (Luke Arnold). The first season will consist of eight episodes.

Carrie Underwood's Next Gig

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Carrie Underwood is ready for some football.

The 30-year-old singer has nabbed the honor of singing the theme to NBC's "Sunday Night Football" for the 2013-14 season. Underwood will first perform on Sept. 8 for the Dallas Cowboys' game versus the New York Giants.

Underwood's theme for the NFL night will be “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night,” a track set to Joan Jett's “I Hate Myself for Loving You.”

"I am thrilled to be a part of NBC's Sunday Night Football and am so honored they asked me,” Underwood said in a release. “I have always loved football season, and it is so exciting to now become part of it every Sunday night!"

The singing of the "Sunday Night Football" theme has been a distinct honor over the years. John Williams composed an early theme for the broadcast, followed-up by P!nk and Faith Hill. Hank Williams Jr. memorably sang the theme for "Monday Night Football" until 2011 when he was dropped by ESPN after making inflammatory comments about Barack Obama.

Underwood tweeted about the news, voicing her excitement.

Blake Lively's LBD Sure Is Little

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Blake Lively rocks several different outfits while on the set of a photo shoot on Tuesday (May 7) in New York City.

The 25-year-old actress reportedly was doing the shoot for a magazine – though nothing has been confirmed! We can’t wait to check out the final pics – she looks great and super fashionable!

Big News For Two 'Americans' Stars

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Annet Mahendru and Alison Wright have been promoted to series regulars for Season 2 of "The Americans," FX announced Tuesday.

Riccardo Tisci Defends Kim Kardashian's Met Gala Dress

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Riccardo Tisci may have dressed 13 Met Gala attendees this year, but most of the attention focused on one certain guest: Kim Kardashian -- ever heard of her?

As soon as the reality star took her first steps onto the famed red carpet, the Twittersphere was full of critics who had less-than-kind words to say about Kimmy's ensemble. Most naysayers agreed that the floral print number with attached gloves had an aesthetic more suitable for a sofa, but Mrs. Doubtfire and Homer Simpson were also thrown in for comparison's sake. (For the record, Robin Williams thinks he wore it better.)

So what did Mr. Tisci have to say about all of this hoopla? The designer spoke to Women's Wear Daily and took us from conception to backlash:

“She is a really good friend, and I am very happy she came to the Met for the first time. I love Kim. Doing maternity was fantastic. I wanted to have a Kim Kardashian moment, because Kim always supports me. She is the future wife of a really good friend of mine. I wanted to have a moment of family…Kim, Kanye and the baby. It will be a family that I will be close to. Kim said, ‘Ricky, I love what you’re doing so much, I am in your hands.’ I said, we should give her our punk moment with a romantic beautiful flower-printed dress. I have dressed many pregnant women in the past. People can say what they want. To me, pregnancy is the most beautiful thing in the world, and when you celebrate something, you give people flowers. I think she looked amazing. She was the most beautiful pregnant woman I dressed in my career.”

Hey, who are we to argue with design genius? We've definitely seen stranger looks before, but we can see how some details of Kim's dress might have caught people off-guard. What do you think? Does Tisci's defense clear those couch images from your mind?

The dress in question:

kim kardashian dress

kim kardashian dress

Don't feel too bad -- Kim's not alone:

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Lohan Reportedly On Lockdown, Not Allowed To Leave Betty Ford

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Lindsay Lohan is officially on lockdown in California, according to a report.

Lohan can't leave the grounds of the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif., where she is currently serving a 90-day rehab sentence, reports People magazine. Patients at the rehab clinic typically earn privileges, like permission to go shopping or get coffee. But not LiLo. She will be reportedly confined to the clinic's 20-acre grounds.

"It is understood by the Betty Ford Center that your client is to remain on the premises for the duration of her 90-day stay in treatment," reads a letter addressed to Lohan's attorney Shawn Holley and filed with the Los Angeles Superior Court, according People. However, a source told the magazine that Betty Ford is "not a jail" and cannot hold a patient against his or her own will.

On Monday, an L.A. County Superior Court judge approved Lohan's stay at Betty Ford, the Los Angeles Times notes. Judge James Dabney said she must stay in the hospital wing since she is not allowed to walk out or leave with a pass.

Although Lohan might be on lockdown, she is still allowed to have Adderall, according to TMZ. Betty Ford will reportedly allow the 26-year-old to take Adderall due to her previous Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder diagnosis. However, doctors at the center are reportedly reviewing her need for the drug.

The actress' mother, Dina Lohan, is happy her daughter is back in rehab.

"I am so relieved and thankful that Lindsay is getting the help she needs in a credible place," she told E! News. "She actually wanted to go, whether the court said to or not. She is happy there, to get introspective and get back on the right track."

"She has a different frame of mind this time," she added of Lindsay's sixth rehab stint. "She realizes and she knows she needs help this time. She was like, 'I'm sorry, Mommy.' And I tell her, 'Don't say you are sorry. You just have to work on yourself and on getting well. Don't beat yourself up.'"


Kristen Wiig Returns To 'SNL'

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This weekend Kristen Wiig returns to "Saturday Night Live" as the host with musical guest Vampire Weekend.

In the promos above Wiig and Armisen reminisce about old times and bust out some dance moves, of course. See the episode this Saturday at 11:30 p.m. on NBC.

WATCH: Why Sherri Shepherd Is Getting A Gun

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"View" co-host Sherri Shepherd appeared on Wednesday's "Fox & Friends" and told the hosts why she planned on purchasing a gun.

Last month, the alarm system in Shepherd's house went off in the middle of the night. Shepherd was so freaked out that she decided to purchase a gun.

"We have two dogs and they didn't bark," Shepherd said to the "Fox & Friends" hosts. "And immediately my husband jumped out of bed and ran downstairs. And I ran to my son Jeffrey's room. And I never wanted a gun in my house but the sight of my son laying there saying, 'Mommy I'm scared.' That's when you realize all you got is a wicker trash basket between me and anybody that comes in this room. And it was a scary thought."

Shepherd told the same story on "The View" the day after her alarm went off. Co-hosts Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Whoopi Goldberg seemed to understand her decision, but co-host Barbara Walters had a different opinion.

"I don't have a house. I have an apartment so I have a different set up," Walters said. "But it scares me, what you're talking about. Because when you have a gun, the tendency is to use it and sometimes you use it in the wrong way."

"Fox & Friends" co-host Brian Kilmeade asked Shepherd if Walters' reasoning scared her away from purchasing a firearm.

"No, it didn't scare me at all because I say that people who say that have never been in the situation of needing to defend their family," Shepherd said.

She added that she planned to keep the gun locked in a case and learn how to use the firearm at a shooting range. Shepherd did not further discuss why the alarm actually went off in her house and if there was an intruder inside.

Watch the "Fox & Friends" segment in the video above and "The View" segment in the clip below.

ROCK BOTTOM

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She may be every tweenager's favorite vampire, but apparently Kristen Stewart can't be trusted.

Reader's Digest polled their readers regarding 200 public figures to determine which are "The 100 Most Trusted People in America." Tom Hanks came at the top, along with Sandra Bullock, Denzel Washington and Meryl Streep. On the flip side, Tom Cruise and Kristen Stewart earned the dreadful title of least trusted stars.

Trust, according to Reader's Digest is "earned with a person's integrity and character, exceptional talent and drive, internal moral compass, message, honesty, and leadership."

Stewart's affair with her married director Rupert Sanders must have contributed to her low score, but it's surprising she managed to snag such a dubious title while Chris Brown, Lindsay Lohan and Amanda Bynes didn't even make the list.

Do you agree with Reader's Digest's results?

WATCH: Amanda Bynes Gets Huge Laughs At Age 10

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Before the vehicular disasters and bizarre tweets, Amanda Bynes was just a 10-year-old girl looking for a laugh in Hollywood, and a talented one at that. The former Nickelodeon star can be seen entertaining crowds as she adorably dances and shrugs onstage (and also ignores the host's butchering of her last name -- "Burns," really?) for a stand-up routine at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles.

Take a look for yourself at the video (from 1996) below.

(h/t Buzzfeed)

The Secret Behind A 'New Girl' Makeout

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Since "New Girl" made its debut in September 2011, fans have been waiting for Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and Nick (Jake Johnson) to get together and they finally got their wish. In January, they kissed, last week, they slept together and in this week's episode, they navigated (or tried to navigate) their newfound more-than-friends relationship.

So what's changed on set now that Nick and Jess have hooked up? "Makeup artists have to carry mints ... all the time," Deschanel admitted on "Live! With Kelly and Michael."

Hosts Kelly Ripa and Michael Strahan showed the actress that they keep Altoids on hand too. "In case you want to make out with us, we are ready," Ripa joked. "And I do," Deschanel replied.

Watch "Live! With Kelly and Michael" weekdays on ABC and find out what happens with Nick and Jess when the "New Girl" season finale airs Tuesday, May 14 at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.

TV Replay scours the vast television landscape to find the most interesting, amusing, and, on a good day, amazing moments, and delivers them right to your browser.

Bad News For Tyler Perry

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The people of "Peeples" make a better impression than most collections of oddballs in the weary mold of comedies centered on meeting the prospective in-laws.

They still overstay their welcome, though.

With a long, boring buildup that finally pays off with scattered laughs in the second half, "Peeples" also manages to leave a better impression than the "Tyler Perry Presents" tag on the posters might imply. This is broad comedy, but nowhere near as broad – or boorish and shrill – as producer Perry's own family adventures (for disclosure's sake, there are screechy relations here, but Perry's Madea fortunately isn't among them).

Craig Robinson moves up from caustic supporting player on "The Office" to show himself an engaging romantic lead in the chubby, lovable, gregarious Jack Black school, while Kerry Washington lightens up from heavier drama as the love of his life, a daddy's girl whose daddy, naturally, doesn't approve.

Screenwriter and first-time director Tina Gordon Chism (her previous scripts include "Drumline") crafts a predictable "Meet the Parents" riff, though she fills it out with a pleasant supporting cast of kooks who, while not always interesting, at least are not off-putting.

Robinson's Wade Walker is a children's entertainer who somehow landed gorgeous, career-driven United Nations lawyer Grace Peeples (Washington). They've been together for a year, yet Grace hasn't introduced Wade to her well-to-do family (the "chocolate Kennedys," Wade calls them, staring at a photo of the Peeples clan looking rich and beautiful).

After Grace ducks out for an annual gathering at the family's Long Island vacation home, Wade decides to force the issue, crashing the party intending to propose to Grace over the weekend, in the bosom of her family. Yeah, that's a plan that's sure to work out well for him.

From there, Chism just keeps piling up dumb decisions, silly missteps and skeletons in the Peeples family closet, all intended to wring maximum awkwardness out of the weekend.

Of course, everything Wade does puts him at odds with family patriarch Virgil Peeples (David Alan Grier), a stern federal judge who thinks no man is good enough for his daughter, especially not a guy whose classroom repertoire includes a ditty about saying it, not spraying it, to discourage kids from peeing in their pants.

The others in the Peeples fold – matriarch Daphne (S. Epatha Merkerson), daughter Gloria (Kali Hawk) and her best pal Meg (Kimrie Lewis-Davis), and teen son Simon (Tyler James Williams) generally take a shine to Wade. But they all have secrets, which Wade, through his outsider eyes, is able to penetrate, hindering his efforts to ingratiate himself to the family.

As if we didn't have enough complications and inexplicable actions, Wade's brother (Malcolm Barrett) decides to pop in on the Peeples, too. Chism already strains credibility to have Wade show up uninvited; she's pressing her luck having his brother barge in.

Once she has the whole gang assembled and all the dominoes set up to knock down, Chism gradually makes her farce pay off here and there, the pace picking up and a few gags connecting as Wade's weekend from hell sinks to the lower depths.

Melvin Van Peebles and Diahann Carroll drop in briefly as Virgil's parents, he with a couple of laughs, she sadly to little use.

These all are amiable people, decent people, sometimes funny people. But unfortunately, the peeps of "Peeples" just aren't very memorable people.

"Peeples," a Lionsgate release, is rated PG-13 for sexual content, drug material and language. Running time: 95 minutes. Two stars out of four.

___

Motion Picture Association of America rating definition for PG-13: Special parental guidance strongly suggested for children under 13. Some material may be inappropriate for young children.

Five Summer Movies To Skip

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The following article is provided by Rolling Stone.

By PETER TRAVERS

"The Great Gatsby"
In Theaters: May 10
All the hard-sell – the Leo star power, the sets, the costumes, the soundtrack supervised by Jay-Z – can't disguise the fact that Baz Luhrmann's take on F. Scott Fitzgerald's great American novel appears to choking on its own excess.

Peter Travers' Summer Movie Preview

"Byzantium"
In Theaters: June 28
Saoirse Ronan and Gemma Arterton hang out in a rundown British seaside resort. Here's the twist: They're vampires. No. No. No. I've had enough of the bloodsucking.

Peter Travers on the Worst Movies in April

"Grown Ups 2"
In Theaters: July 12
Since the first "Grown Ups" in 2010 was family comedy at its most fatuous and fun-free, how in hell can Adam Sandler pull off a miracle with a sequel?

Peter Travers on the Best and Worst James Bond Movies

"300: Rise of an Empire"
In Theaters: August 2
Didn't everyone die in the first "300" in 2007? Don't be nitpicky. It's a Hollywood commandment that if it's a hit, it can be replicated. So now we have another battle taking place in the same year. Next we can do "300: The Hangover."

The 10 Worst Superhero Movies of the Past 10 Years

"We're the Millers"
In Theaters: August 9
In this tarted-up road trip movie, Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis play mom and dad. Except she's a stripper helping him smuggle weed across the Mexican border. Their kids are fake, and I'm getting depressed just thinking about this.

The 30 Greatest Rock & Roll Movie Moments


Chef Art Smith On His 'Amazing' Hubby, Gay Marriage

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Chef Art Smith, who has served the likes of President Barack Obama, Jeb Bush, Lady Gaga and Oprah Winfrey, recently stopped by Huff Post Live to discuss his relationship with his husband and gay marriage.

"He's an amazing man and I would love more people to have that same opportunity -- to be able to be married to that person, the one they wish to be regardless, male, female, whatever," Smith said.

Smith may be king of the kitchen, but hubby Jesus Salgueiro is no slacker. In March, the Venezuelan-born Salgueiro whipped up delicious-looking cacahapas (fresh corn-dough pancakes) in honor of his country, which Smith proudly shared on Twitter.

Watch the clip above.

The Darkest 'Community' Timeline?

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We don't know yet whether Thursday's "Community" season finale will also be the NBC comedy's swan song, but we do know that a key character has enough credits to leave Greendale Community College for good.

In HuffPost TV's exclusive clip (above) from Thursday's episode, "Introduction to Finality," the study group discusses Jeff's imminent graduation and what that might mean for the gang's collective future. Thursday will also see the return of the Darkest Timeline, which fans famously glimpsed in the classic episode "Remedial Chaos Theory."

Will Jeff leave Greendale? Will "Community" return? Will members of the study group don Darkest Timeline beards? What kind of costume will Dean Pelton wear to mark the end of another semester? We'll have to tune in for the "Community" finale to find out.

The "Community" finale airs Thursday, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.

The One Item Of Clothing Kristen Stewart Refuses To Wear

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Despite fronting Balenciaga campaigns and rocking some pretty fashion-forward looks, Kristen Stewart doesn't have the most agreeable reputation in the style world.

The self-proclaimed "tomboy" rarely smiles during red carpet appearances and usually scurries off to trade in her designer heels for high-top Converse sneakers [Ed. note: You go, girl.]. Now, her stylist reveals the one item of clothing the actress simply refuses to wear.

In an interview with StyleCaster, Tara Swennen, the stylist behind Kaley Cuoco and Julie Bowen as well as Kristen, dishes about K-Stew's preference:

Last season, it was so funny because they called us out in The New York Times [that] Kristen had sort of hit every trend last year except for peplum! She’s not a fan of peplum. I tried with 20 peplum dresses this year, and it was not happening! I’m trying to get her to the high-neck turtleneck thing. I’m trying to push her.

Aw, no peplum for Ms. Stewart? To be fair, the 23-year-old has pushed plenty of boundaries over the past year, wearing jaw-dropping Zuhair Murad get-ups and bold, printed minis -- that is, when she wasn't in a baseball cap and jeans.

So we say: Wear whatever you want, Kristen. (But keep in mind that not all peplums are created equal!)

A sampling of what K-Stew will wear:

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Funny And Profound Quotes For Mother's Day

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If you're looking for great Mother's Day quotes to inspire you this year, Hillary Clinton, Amy Poehler, Natalie Portman and J.K. Rowling have you covered. With a little help from biologist and former book editor Jena Pincott, who has just published a gorgeous new quote book for moms. The collection, calledMom Candy: 1,000 Quotes of Inspiration for Mothers, is filled with delightfully relatable musings from interviews, memoirs, poems and more from notable women.

"I cherry-picked passages as my toddler sat on my lap or nearby on her play rug. I dipped into novels and pored over databases while my daughter turned the pages of her board books," Pincott says in the introduction. "After finding a juicy passage, I'd stop and read to her... Looking back, I realize that tese were some of our first bonding moments over words and books."

The quotes are sorted into nineteen chapters, spanning time from "Beginning" to "Legacy" and tone from "Laugh" (Poehler's "Sleep is out ... tired is the new black") to "Lifesavers" (Jessica Lange's "The natural state of motherhood is unselfishness"). Check out some of the best quotes, on pages designed by the publisher, in the slideshow below, and find out more about Mom Candy here.

What's your favorite quote about parenthood? Let us know in the comments or share it with us on Facebook or Twitter. Happy Mother's Day!

Roberta Sklar: Cynthia Nixon: Global LGBT Rights and Activism in the City

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On May 13th, Cynthia Nixon will host A Celebration of Courage, the annual human rights award ceremony and benefit for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. This is not her first time around the activist block. Since she was a teenager, Cynthia has been a voice for change at home -- from education, to marriage equality, to HIV/AIDS -- and now she's taking her fight global.

Most know you from your on-camera work and not your long history of going to bat for issues off-camera. What drives your activism?
My activism has always come from a personal connection -- issues that touch me personally as a woman, as a mother and as a New Yorker. I guess it started when I was 15 and did my first political event, which was a fundraiser/performance for the National Abortion Rights Action League. A woman's right to choose was the first cause I got behind publicly and it only grows more important to me as time goes on. As a parent, I've fought for funding for New York's public schools. I'm a NYC public school graduate myself, got a terrific education here, and always knew I wanted my children to go to public school in NYC when they were old enough. I was even arrested during protests organized by the Alliance for Quality Education over severe budget cuts to the public schools. Recently I hosted a major fundraiser for the Gay Men's Health Crisis, an organization formed in the '80s in the crucible of the AIDS crisis in NYC. I lost close friends to AIDS, and my recognition of the global pandemic naturally draws me to activism in the global sphere.

In our immediate surroundings, there are so many needs and demands. Why do you think it's important to bring attention to international issues related to LGBT people?
LGBT rights work in our own backyard is far from finished, but we're having ongoing successes. In our position of strength, we can extend our knowledge and our focus to other parts of the world where movements are growing and much of the work is about basic survival -- about basic human rights. I have read again and again about the horrifying acts of violence against women and LGBT people abroad -- acts stunning in their brutality -- and been viscerally repulsed. Women are consistently targets of violence around the world, and LGBT people are also being targeted with extreme violence for their sexual orientation. I think this is an even harder nut to crack. Many people have an unfounded fear of homosexuality and when that's bolstered by religious and political animus which encourages violence, it can threaten the safety and very right to existence for LGBT people. If we want to see change for women and LGBT people, we simply have to get involved.

You've been supportive in the marriage equality campaigns here at home. How do you see that as relevant to the fight of LGBT activists in other countries?
The marriage fight seems to me to be a perfect microcosm of the struggle for LGBT equality across the board. When society's laws say there are two different kinds of people: one that deserves human rights and one that doesn't, it opens the queer community up to government-sanctioned discrimination and even violence. It's important for governments to start by recognizing LGBT people equally under the law in every way possible and to affirm that we are real people and entitled to the full range of human rights. Here at home, Obama has taken a leadership role by rescinding Don't Ask, Don't Tell, by supporting same-sex marriage as an idea and not defending DOMA in the courts. He's also taken a proactive stand on LGBT human rights in foreign policy. Leadership from the very top of government on these issues is crucial -- when a government leader says "these people are equal and entitled to full rights," the power of that cannot be overestimated.

What do you think will change the conditions LGBT people facing violence around the world?
We need to have a country's leadership, government, and courts to acknowledge that discrimination and violence against LGBT people is illegal and unacceptable whether it's in the U.S., Uganda, or Singapore. When a government looks away, it more or less condones violence against LGBT people and makes them outlaws, solely for being who they are and loving who they love. We also have to support what brave activists are already doing in their countries -- in building their movements, becoming more visible, and bringing global attention to the violations of their rights. One way we can do this is by supporting the work of organizations like the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission.

How did you get involved in hosting this year's Celebration of Courage for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission?

I first learned about IGLHRC from Alan Cumming, a true ambassador for IGLHRC's work. Now there is a person who cannot say no to a good cause! I'm constantly inspired by his seemingly boundless capacity to pitch in and give of himself when he thinks an issue merits it. It encourages me to give more of my time and energy to causes I care about. Alan's been working with IGLHRC over a number of years and he takes an important worldview: none of us can fully enjoy our human rights until we all fully enjoy human rights. And this is what IGLHRC's work is all about -- strategically supporting the work of activists around the world by supporting their local efforts for equality, helping them to document abuses and bring them to the international community. I'm proud to support this organization which is headquartered in NYC and whose mission is to advance human rights for everyone, everywhere, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.

I am excited to be hosting A Celebration of Courage the annual human rights award ceremony and benefit for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission on May 13, and hope everyone who can, will join us.

Question and Answer with Cynthia Nixon by Roberta Sklar, Communications Director, International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission

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