Serenity Birdsong, a transgender student at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), died by suicide inside the campus’ James E. Walker Library, according to an LGBTQ Nation item that cited the Daily News Journal. In response to Birdsong’s death, the Tennessee Equality Project wrote, “We join the MTSU community in pouring as they grieve the loss of a student this week. In particular, our hearts go out to [MTSU’s student LGBTQ+ organization] MT Lambda… The challenge for all of us is to make sure people have the resources they need to find hope in their darkest moments so that they can thrive. That can be tough in a state where discrimination finds legal sanction.”
PFLAG was one of the many pro-LGBTQ+ groups expressing disappointment and hope with the presidential election results. In a press release, CEO Brian K. Bond said, “PFLAG’s hundreds of thousands of members and supporters across the country have witnessed a devastating result for people whose loved ones have been targeted for harm by policies, disenfranchisement and worse. Yet, just as the LGBTQ+ people, families and allies of PFLAG have always joined the march for freedom, we are united in this fight to protect and respect every member of our community. … PFLAG will continue to show up for our LGBTQ+ loved ones, from the state house to the courthouse, the schoolhouse steps to the steps of the U.S. Capitol and Supreme Court. We’ve got this. We’ve got us.”
Dr. David J. Johns, CEO and executive director of the National Black Justice Collective, also issued a statement about the election. He said, in part, “Over the last nine years, President Trump and his MAGA movement have consistently used language, policies, and actions that have sought to dehumanize and disenfranchise women, Black people and other racial/ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ and same-gender-loving (SGL) people, immigrants and so many more. … This moment, like those that have come before, requires resilience and action. NBJC stands resolute, prepared to confront this administration’s harmful agenda at every turn. We call upon our partners and supporters to join us in this battle for equity.”
And GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis also commented on the presidential election. In a press release, Ellis said, “The LGBTQ community has been here before, as have all other marginalized communities, and the pain is real today. But as we saw from the Lavender Scare to the Stonewall riots, from the HIV epidemic to the defeat and victory for marriage, every breakdown can lead to a breakthrough. We must see this moment of crisis as another catalyst for change.” Trump’s LGBTQ+ history is documented on GLAAD’s Trump Accountability Tracker, listing more than 225 attacks in policy and rhetoric against LGBTQ+ people in his previous term and presidential campaign.
Also, GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis spoke with Variety about the New York Times’ exposé detailing what it said was her lavish spending. The Times piece sent shock waves across Hollywood as people speculated about Ellis’ future with the group and its ability to weather the PR storm. In part, Ellis said, “When I think about what was written, it lacks a tremendous amount of context [about] the work GLAAD does and our need to be in places at the axis of power. If I had to do it all over again, would I reconsider? And did we look at how we were showing up and where we were showing up? Yes.” She added that GLAAD “actually had a 25% growth in our membership levels for August,” when the article was published; and that the organization is looking to expand into the video-game and digital-creator sectors.
Virginia’s Diversity Richmond—a nonprofit that supports the Greater Richmond area’s LGBTQ+ community—released a preliminary design for its new “Celebrate Diversity” state license plate, per the Virginia Mercury, citing Capital News Service. Executive Director Rev. Lacette Cross hopes the license plate will increase visibility for the community. Staff input and community responses contributed to the final design; it was in the works for around 15 months and then released in September, right after Diversity Richmond’s 25th anniversary, according to Cross. In addition, according to Diversity Richmond’s website, it needs 450 applications and payments to get the plate approved by the General Assembly in January.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) continued his crusade against gender-affirming care for trans youth with a new lawsuit filed against a doctor accused of illegally prescribing and distributing puberty blockers and hormones to minor patients, LGBTQ Nation noted. This second lawsuit accuses El Paso physician Hector M. Granados of providing gender-affirming care to multiple patients, as well as falsifying medical and billing records in order to mislead pharmacies and insurance providers. Paxton is acting on a bill signed last year by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott that bans doctors from administering medical interventions to “transition a child’s biological sex” or affirm that their gender identity is inconsistent with their sex at birth; the Texas Supreme Court upheld the ban in June.
Also in Texas, Stonewall Democrats of Dallas issued a statement criticizing Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa for statements it said implied “that trans Texans bear responsibility for the disappointing losses by Democrats in Texas,” WFAA reported. Hinojosa, in an interview with the Austin-based radio station KUT, said trans rights hurt Democrats at the polls, specifically mentioning the Hyde Amendment, which has banned using federal funds for most abortions for nearly half a century. Stonewall Democrats demanded an apology from Hinojosa, adding, “Blaming members of the LGBTQ+ community—particularly trans Texans who already face disproportionate discrimination and hostility—is deeply irresponsible and counterproductive.” He later apologized, posting on X, “I extend my sincerest apologies to those I hurt with my comments today. I recognize the pain and frustration my words have caused.”
A clinical trial sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will examine the safety and acceptability of a novel rectal HIV microbicide douche containing the antiretroviral drug tenofovir, according to NIH. This HIV-prevention approach involves using the microbicide prior to a potential exposure from receptive anal intercourse. The clinical trial will enroll about 150 adults assigned male at birth who have regular experience using an unmedicated rectal douche before receptive anal intercourse.More information about this study, also known as HPTN 106, is available at ClinicalTrials.gov under identifier NCT06560684.
After a federal judge denied Catholic schools in Colorado the right to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, the schools have filed an appeal, prompting LGBTQ+-rights advocates and educators to become more outspoken, according to New Ways Ministry. St. Mary Catholic Virtue School, Littleton; and Wellspring Catholic Academy of St. Bernadette, Lakewood filed a lawsuit supported by Archbishop Samuel Aquila and the Archdiocese of Denver. The plaintiffs want an exemption to non-discrimination requirements for participation in a state-funded preschool program.
LGBTQ+ ally Adam Schiff—who rose to prominence as the Democrats’ leading anti-Trump voice in the House—clinched a promotion to the Senate, Politico noted. Schiff easily won over his Republican opponent, former baseball star Steve Garvey—a victory that was so anticipated that Schiff spent much of the general election campaigning and raising money for out-of-state Senate Democrats. Schiff succeeds the late U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Democrats were favored to easily hold the seat in the liberal-leaning state where a Republican candidate hasn’t won a Senate race since 1988, when President Ronald Reagan was in the White House, according to ESPN.
A group of 10 to 15 people allegedly attacked Sebastian Thomas Robles Lascarro, a 22-year-old gay Colombian model, inside a D.C. McDonald’s restaurant after a member of the group uttered homophobic slurs, according to LGBTQ Nation, citing WTTG. The attack left Lascarro hospitalized, and he criticized both emergency personnel and local police for their responses to the violence. While Lascarro was in line to use a McDonald’s self-service kiosk to place his order, Lascarro’s spouse, Stuart West, said a woman then screamed at his husband to “watch where the f**k he was going.” Lascarro reportedly tried to leave when the group—allegedly, the woman’s friends—blocked Lascarro from leaving and allegedly called him slurs like “fa**ot” and demanded he apologize to the woman; when Lascarro refused, the assault reportedly began. West launched a GoFundMe crowdfunding campaign to help pay for Lascarro’s medical bills.
In Florida, the Our Fund Foundation plans to award $200,000 in grants through its 2024 LGBTQ+ Health & Wellness Fund in support of innovative LGBTQ+-specific programs and initiatives in Broward and Miami-Dade counties, per the South Florida Hospital News. The grants will be distributed among 11 nonprofits during a reception at Our Fund’s headquarters in Wilton Manors on Tuesday, Nov. 19. Some of the recipients include The McKenzie Project—HOTS (House of the South); Jewish Community Services of South Florida’s Lambda Living Program; Ujima Men’s Collective—Tapestry: Reclaiming Our Past; Alliance for LGBTQ+ Youth; and Buddy System MIA—Trans Food Assistance Program.
AIDS United issued a press release calling for urgent action within newly re-elected President Donald Trump’s first 100 days of office. “Now, more than ever, we must act with urgency to ensure that President-Elect Donald Trump and Vice-President Elect JD Vance understand that critical services and resources that people living with HIV depend on are not to be compromised,” said AIDS United President and Ceo Jesse Milan Jr. JD. The release also noted that “in the wake of President-elect Trump’s first victory in 2016, more than 600 HIV advocates came together in that following year’s AIDSWatch to fight for one another in the largest and most impactful HIV advocacy event in our history. We worked with policymakers to turn a moment of uncertainty into a call for justice and an opportunity for progress, protecting the Affordable Care Act and helping usher in the Ending the HIV Epidemic Initiative that has significantly lowered HIV transmission rates and provided care to tens of thousands of people living with HIV. We must once again unite in solidarity to protect our communities and forge a new path forward.”
Former Boston Children’s Hospital employee Dr. Amy Tishelman has alleged that the hospital dramatically slashed the consultation time required before children receive gender transition treatment in a “reckless” reduction of care assessment, per The New York Post. Tishelman, 68, has accused the Harvard-affiliated Boston Children’s Hospital of age-and-gender-based discrimination and retaliation after being fired in 2021, according to a report from The New York Sun. Tishleman was once widely recognized as a leader in pediatric gender medicine and started at Boston Children’s gender clinic in 2013. At that time, she was allowed 20 hours of therapy and interviews with patients; but she claimed that five years later, administrators halved that period to just 10 hours—and then slashed it again the same year to a two-hour assessment.
In Colorado, a Gender and Sexuality alliance in an Eagle County school received a $10,000 grant to enact a student-driven plan to make schools safer and happier for LGBTQ+ students, according to Vail Daily. The grant comes from It Gets Better—a nonprofit that uplifts, empowers and connects LGBTQ+ people around the world through storytelling initiatives. Student members of the Gender and Sexuality Alliance applied for the grant last year in partnership with Mountain Pride, an Eagle County-based nonprofit founded in 2022 to improve the LGBTQ+ community and allies’ experience in the mountains of Colorado.
In Maryland, the Salisbury Police Department arrested 12 suspects—including seven members or affiliates of a Salisbury University fraternity—on hate-crime charges following a reported assault in October after one of them lured a man by posing as a 16-year-old boy on Grindr, WBOC reported. Investigators say they obtained a cell phone video of an adult male victim reportedly being assaulted by multiple college-aged men. The victim told police that, upon entering an apartment where the supposed teen was, he was ambushed and surrounded by a group of about 15 men and was forced to sit on a chair in the middle of a room; numerous suspects then allegedly hit, kicked and spat on the victim while calling him derogatory names. The age of consent in Maryland is 16.
In Michigan, a district investigation found that Clinton Community Schools teacher/coach Casey Randolph may have exhibited racist and homophobic behavior in multiple interactions with students during the last few years, MLive.com noted. Clinton administrators initiated a third-party investigation through the Lenawee Intermediate School District in June after receiving a series of allegations against Randolph, a teacher who also coaches wrestling and varsity football at Clinton High School. The resulting report was completed in September, validating five of the 21 claims investigated, including that Randolph likely used terms or references derogatory to members of the LGBTQ+ community or Black culture in front of students, according to a copy received by MLive/The Ann Arbor News.
Also in Michigan, the longtime music director at a northern Michigan church said he was fired just a few months before retirement after officials learned that he was in a same-sex marriage, the AP reported. Fred Szczepanski said he was fired on Oct. 18 by the Rev. Michael Lingaur for marrying his longtime partner in a same-sex ceremony in Nevada in 2020; the church confronted him after receiving a letter from an unnamed person. Szczepanski had been music director for 34 years and planned to retire in January.
Butch Ware—the running mate of long-controversial Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein—was caught making comments against trans inclusion in sports, LGBTQ Nation noted. “I don’t think that biological males should play in female sports. I think it gives an unfair competitive advantage,” Ware stated in a short clip from an interview posted to X; the original interview source is unknown. In a statement on Instagram, Ware claimed his words had been taken out of context and were “misrepresented through selective editing.” However, he then explained that he was asked his personal opinion rather than his party’s platform and that party members don’t have to agree with every policy.
A federal jury in Louisville, Kentucky, convicted former Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) officer Brett Hankison for violating the civil rights of Breonna Taylor during the execution of a search warrant in March 2020 that led to Taylor’s death in her home, per a Justice Department press release. The jury found Hankison guilty of count one, which charged him with depriving Taylor of her constitutional rights when he fired five shots through a bedroom window that was covered with blinds and a blackout curtain. The jury found that Hankison used a dangerous weapon in the commission of the offense, and that his conduct involved an attempt to kill, although his shots did not strike Taylor. Hankison will be sentenced on March 12, 2025.
Boeing dismantled its global diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) department, according to Reuters, citing Bloomberg News. In doing so, it has joined such companies as Harley-Davidson, John Deere and MolsonCoors. A report said the staff from Boeing’s DEI office would be combined with another human resources team focused on talent and employee experience. In October, the company also said that it planned to cut 17,000 jobs, representing 10% of its global workforce.
One of Portland’s most well-known queer bars was recently vandalized; however, a performer’s plea for help quickly raised the money necessary for repairs, OregonLive reported. Soon after Escape Bar & Grill’s drag host, James Tolson (stage name: Savannah O. Bennington), found out about the damage, he put together a GoFundMe fundraiser to pay for the damage. The vandals stole one fire table and destroyed another, took the greenery off of the fencing, cut electrical cords, damaged an expandable gate and started a fire, co-owner Jenn Davis said, adding that the incident was the second in three months, after someone broke into the bar in August, stealing DJ equipment and cash.
And almost a year after an accidental fire forced the closure of several businesses in downtown Colorado Springs, Colorado, an LGBTQ+ bar among those closures is reopening, KKTV noted. The owners of Icons said they were ready to open on Nov. 8, after a nearly year-long effort to recoup their losses, raise money and rebuild in a new location, near Kiowa and N. Cascade.
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón lost his bid for re-election against former U.S. Assistant Attorney General Nathan Hochman—leaving the case involving the Menendez brothers up in the air, according to Deadline. Despite some high profile moves such as seeking an early release from the life without parole sentences of the Menendez brothers and their 30 years behind bars, Gascón lagged behind Hochman, who had the support of Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos and Oscar-nominated documentary director Rory Kennedy. The case involving the brothers—brought back, in large part, because of Ryan Murphy’s Netflix series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story—could be complicated by Hochman’s win.