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Nex Benedict's autopsy report released
The full autopsy report for Nex Benedict (he/they)a 16-year-old transgender and Indigenous student from Oklahoma's Owasso High School who died in February a day after a school fighthas been released. The Oklahoma Office of the Chie ...
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An interstate trans healthcare crisis: Illinois prepares for influx of people seeking gender-affirming care
With hard-won rights, such as access to hormone replacement therapy or permission to use one's chosen pronouns in school, breaking down in states across the country, trans residents of all ages are left with a choice: ...
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No charges filed in Nex Benedict fight; campaigns call for Walters' removal
In Oklahoma, Tulsa County District Attorney Stephen Kunzweiler announced that no charges will be filed in connection with the fight that happened the day before transgender, nonbinary high school student Nex Benedict died by suicide, NBC ...
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JP Karliak morphs into non-binary character for Disney+'s X-Men '97
series X-Men '97, a revival of the popular X-men: The Animated Series that's both continuing the ongoing mutant storyline and breaking new ground along the way. The character of Morph now looks more like the comic ...
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NATIONAL Va. marriage bill, AARP, online counseling, Idaho items, late activist
Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed bills protecting same-sex marriages at a state level, surprising some, WRIC reported. The billspassed out of both chambers along mostly party lineswill require clerks ...
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Almost 8% of U.S. residents identify as LGBTQ+
The proportion of U.S. adults identifying as LGBTQ+ continues to increase. LGBTQ+ identification in the U.S. continues to grow, with 7.6% of U.S. adults now identifying as LGBTQ+, according to the newest Gallup poll results that ...
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SPORTS Red Stars prepare to kick off NWSL season against Utah Royals
It's been a busy winter for the Red Stars, and it's time to put their work to the test. Following a last place finish in the 2023 NWSL season, Chicago has had an active offseason transforming ...
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WORLD Leaked messages, Panama action, author dies at 32, Japan court, out athletes
Hundreds of messages from an internal chat board for an international group of transgender health professionals were leaked in a report and framed as revealing serious health risks associated with gender-affirming care, including cancer, according to ...
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NATIONAL Missouri measure, HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, judge, Texas schools
In Missouri, a newly proposed law could charge teachers and counselors with a felony and require them to register as sex offenders if they're found guilty of supporting transgender students who are socially transitioning, CNN noted. ...
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College athletes sue NCAA over transgender policies
Former Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines was among a group of college athletes who filed a lawsuit against the NCAA on March 14, accusing it of violating their Title IX rights by allowing trans swimmer Lia Thomas ...
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SHOWBIZ Lady Gaga, 'P-Valley,' Wendy Williams, Luke Evans, 'Queer Eye,' 'Transition'
Lady Gaga came to the defense of Dylan Mulvaney after a post with the trans influencer/activist for International Women's Day received hateful responses, People Magazine noted. On Instagram, Gaga stated, "It's appalling to me that a ...
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LGBTQ+ people attacked by mobs in Greece
Just weeks after a landmark law granted same-sex couples in Greece the right to marry, nearly 200 people dressed in black chased a transgender couple through the town square in Thessaloniki, the country's "second city" and ...
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Howard Brown experts discuss advocacy and allyship for Chicago's trans community
By Alec Karam
Howard Brown Health's Trans & Gender Diverse People's Rights & Patient Care panel convened March 12 to discuss both resources forand opportunities to provide allyship tothe city's trans and gender diverse communities. The event hos ...
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UPDATE: Nex Benedict's death ruled a suicide; family responds
A medical examiner's report concluded that the cause of death of Oklahoma student Nex Benedict (he/they) was suicide, media reports confirmed. Benedict—a 16-year-old transgender student—died Feb. 8, a day after ...
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"X" gender marker now available on Illinois driver's licenses and state ID cards
After several years of preparation, the Illinois Secretary of State's office is has been making the X gender designation available for non-binary residents and others not utilizing the M or F designations, since the beginning of ...
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Chicagoan continues fight against alleged transphobia at Orangetheory
After allegedly dealing with transphobia at a Chicago Orangetheory beginning in 2018, Jes Favers du Shine is still holding out hope for the organization to take measures addressing those issues.� In 2020, Windy City Times reported ...
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Trans golfer banned from competing
Transgender golfer Hailey Davidson spoke out on Instagram after the NXXT Women's Pro Tour suddenly announced on March 8 (International Women's Day) that participants must be "a biological female at birth" in order to competebanning D ...
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NATIONAL Altercation, mpox research, Univ. of Fla., George Santos, tech battle
Video footage uploaded to Facebook showed an altercation between a state trooper and two prominent Philadelphia LGBTQ+ leaders, the Washington Blade reported, republishing an article from Philadelphia Gay News. Celena ...
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AMA launches toolkit to increase screenings for HIV, STIs, hepatitis, tuberculosis
Press release
CHICAGO — With disruptions in clinical care caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and viral hepatitis across the U.S., the American Medical Association ...
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Federal investigation initiated in Nex Benedict case
The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights has started an investigation into the Oklahoma school district where Nex Benedict, a transgender 16-year-old sophomore, went to school and was bullied before his death, The Advocate ...
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Court blocks Texas attorney general's demand for PFLAG data
From a press release: AUSTIN, Texas—Travis County District Court Judge Maria Cantú Hexel on March 1 blocked the latest effort by the Texas Attorney General's Office to persecute Texas families with transgender youth, temporarily haltin ...
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WORLD Canadian politics, Australian murders, Finnish study, 'Anatomy'
Canadian conservatives are divided over an anti-trans policy that Alberta Premier Danielle Smith handed down in her province, The Guardian reported. The policy includes a ban on hormonal treatment, puberty ...
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Appeals court allows Ind. ban on gender-affirming care for minors
On Feb. 27, a federal appeals court in Chicago allowed Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care to go into effect, removing a temporary injunction that U.S. District Court Judge James Patrick Hanlon issued last year, ABC News ...
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Activists and others urge removal of Oklahoma schools superintendent after Nex Benedict death
TULSA, OKLAHOMA—Today more than 350 national, state, and local organizations advocating for equality across the U.S., alongside notable public figures, issued an open letter to Oklahoma legislative leadership urging justice ...
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APA adopts policy supporting transgender, gender diverse and non-binary individuals
From a press release: WASHINGTON—The American Psychological Association (APA) has adopted a landmark policy affirming evidence-based care for transgender, gender diverse and nonbinary children, adolescents and adults, noting that recent ...
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911 calls, videos show cascade of failures in Nex Benedict's death, GLAAD responds
"It is haunting to hear Nex Benedict, in their own words, describe how school and state leaders failed, at every level of leadership, to keep them safe from bullying and harm. Less than 24 hours later, ...
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Federal jury finds man guilty of killing trans woman in landmark case
In a groundbreaking case, a federal jury in Columbia, South Carolina found Daqua Lameek Ritter guilty of killing transgender woman Dime Doe after deliberating for almost four hours, The State reported. It is the first time ...
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WORLD Caribbean ruling, Pussy Riot, Russian raid, Canadian warning, anti-trans bar
The top court in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines dismissed a challenge to colonial-era anti-gay laws, Reuters reported. Javin Johnson and Sean Macleish—two gay men who had pushed to decriminalize ...
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NATIONAL Chuck Schumer, anti-marriage bill, drag event back on, military doctor
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced his support for the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA)and, as a result, several LGBTQ+-advocacy organizations dropped their opposition to it, The Hill ...
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Oklahoma non-binary student dies after being assaulted
Officials acknowledged there are unresolved questions about a 16-year-old non-binary Oklahoma student who died one day after a fight in a high school bathroom, NBC News noted. Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, ...
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Center on Halsted to host trans youth & family summit
Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., has announced that its Trans Youth & Family Summit 2024 will take place March 16. This year marks the sixth annual event, which partners between Youth Services' Pride Youth ...
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WORLD South Africa murder, lesbian couple, Brianna Ghey, Eurovision
In South Africa, LGBTQ+-rights groups condemned the brutal murder of Diego Jacobs, a queer man in Cape Town, The Washington Blade reported. Reports indicate Jacobs, 21, was brutally murdered (reportedly by a former neighbor) on Feb. ...
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NATIONAL Utah board member, Baths founder dies, Fla. protests, DoJ equity plan
Utah's Republican governor and lieutenant governor urged the State Board of Education to take action against a conservative board member whose social-media post questioning the gender of a high school basketball player incited threats against the ...
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Human Rights Campaign report releases new data on experiences of Black queer youth
--From a press release
WASHINGTON — Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), the educational arm of the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, released a report in ...
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Col. Jennifer Pritzker comments on military museum move
Local transgender philanthropist Col. Jennifer Pritzker commented to Windy City Times about the impending move of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library (PMML), which she founded in 2003, to Wisconsin. "At the end of the day, ...
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THEATER Dot-Marie Jones talks Goodman production, 'Glee,' 'Bros'
Running through Feb. 18 at the the Goodman Theatre, the production Highway Patrol works with a script conceived entirely from Emmy-winning actor Dana Delany's (TV's China Beach) digital archive of hundreds of tweets and direct messages ...
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Coalition of LGBTQ+ advocates, health care providers release Project RAINBOW report
--From a press release
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A coalition of more than two dozen LGBTQ+ advocate organizations and health care providers are releasing a new report aimed at addressing the challenges and discrimination that ...
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Republicans file bill to ban trans women from U.S. Olympic teams
Republicans in both houses of Congress have launched another effort to ban transgender women and girls from female sports teamsand this time, they are attempting to ban trans women from competing on U.S. Olympic teams ahead ...
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New US Trans Survey highlights importance of gender-affirming care and societal acceptance
After surveying 92,329 people in 2022, the early insights gleaned from the 2022 U.S. Trans Survey (USTS) have been released—and they highlight just how much impact gender-affirming care can have. The USTS, which was last completed ...
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Quantum Leap reboot springs into LGBTQ+ representation
Through the magic of television, Quantum Leap is once again jumping into the past to bounce back into the futureand in a recent episode, "The Family Trasure," non-binary artist and performer Wilder Yuri and writer Shakina ...
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NATIONAL Texas court, police chief, Gentili memorial, Philly controversy
The Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments challenging Senate Bill 14, the ban on gender-affirming care that went into effect last September, KERA reported. SB 14 blocks trans minors from accessing gender-affirming medical care, such as ...
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GLAAD remembers Cecilia Gentili, transgender Latina, actress, activist, health care activist, journalist
--From a press release
(New York, NY - February 6, 2024) GLAAD, the world's largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization, is responding to the death of transgender actress and advocate Cecilia Gentili and elevating voices of transgender and political leaders honoring ...
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Iowa governor introduces bill to out trans people on official documents
By Lu Calzada
As states around Illinois continue to introduce anti-LGBTQ billsand in some cases, pass anti-LGBTQ resolutions into lawIowa recently added one more blow for Midwestern LGBTQ+ Americans. Governor Kim Reynolds introduced HB 649 Feb. 1, and it ...
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NATIONAL Marriage news, fighting fentanyl, anti-LGBTQ+ crimes, Grindr
The Virginia House of Delegates passed a bill that would affirm marriage equality in the state, The Washington Blade noted. House Bill 174, introduced by state Del. Rozia Henson (D-Prince William County), passed in the Democratic-controlled ...
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HRC State Equality Index: Anti-LGBTQ+ 2023 state legislative season "most destructive"
--From a press release
WASHINGTON—Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), the education arm of the nation's largest Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, in partnership with the Equality Federatio ...
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Looking back at Chicago LGBTQ+ community's stand against Anheuser-Busch
As conservatives across the country boycotted Anheuser-Busch products for Bud Light's partnership with trans woman Dylan Mulvaney in 2023, LGBTQ+ bars in Chicago removed their products for a different reason. Following the deeply negative response to ...
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Extreme anti-trans legislation to be law in Ohio after GOP supermajority overrides governor's veto
--From a press release
WASHINGTON — The GOP-controlled Ohio Senate voted today to complete the legislature's override of Republican Gov. Mike DeWine's veto of dangerous anti-trans legislation. The bill bans transgender athletes from participating ...
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National Center for Transgender Equality and Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund to merge
--From a press release
WASHINGTON - Today, the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) and the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund (TLDEF), two leading national trans civil rights organizations, officially announced their intent ...
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WORLD World leaders, Namibia attack, Taiwan electoral win, Irish LGBTQ+ groups
In the wake of Gabriel Attal being named France's newest prime minister, PinkNews published a list of every out LGBTQ+ world leader to date. They include ex-San Marino head of state Paolo Rondelli, former Iceland Prime ...
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NATIONAL Wis. report, gender dysphoria, HIV research, Stonewall exhibit, gay CEOs
A new annual report from Wisconsin's Office of Children's Mental Health shows that the state's minorsespecially girls, children of color and LGBTQ+ youthcontinue to struggle with anxiety, depression and thoughts ...
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WORLD Conversion therapy, trans Haitian advocate, intersex report, activist attacked
Norway is the latest country to outlaw conversion therapy after its parliament passed a bill that criminalizes the practice, Mamba noted. The bill, under development since 2019, received approval in the Storting (the Norwegian parliament) last ...
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NATIONAL Trans Health Equity Act, school policy, drag items, Don Lemon, Danica Roem
The Trans Health Equity Acta law that requires Maryland's Medicaid program to cover gender-affirming treatmentstook effect Jan. 1, The Washington Blade noted. In May 2023, Democratic Gov. Wes Moore signed the act. The law covers hormone ...
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11th Circuit allows Alabama transgender adolescent medical ban to take effect, NCLR responds
--From a press release
Today Jan. 11, 2024, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order allowing Alabama's ban on medical care for transgender adolescents to take effect. This order grants a request by the state of Alabama to ...
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Williams Institute: 41,000 transgender immigrants live in California
--From a press release
A new study by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law finds that there are 174,200 transgender immigrants in the United States and 41,000 transgender immigrants in California, comprising over one-quarter (27%) of the state's ...
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Ohio House overrides governor's pro-trans veto
On Jan. 10, Ohio's Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted 65-28 to override GOP Gov. Mike DeWine's Dec. 29 veto of a bill that bans gender-affirming healthcare for minors. Democrats say transgender people and parents of transgender ...
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NATIONAL Trans candidates, Philly official, anti-LGBTQ+ laws, bisexual study
An Ohio transgender woman announced her candidacy for the state's legislature, challenging an anti-LGBTQ+ Republican, The Dallas Voice noted. "If you're gonna attack our communities, then you're gonna have to compete against someone from our c ...
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WORLD Activist honored, marriages in Estonia, Madrid law, trans sports item
Video below
The National AIDS Commission (NAC) recently honored Caleb Orozco—a leading figure in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in Belize—for his instrumental contributions to the national HIV response, BNN reported. According ...
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USA Boxing adds policy regarding trans competitors
Boxing's highest national governing body, USA Boxing, added a transgender athlete policy to its rulebook that requires genital-reassignment surgery and strict hormone testing for adults before competition, NBC News noted. ...
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Coalition petitions for march, rally for reproductive and LGBTQ+ rights prior to DNC convention
The Bodies Outside of Unjust Laws: Coalition for Reproductive Justice and LGBTQ+ Liberation coalition group held a press conference Jan. 2 at Chicago's City Hall just outside the city's Department of Transportation offices. The groups announced ...
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Republican Ohio governor vetoes anti-trans youth bans in health and sports
After speaking with healthcare providers and the families of transgender children, Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed an anti-LGBTQ+ measure that would have banned transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming care ...
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Ohio Governor DeWine vetoes ban on transgender medical care, NCLR responds
--From a press release
December 29, 2023 - Today Ohio Governor Mike DeWine vetoed HB 68 bill that would have banned medical care for transgender adolescents, stating: "It is the parents who know their child best." Across the country, federal ...
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NATIONAL Women's college, banned books, military initiative, Oregon
After backlash regarding a decision to update its anti-discrimination policy and open enrollment to some transgender applicants, a Catholic women's college in Indiana will return to its previous admission policy, per The National Catholic Reporter. In ...
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WORLD Brianna Ghey, archbishops, HIV, George Michael, Albanian women
A boy and a girl, each 16, were found guilty of murdering a transgender teenager in northwest England earlier this year in a knife attack, per a Yahoo! News item that cited the AP. Brianna Ghey, ...
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NATIONAL School items, Miami attack, Elliot Page, Fire Island
In Virginia, new and returning members of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and Fairfax County School Board were inauguratedwith some school board members opting to use banned books on the topics of slavery and LGBTQ+ ...
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Chicago trans man sues former employer, union over gender-affirming medical care denials
Chicago trans man Morgan Mesi, 34, filed a federal lawsuit Dec. 14 that alleges he was denied medically necessary and critical gender-affirming healthcare by the health care plan that is run jointly by his former employers ...
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WORLD Morocco, court rulings, asylum items, Troye Sivan
Moroccan advocacy groups have criticized continued attacks and unequal treatment against the country's LGBTQ+ community, The Washington Blade reported. On Nov. 15, a minor was sentenced to six months in prison for being gay and fined ...
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LGBTQ+ baseball executives announce cancer battles
Openly gay Major League Baseball (MLB) executive Billy Bean announced he has been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and that he needs a donor for a bone-marrow transplant, Gay City News noted. USA Today initially reported ...
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Angelica Ross talks politics, Hollywood, Buddhism and more
Angelica Ross had already made her imprint on society in various ways. She is the founder of TransTech Social Enterprises, which helps transgender and gender-nonconforming people become part of the tech industry; an activist who hosted ...
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NATIONAL Dr. Rachel Levine, World AIDS Day, trans deaths, Philly bar art
United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama Liles C. Burke ruled that emails and other records from U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Rachel Levine are relevant to a lawsuit challenging Alabama's ban ...
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Wisconsin governor vetoes anti-trans youth healthcare ban
In an expected move, Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers vetoed a bill that aimed to outlaw gender-affirming care for minors, CBS News reported. Evers has sworn to strike down any proposals from the GOP-controlled Wisconsin Legislature ...
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Trans actress, gay actors, 'Kokomo City' receive Spirit Award nominations
The nominations for the 39th annual Film Independent Spirit Awards have been announcedand LGBTQ+ actors, directors and productions definitely made their mark. Trans actress Trace Lysette was announced as one of the nominees for Best Lead ...
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MOVIES Director Daniel Peddle on the sequel to the classic doc 'The Aggressives'
In 2005, Daniel Peddle released The Aggressives—a groundbreaking documentary filmed during the late '90s and early '00s in New York City that profiled several masculine-presenting/transmasculine people of color. Fast-forward to ...
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WORLD Queer teen dies, trans activist honored, HIV drugs, mpox, British lesbian
In India, queer makeup artist Pranshu reportedly died by suicide—at age 16—after being subjected to relentless attacks online, PinkNews noted. On social media, LGBTQIA+-rights advocacy collective Yes, We Exist claimed ...
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'She was here...and she is here': Street to be renamed after Elise Malary
By Alec Karam
The memory of the late activist Elise Malary will soon become a permanent part of Andersonville's Catalpa Avenue. The renamed "Elise Malary Way" will encompass the Catalpa Plaza area, a planned pedestrian plaza between Ashland Avenue ...
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LGBTQ+ couple the first in South Asia to have marriage recognized
Transgender woman Maya Gurung and Surendra Pandey became the first LGBTQ+ couple to have their marriage legally recognized in South Asia after they received a legal certificate in Nepal's Lamjung district on Nov. 29, The Guardian ...
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