A survey suggests Vice President Kamala Harris may face an obstacle to winning in Pennsylvania: third-party candidates Jill Stein and Chase Oliver, according to Newsweek. A poll conducted by Wick between Aug. 27-29 shows Harris and Donald Trump are tied in a head-to-head matchup, with 49 percent each; however, when third-party candidates are included the former president leads, with 48 percent to Harris’ 47 percent. Green Party candidate Stein and gay Libertarian candidate Oliver are polling at 1 percent each. However, other polls have shown that the presence of third-party candidates on the ballot in Pennsylvania actually helps Harris, including the most recent Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll, conducted Aug. 23-26.
Fort Lauderdale-based Stonewall National Museum & Archives ended its decade-old membership with Visit Florida after the organization removed its LGBTQ Travel page, according to Skift. “As a community and as an organization, we’re not represented at all,” said Stonewall Executive Director Robert Kesten. “It seems futile to keep throwing good money after that.” Kesten posted on LinkedIn that he had asked for a refund of the membership fee, which he told Skift was $475; Visit Florida processed the refund on Sept. 5. Visit Florida CEO/President Dana Young acknowledged the removal of the page at a board meeting on Aug. 28, saying,“Visit Florida is a taxpayer funded organization and, as such, Visit Florida, our marketing strategy, our materials and our content must align with the state.” At a press conference on the same day, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Visit Florida shouldn’t have separate pages for travelers based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
And in a related story, Action News Tampa noted that other states are now capitalizing on Florida’s missing links by enticing travelers to leave the Sunshine State in the dark for more inclusive-friendly destinations. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, the first openly gay man elected to that office in this country, posted, “Hello gay tourists! Since Florida doesn’t want you, come on over to explore what Colorado has to offer!” Illinois and Connecticut are among the other states making overtures to travelers.
Equality Forum announced its 2024 icons for LGBT History Month. They include the late photographer Herb Ritts; songwriter Desmond Child; Salvadoran-American filmmaker, actor, model and intersex-rights activist River Gallo; editor Kevin Naff; WNBA icon Diana Taurasi; the late singers Luther Vandross and George Michael; nonbinary singer Sam Smith; U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler; and Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford, among others.
A new study from the Pew Research Center’s latest National Survey of Latinos found that awareness of the pan-ethnic term “Latinx” has about doubled among U.S. Hispanic adults since 2019 (47% vs. 23%), but only 4% report using it. Among other things, the study also revealed that 13% of lesbian, gay or bisexual Latinos say they have used “Latinx” to describe themselves, and 9% of Afro-Latinos say they use Latinx; these shares are higher than both groups’ counterparts. Interestingly, 75% of Latinos who have heard of Latinx say it should not be used to describe the Hispanic or Latino population—up from 65% saying the same in 2019.
In Alabama, the Birmingham City Council voted to pull all business licenses for The Quest Club—an LGBTQ+ bar that has been open since 1982—after a heated hearing discussing safety measures since a double homicide at the venue in May, AL.com reported. Bar owner Don Sparks got in a heated confrontation with City Council member J.T. Moore during the hearing, with Sparks saying that lax gun laws were to blame while Moore countered, “I believe that you all are very unserious about this situation.” The Quest’s lawyers said after the hearing that they would ask for a temporary restraining order to keep the bar open.
Investigators claimed that Wisconsin maximum security prison inmate Jackson Vogel killed his cellmate for being Black and gay, ABC News reported. Vogel, 24—who is doing time for the attempted killing of his own mother—has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide with hate crime and repeat offender penalty enhancers in the killing of 19-year-old Micah Laureano at the Green Bay Correctional Institution. A complaint said that Vogel, who is white, told the guard he killed Laureano for being Black and gay; Vogel reportedly told another guard that he knocked Laureano out, tied up his hands and feet and then strangled him to death. Investigators allegedly discovered many cut strips of orange cloth around the cell as well as a handwritten note that read “Kill all humans!,” followed by anti-Black and -gay slurs.
In Michigan, Oakland County Probate Pro Tem Judge Kathleen Ryan was recently removed from her docket after she was allegedly recorded by a court official making insulting statements about gay and Black people, Newsweek noted. Chief Probate Judge Linda Hallmark removed Ryan from her docket on Aug. 27, saying that “a complaint regarding internal allegations of unprofessional conduct” was sent to the Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission. Among other things, Ryan reportedly used gay slurs about other elected officials, allegedly saying in one audio clip, “You little f*****.” Ryan also allegedly called herself “a new racist” in another recording.
According to LGBTQ Nation, a late-night party in a wooded area popular with teens in Gloucester, Massachusetts, was the scene of a brutal beating over the Labor Day weekend that left trans high school junior Jayden Tkaczyk with bone fractures and nerve damage. Tkaczyk told reporters he’s been bullied for years over his trans identity, and is sure it played a part in why he was targeted. “We are treating these allegations with the utmost seriousness,” Gloucester Police Chief Edward Conley said in a statement. “We ask the public to allow the investigation to proceed without rushing to judgment.”
Transgender South Carolina residents and their families are suing the state to block enforcement of a ban on gender-affirming healthcare, according to an ACLU of South Carolina press release. the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of South Carolina and Selendy Gay are representing the plaintiffs. House Bill 4624, signed into law by Gov. Henry McMaster on May 21, bars doctors from providing potentially life-saving care for transgender youth as well as many trans adults, the release stated. ACLU of South Carolina Executive Director Jace Woodrum said, “Transgender South Carolinians should be able to get the medical care they need without politicians coming into their doctors’ offices with them. That’s why we’re challenging this dangerous law.”
Lorain became the 12th Ohio city to ban the discredited practice known as “conversion therapy,” which is used to attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity, according to FOX 8. Lorain City Council passed the ordinance unanimously to ban healthcare professionals in the city from engaging in conversion therapy with minors. The measure was propelled by 22-year-old Lorain resident Brandon West, who argued conversion therapy has no place in Lorain “as it causes lasting harm, increases risk of youth suicide and spreads a message of intolerance.” Ohio cities are passing these bans because the state’s general assembly hasn’t advanced a proposal to implement a statewide ban.
Gay conservative Dave Rubin claimed he was the victim of a Russian scheme, as the Department of Justice (DoJ) said that Moscow allegedly used him as part of a disinformation campaign to influence the results of the 2024 elections in the United States, per LGBTQ Nation. The DoJ announced that two Russian nationals affiliated with RT (previously known as Russia Toda), have been charged in connection with an alleged scheme to “covertly finance and direct” a media company based in Tennessee. The Guardian noted that the DoJ’s description of the media company was an exact match for Tenet Media, where Rubin works; Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, has been featured on their podcast, as has former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
Colorado counties with the most new cases of HIV are getting funding from the state, according to 9News. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is giving out grants to help increase testing and prevention efforts, with the goal being to get 95% of the population tested so they know their HIV status. Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment (WCDPHE) will receive $100,000 in grant funding for the next year; after that, it will get $125,000 per year for the next four years. Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Denver, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer and Pueblo counties will also receive funding for HIV prevention.
One Institute announced the full schedule for the second annual Circa: Queer Histories Festival that will take place Oct. 1-31 in venues across Los Angeles, per a press release. Notable participants include current Lambda Legal CEO and GLSEN founder Kevin Jennings, Academy Award-nominated documentary filmmaker Dr. Dee Mosbacher, NBC Out Editorial Director Brooke Sopelsa, transdisciplinary artist/filmmaker Devyn Galindo and artist/activist Mars Wright, among others. Regarding events, Circa: Queer Histories Festival 2024 will debut “Reel Resilience: The Circa 2024 Short Film Festival”; a couple of the other highlights include the opening plenary, “Our Queerest Century: A Conversation with the Los Angeles Times,” and the closing plenary, “The Future of Queer History: LGBTQ+ Writers on the Election.”
Between Aug. 20 and Sept. 5, four Delaware men (Sidi Diakite, Almamy Diaby, Abdul Aziz Sangare and Abdoul Aziz Traore) were arrested and/or self-surrendered in Delaware on federal charges relating to an alleged international “sextortion” scheme that targeted thousands of victims throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, per a U.S. Department of Justice media release. The alleged conspirators posed as young females online and initiated communications with thousands of potential victims, who were primarily young men and included minors from those three areas. The superseding indictment also charges Hadja Kone, of Wilmington, Delaware, who was previously arrested in April; and Siaka Ouattara, of Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, whom the Ivorian authorities separately arrested in February.
D.C. Capital Pride Alliance board member Anthony Musa and transgender D.C. government official Vida Rangel withdrew their candidacies in the city’s Nov. 5 election for Advisory Neighborhood Commission seats, The Washington Blade reported. Separate challenges were filed questioning the validity of the signatures on their required nominating petitions. Musa was one of at least four LGBTQ+ candidates running unopposed for seats on ANC 2B, which represents the Dupont Circle neighborhood. Rangel—who described herself as the first Latina trans person of color to run for public office in D.C.—was running to represent theColumbia Heights neighborhood against incumbent Billy Easley, who identifies as a gay man.
In Michigan, former Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, an anti-LGBTQ+ extremist, is facing off against Democratic U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin in a battle for a seat that could determine the Senate’s control, The Advocate noted. Throughout his 14 years in Congress, Rogers has repeatedly opposed legislation aimed at expanding rights and protections for LGBTQ+ people and, in 2006, he described being gay as a “lifestyle choice.” On the other hand, Slotkin, a former CIA analyst and Pentagon official, has been a vocal advocate for LGBTQ+ rights throughout her career in Congress. With incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow retiring, this open-seat race has garnered significant attention from both parties.
In an interview with Deadline at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), former GOP Congressman Adam Kinzinger (from Illinois)—who was there to promote a documentary about him—said if offered a position from the Harris administration, he would accept, according to Deadline. “Certainly, yeah,” said Kinzinger, who spoke at the recent DNC. “I mean, look, there’s no greater honor than serving an administration. And obviously I’ve supported Kamala, I’m endorsing her.” Kinzinger is the focus of the documentary The Last Republican, which held its world premiere at TIFF.
The Gay Men’s Chorus of South Florida will mark its 15th anniversary with the “The Chic & Unique Ball: Crystal Opulence Unleashed” on Saturday, Nov. 2, at the Westin Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort, according to OperaWire. “What sets The Chic & Unique Ball apart from other fundraisers in South Florida is the sheer creativity and extravagance we bring to the event. This isn’t just a gala; it’s an immersive experience, where every detail is thoughtfully designed to reflect our crystal opulence theme,” said Board Vice Chair and event co-chair Kerry Waldee in an official press release. There will be live and silent auctions as well as live entertainment courtesy of Vibe City Music & Entertainment and the chorus. All proceeds will benefit the organization’s operations, concert programming, outreach initiatives and scholarships.