Almost 600,000 same-sex couples have been married in the United States since the landmark 2015 Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, according to a report published by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law, Gay City News noted. The historic ruling required states to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples across the nation and recognize marriages performed elsewhere at a time when 15 states had yet to achieve marriage equality. In total, 823,000 married same-sex couples now reside in the country—twice as many as there were in 2014, according to Married Same-Sex Couples in the United States on the 10th Anniversary of Obergefell v. Hodges. More than one-third of married same-sex couples live in the South (35%) while 29% live in the West, 19% stay in the Northeast and 17% live in the Midwest.
Democratic NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani—who recently defeated Andrew Cuomo in the primary—is pledging $65 million for trans healthcare, per Them. Mamdani pledged to spend $57 million on medical centers and nonprofits that provide gender-affirming care, and $8 million more to develop new resources including greater telehealth accessibility and an “Access Hub” to help care seekers find providers. Mamdani, 33, cruised to victory in the Democratic primary, capturing more than 43% of the vote in the first round of ranked-choice voting; he’ll still need to defeat incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa (as well as Cuomo again) in November’s general election.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled six to three to allow states to cut off Medicaid money to Planned Parenthood amid a wider Republican-backed push to defund the country’s biggest abortion provider, the AP reported. The case centered on funding for other healthcare services Planned Parenthood provides in South Carolina; however, the ruling could have broader implications for Medicaid patients. Republican South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said no taxpayer money should go to the organization. In addition, the budget bill backed by President Donald Trump in Congress would also cut Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood.
Also, the country’s top court ruled, again six to three, that Maryland parents who have religious objections can pull their children from public school lessons using queer storybooks, the AP noted. The court reversed lower-court rulings in favor of the Montgomery County school system in suburban Washington, stating that the schools likely could not require elementary school children to sit through lessons involving the books if parents expressed religious objections to the material. “It will become a mere memory if children must be insulated from exposure to ideas and concepts that may conflict with their parents’ religious beliefs,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor (one of the dissenters) wrote. “Today’s ruling ushers in that new reality.”
In California, the Trump administration is trying to apply its interpretation of Title IX to force transgender athletes off of girls’ sports teams—and Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s words are coming to haunt him, according to LGBTQ Nation. The Trump administration claimed the California Department of Education violated federal law by allowing transgender girls to compete on female sports teams, giving the state 10 days to reverse the policy or face “imminent enforcement action.” The announcement from the U.S. Dept. of Education cited Newsom’s (own words expressing doubt about the “fairness” of transgender athletes participating in women’s and girls’ sports. “I think it’s an issue of fairness, I completely agree with you on that,” Newsom told conservative influencer Charlie Kirk in March. “It’s deeply unfair.”
Stanford Medicine will no longer provide gender-affirming surgeries to patients under the age of 19 after facing threats from the Trump administration, per The Advocate. “We took this step to protect both our providers and patients. This was not a decision we made lightly, especially knowing how deeply this impacts the individuals and families who depend on our essential care and support,” the school told The Los Angeles Times. Gender-affirming surgeries among minors are incredibly rare; there is no evidence of surgeries being performed on trans youth under the age of 12, according to a recent study in JAMA, and only 2.1 out of every 100,000 trans youth ages 15 to 17 received surgery—with the vast majority being chest surgeries.
Stan Baker—the named plaintiff in the landmark Baker case that led to the creation of civil unions for same-sex couples in Vermont—died June 23 from a heart attack at age 79, per The Burlington Free Press. Baker died while he and husband Peter Harrigan were visiting Louisville, Kentucky, while attending a Barbie convention—“one of the many communities that he participated in and loved,” Harrigan posted about Baker on social media. Baker was a private practice clinician who worked with children, adults and families, and he also was an archdeacon for the Episcopal Diocese of Vermont. In 1998, Baker and Harrigan were one of three same-sex couples who filed a lawsuit against the state of Vermont after they were denied marriage licenses in Chittenden County; while it didn’t approve same-sex marriage, the Vermont Supreme Court later ordered the state legislature to either allow same-sex couples to marry or establish a parallel legal structure.
GLAAD celebrated PRIDE 2025 in New York, with a special event at the 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge in Brooklyn, a press release announced. The evening—which honored trailblazers and reaffirmed a future rooted in love, justice and hope—featured a live interview recording of a GLAAD edition of the I’ve Had It podcast with hosts Jennifer Welch and Angie “Pumps” Sullivan, along with special guest Harvey Guillén. Guests were also treated to a surprise performance by Drag Race All Stars’ Lana Ja’Rae as well as music by DJ Jess King. Other notable guests in attendance included NBC’s Jay Valle, Luxx Noir London, Maeve Duvally, Margaret Josephs, Meredith Marks, Olivia Lux and Racquel Chevremont, along with GLAAD President & CEO, Sarah Kate Ellis and Chief Development Officer Clyde Jones, among others. During June (Pride Month), GLAAD launched “Pride 2025: One Story. One Future.,” centering on the collective endeavors for inclusion, justice, family and acceptance, with resources, programs, initiatives designated to enhance dialogue during Pride Month at GLAAD.org/PRIDE.
On June 28, the 33rd annual NYC Dyke March drew thousands of participants as it stepped off from Bryant Park and proceeded along Fifth Avenue before concluding at Washington Square Park, Gay City News noted. Some individuals who previously marched in the Dyke March held a separate event called Shalom, Dykes in response to recent changes to the NYC Dyke March’s Planning Committee, which took a stance against Zionism ahead of this year’s march.
In South Carolina, We Are Family (WAF)—which supports LGBTQIA+ youth—is opening the first community center in the greater Charleston area to offer in-person events and a space for people to gather, Live 5 News noted. “When we were thinking about the growth and the next iteration, the next era of We Are Family and ways we support LGBTQ youth in South Carolina, we know that being able to have a space for our youth to have community and sense of belonging, in addition to our virtual spaces,” Executive Director Domenico Ruggerio said. The center is housing offices for WAF as well as Charleston Pride and the Alliance for Full Acceptance (AFFA). Ashley Peele, a board member of AFFA, said she is looking forward to using their office in the building for future collaboration.
Five days after eliminating 34 staff positions to address a $5.71 million deficit, San Francisco AIDS Foundation CEO Tyler TerMeer, Ph.D., defended the agency’s actions, according to The Bay Area Reporter. “I understand the timing was not ideal,” TerMeer told the news outlet. “It happens to be that the end of our fiscal year comes at the end of June each year, and that is when our board-approved budget happens each year, in the month of June, and so we made our decision as soon as we could before our fiscal year flipped [on] June 30.” Nineteen people were let go, including Chief of Staff Ben Hice and Chief Program Officer Brenda Kiner, effective July 1, while the other positions had been unfilled. In a published guest op-ed, TerMeer wrote that the layoffs were necessary for the long-term survival of the agency.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott announced the appointment of Dr. Melanie Bryant as director of Baltimore City Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, according to Afro.com. Alongside the existing team of LGBTQ+ officials and advocates, Bryant will work to expand resources, advocate on behalf of community stakeholders and enhance service delivery and opportunity access for residents citywide. Bryant is the founder/CEO of Ujima Consulting Group, LLC, where she has successfully led more than 30 nonprofit organizations in raising more than $10 million through strategic fundraising and grant development.
In a related development, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens announced that Dewayne Queen will serve as the new director of the city’s Division of LGBTQ Affairs, per WABE. Queen—a longtime Delta Air Lines employee and former president of the Atlanta-based corporation’s LGBTQ+ business resource group—will be the liaison for Dickens’ LGBTQ+ advisory board and city departments. Queen succeeds Malik Brown, who left the position in November.
The Oregon House, by a vote of 34 to nine, approved House Resolution 3—which honors the state’s history of Black drag and provides a list of the Black drag performers who since 1958 have shaped the community, The Oregon Capital Chronicle reported. Before a vote on the resolution, the House floor session began with an opening performance by drag performers Aqua Flora and Isaiah Esquire, who lip-synched to Beyonce’s “I Was Here,” and Aretha Franklin’s “A Deeper Love.” State Reps. Travis Nelson and Shannon Isadore—both from Portland and the only Black Democrats in the House—sponsored the bill.
Two teenage girls were shot near the Stonewall Inn, a queer landmark, as NYC Pride celebrations ended, NBC News noted. A 16-year-old girl sustained a gunshot wound to the head and was in critical condition, while a 17-year-old girl was in stable condition after being shot in the leg. The older girl was first shot by a person walking in the crowd and in response, pulled out her own gun and fired back at the person who shot her, sources said; however, the 17-year-old missed and allegedly struck the younger girl instead. The Stonewall Inn said in a statement that it was “deeply shocked” by the shooting and that it stood with the Pride attendees as well as the community in its aftermath.
A series of anti-LGBTQ+ incidents in eastern Massachusetts—including in the queer enclave of Provincetown—has left local communities outraged, according to CBS News. In Provincetown, authorities are investigating a potential hate crime after a man was attacked; the victim described the attackers as three men in their 20s or 30s who used homophobic slurs during the assault. In Boston, several Pride flags have been torn down from homes in Jamaica Plain; and, in Medford, controversy brewed over a sign posted outside the New England Baptist Church that reads, “Homosexuality is an abomination.”
In Louisiana, parents are rallying behind a gay music teacher who was recently fired from his job at a Catholic school in Metairie, per New Ways Ministry. Mark Richards was a music teacher and band director at St. Francis Xavier because of a contract violation. Speaking with WDSU News, Richards said the Archdiocese of New Orleans told him the violation was the fact that he lived with his late husband for several years prior to his death in 2023; Richards explained that his employment with the school involved signing a morality clause that banned “actively engaging in homosexual activity.” However, many other parents are rallying around Richards; a petition has been filed by parents that now has more than 1,500 signatures.
National Black Justice Collective CEO and Executive Director Dr. David J. Johns issued a statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Kennedy v. Braidwood Management that upheld a key provision of the Affordable Care Act requiring insurance companies to cover preventive care, including HIV-prevention medications like PrEP. He stated that the “ruling is a win for public health and for the millions of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer+/Same-Gender Loving (LGBTQ+/SGL) people who rely on preventive care services to survive and thrive. … PrEP is one of the most effective tools we have to end the HIV epidemic, which continues to disproportionately impact Black LGBTQ+/SGL communities. Attacks on access to PrEP are unmistakably rooted in stigma, ignorance, transmisia and homophobia. We must continue to recognize and call out the deadly consequences of those attacks for the people who rely on this preventive care.”
Drag artist Brita Filter and DJ Jon Ali joined Callen-Lorde Community Health Center and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene in Union Square for an HIV Testing Day event aimed at encouraging New Yorkers to know their status, Gay City News noted. In a pre-event statement, Filter said, “We have to be the ones who show up for each other” in light of efforts to cut HIV/AIDS funding at the federal level. The event’s theme was “Everyone has an HIV status — check yours.” Organizations such as Destination Tomorrow, the Hetrick-Martin Institute and Harlem United were also on hand at the event.
In a move that divided some of her constituents, Alaska state Rep. Ashley Carrick used her official legislative newsletter to promote a drag queen performance and an event dubbed the “Gender Euphoria Party,” according to Must Read Alaska. One promoted event was the Klondike Drag Pride Show, held June 27 at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Fairbanks. The latter event was held the following day at the Pioneer Park Centennial Center Exhibit Hall; Carrick described it as “an all-inclusive event centered on queer joy,” and noted it would include free clothing, community resources, face painting, and a “catwalk competition.” While Carrick’s supporters lauded her for being an advocate for queer constituents, others criticized the use of her official communications channel, saying these promotions reflected misplaced priorities.
In Blackshear, Georgia, librarian Lavonnia Moore was let go after a Christian extremist group filed a complaint to the library after Moore approved the display of a children’s book about a transgender boy, according to LGBTQ Nation. According to Moore, the display (entitled “Color Our World”) included the book When Aidan Became a Brother (by trans male author Kyle Lukoff), a story about a family accepting a trans child named Aiden while also preparing for the birth of Aiden’s sibling; the book was part of a display geared toward diversity.
Grindr United, the union of workers for the company, announced it is still fighting for those members pushed out to regain their jobs, per Out. Almost two years ago, the company let go 82 of its 178 employees after they refused a return-to-office mandate. “The employees who departed in 2023 were not laid off. While some employees chose to depart and take severance packages following the announcement of Grindr’s two-days-per-week hybrid work model, many employees chose to stay. Of note, the company also offered generous relocation packages to those who needed to relocate to comply with the hybrid work model,” a Grindr spokesperson wrote in a statement to Out. Grindr has faced various criticisms after gay businessman George Arison became CEO in September 2022.
Kari Lake, the Trump-appointed special adviser to the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), raised an unsubstantiated claim that U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton had a “gay lover” during a congressional hearing, PinkNews noted. During the hearing, during which Lake defended stripping back the USAGM, she appeared opposite Stanton. She used the false claim about Stanton having a “gay lover” as an example that Voice of America was spreading fake news. Lake’s remarks were allegedly in response to Stanton calling out Lake’s continued refusal to admit defeat in the 2022 gubernatorial election.
Deadline noted that Paramount Global is already facing criticism over its decision to settle Donald Trump‘s lawsuit over the way that CBS’ 60 Minutes edited an interview with Kamala Harris. The $16 million settlement came after months of wrangling and protest within CBS News. Many saw the lawsuit as groundless; however, Paramount Global needs the Trump administration’s approval for its merger with Skydance Media. The Writers Guild of America East—which represents writers at 60 Minutes and elsewhere in the news division—stated, in part, “This settlement is a transparent attempt to curry favors with an administration in the hopes it will allow Paramount Global and Skydance Media merger to be cleared for approval. Paramount’s decision to capitulate to Trump threatens journalists’ ability to do their job reporting on powerful public figures.”
GayCities noted that the only queer monument in the southern United States is one of a dolphin. Galveston Island, Texas, is home to The Pink Dolphin Monument, which is dedicated to gender and sexual minority communities. It is part of a global network of 12 LGBTQ+ landmarks. The monument’s official page credits Galveston’s “festive history” and explains the creators—artist Joe Joe Orangias, writer Sarah Sloane and scientist Frank Prega—“borrowed the image of the pink dolphin from Galveston’s iconic Pink Dolphin Tavern as well as the logo of the Pink Posse, a group open to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, allied, pansexual, Two Spirit (LGBTQIAP2) activists on the island.”
Another major player is cashing in on Chicago’s hot multifamily investment market. Retired Col. Jennifer Pritzker—the president and CEO of Tawani Enterprises, cousin to Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and a trans-rights activist—recently sold a six-building Rogers Park portfolio for $45 million, per The Real Deal. The sale of the 263-unit portfolio to Silver Property Group comes out to $171,000 per unit. The properties are located at 1337 W. Fargo Ave., 1323 W. Morse Ave., and adjacent lots.
Notoriously anti-LGBTQ+ conservative Candace Owens said that she’s “embarrassed” after campaigning for President Trump during the 2024 presidential election cycle, The Hill noted. “He’s been a chronic disappointment. And I feel embarrassed that I told people to go vote for him because this wasn’t going to happen, and it is happening,” Owens said on Piers Morgan Uncensored. A longtime supporter of the current president, Owens criticized his recent decision to engage in the Israel-Iran conflict.