NATIONAL
The majority of a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia circuit upheld a March 2025 ruling by U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes in Washington by ruling that the Trump administration policy illegally banned transgender troops from military service, the AP reported. The opinion is here.
It Gets Better partnered with Ohio’s Antioch College to create an unofficial ranking of LGBTQ+-inclusive colleges across the rural United States, The Advocate noted. The colleges include Grinnell (Grinnell, Iowa); Kenyon (Gambier, Ohio); Oberlin (Oberlin, Ohio); Bennington (Bennington, Vermont); Mount Holyoke (South Hadley, Massachusetts); Smith (Northampton, Massachusetts); Wesleyan University (Middletown, Connecticut); Wellesley University (Wellesley, Massachusetts); College of the Atlantic (Bar Harbor, Maine); and Antioch (Yellow Springs, Ohio). At Antioch, 82% of students identify as LGBTQ+ and 16 percent as trans, according to the ranking.
A Gallup poll showed that acceptance of LGBTQ+ people across the board has decreased since its peak in the 2010s, per Them. After a steady increase over decades, from 27% in 1996 to 71% in 2022, the percentage now stands at 65%. But it’s the GOP that largely accounts for that decline. For example, only 5% of Republicans say that gender transition is morally acceptable, compared with 60% of Democrats; when Gallup first asked about transition in 2021, 22% of Republicans agreed.
At NYC’s SoHo Project Space this June, artist/journalist/talk-show host Rob Redding is debuting work from his forthcoming book Graphic Graphite: Bucking as a Challenge to Racial Narrative, per a press release. The exhibition—appearing on June 9 and ahead of the book’s release on June 15—examines how the United States has buried the rape and sexual violence inflicted on Black men during slavery and expands this inquiry into a broader study of desire, survival and racial memory.
Queer|Art has partnered with RuPaul’s Drag Race alum Megami to present a limited-edition, artist-designed shirt, per a press release. Megami’s custom shirt is available in exchange for a donation to Queer|Art beginning at $50.The shirt is inspired by Megami’s viral performance from season 16 of Drag Race in which she lip-synced to 4 Non Blondes’ “What’s Up” before raising various protest signs.
Fort Lauderdale leader Norman Extract has launched OUTlgbtq.com—a national interactive nonprofit platform (called a “Gay Yellow Pages”) designed to unite LGBTQ+ individuals, allies and businesses through inclusive events, resources and real‑world connection. Members can discover LGBTQ+ events, businesses and communities in 13 U.S. cities.
A new study from Northwestern University says voters have become more accepting of LGBTQ+ candidates in the last decade—but that support is conditional, per Axios. Results found that acceptance is harder for candidates who don’t look or sound “straight,” regardless of sexuality.
In Ohio, a teenager was accused of fatally stabbing his adoptive father and critically injuring one other person, per The Advocate. Mark Rayburn-Velco, 58, was fatally stabbed while his husband, Brent Rayburn-Velco, was also stabbed and sustained severe but non-fatal injuries.
Philadelphia actor, theater-maker and cabaret performer Dito van Reigersberg—best known for his drag persona Martha Graham Cracker—died June 1 following a leukemia diagnosis in 2022, The Advocate noted. A graduate of Swarthmore College, van Reigersberg co-founded Philadelphia’s Pig Iron Theatre Company, where he performed in nearly all of the company’s productions since its launch in 1995.
One Institute hosted the inaugural International Whores’ Day (IWD) Celebration at the Los Angeles LGBT Center on June 2, per a press release. This event involved a partnership with LA-based sex worker-rights advocates Antonia Crane and Kayla Tange (Coco Ono); the Los Angeles LGBT Center; and Stripper Worker Center. IWD intentionally centers sex workers within Pride 2026 programming.
Openly gay Colorado Gov. Jared Polis released election denier/former county clerk Tina Peters from state prison after President Trump pressured Polis into commuting her sentence, the AP noted.
Republican U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee posted online that “homosexuality has no place in America”—and then deleted it after drawing criticism from at least one fellow House Republican, Politico noted. U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) called the message “absolutely idiotic” in a social-media post. On X, Ogles later blamed a staffer for the post.
There was no Grand Marshal Icon at the 2026 WeHo Pride Parade after there was backlash when Real Housewives star Kathy Hilton was named, The Advocate noted. Not only were there complaints, but Indigenous Pride LA posted on Instagram that it canceled its participation in the June 7 parade, stating Hilton—the mother of Paris and Nicky Hilton—was the wrong choice to represent Pride.
More than $1.5 million in settlements have been reached with people who lost their jobs over online posts that criticized conservative activist Charlie Kirk in the wake of his assassination, USA Today noted.
WORLD
ILGA-Europe’s new annual Rainbow Map and LGBTQ+ rights index has Spain in the number-one spot for the European country with the most LGBTQ+-positive laws and policies, per LGBTQ Nation. Spain displaced Malta from the number one spot—a position the latter spot held for the last decade. ILGA noted that Spain has followed through on commitments it set out in 2023, while Malta’s LGBTQ+-rights situation faces “stagnation and a lack of continuous reform.”
The queer collective Pussy Riot announced its debut music album, CYKA, with a protest at the Venice Biennale, the so-called “Olympics of the art world,” according to a press release. Pussy Riot officially announced CYKA will come out on Friday, June 12, and Russian President Vladimir Putin—a frequent target of the collective—is listed as a contributor on the album. Next, Pussy Riot will visit Paris at the Beyond the Streets exhibit in Grande Halle de la Villette on Saturday, June 20. Pussy Riot has also challenged Putin to a cage match at the UFC Freedom 250 on June 14 at the White House.
The venue for the controversial 4th African Inter-Parliamentary Conference on Family Values and Sovereignty—widely criticized as being anti-rights, anti-LGBTQ+ anti-women’s rights and more—was changed a second time amid growing opposition, Erasing 76 Crimes noted. The June 3-6 event was slated to take place at Parliament House in Accra, Ghana.
Following the quick sellouts of her anticipated return this fall in Paris, Celine Dion has added 10 shows at the city’s La Défense Arena for May 2027, per USA Today. Dion will now also perform on May 8, 12, 14-15, 19, 21-22, 26, 28 and 29.
Queer U.S. middle-distance runner Yared Nuguse set a new meet record in the 1500 meters at the Diamond League event in Rabat, Morocco, according to Yahoo! Sports. He ran the distance in 3:30.35.
In France, Christian Louboutin officially ushered in a new design direction with the debut of its fall/winter 2026 men’s collection, per Hypebeast. The collection marked the first full seasonal offering since the arrival of its new creative director, Jaden Smith (the son of actors Will and Jada Pinkett Smith).
SHOWBIZ
GLAAD, in partnership with ViiV Healthcare, hosted a featured panel conversation at the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) titled “From Story to Impact: Black Queer Stories and Allyship Driving Culture and Change,” a press release noted Taking place at the New World Center in Miami Beach, the event brought together talent, creators and industry leaders to examine how film, television and digital media can challenge harmful narratives; humanize HIV experiences; and expand what audiences understand about identity, care, community and allyship.
The Critics Choice Association’s (CCA’s) 3rd Annual Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television took place May 29 at the Four Seasons Los Angeles Hotel in Beverly Hills and featured more than 20 performers, creators, producers and writers from this year’s most acclaimed television shows and films. Some of the honorees included Jane Lynch, Dan Levy, Bre-Z and Hannah Einbinder; Clea DuVall and Greg Kinnear were among the presenters.
The World Cup final will feature a halftime show headlined by Madonna, Shakira and boy band BTS, the AP noted. FIFA announced that, for the first time, the July 19 final at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey will include a Super Bowl-style concert. The show will support the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, which is raising $100 million to help children access education and soccer.
Executive producers Margaret Cho and Lilly Wachowski have finished production on transgender comedian Nina Nguyen‘s debut stand-up special, Deadline noted. Margaret Cho Presents Nina Nguyen: Dreams is aimed at advocating for trans youth, following Nguyen as she travels back in time to tell jokes for her younger closeted self.
Queer musician Phoebe Bridgers played a surprise show at New York’s Madison Square Garden on June 4—and attendees could snag a ticket for as little as $1, USA Today noted. The event, hosted in collaboration with music streaming service Tidal, was a benefit show, with proceeds going to the Immigration Bond Freedom Fund. Bridgers has also announced a phone-free global arena tour that will start later this year.
Queer model/actor Cara Delevingne has entered the musical world with the interconnected songs “I Forgot” and “Out of my Head,” per a Warner Records press release. The tracks create a seven-minute dive into her sound, accompanied by a short film directed by Emmy winner Jessica Lee Gagné (Severance) that people can watch here. The new music arrives with the announcement of Delevingne—who recently called herself “a very proud lesbian”—signing with Warner Records and previews her upcoming debut album.
Drag legends Ginger Minj and Jujubee have released their cover of “Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)”—the iconic Irving Berlin show tune from the 1946 Broadway musical Annie Get Your Gun, a press release noted. In the show, the song sets the scene for a sharpshooting contest between Annie Oakley and Frank Butler.
UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland faced backlash after sharing an AI-generated video depicting himself violently attacking trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney in a fighting ring, per PinkNews. The video was part of a fake advertisement referencing her 2023 partnership with Bud Light. Ahead of the UFC 297 event in January 2024, Strickland described trans people as an “infection.”
Kristin Davis (Sex and the City) and queer comedian/actor Tig Notaro (Come See Me in the Good Light) are joining Beach Read, 20th Century Studios‘ adaptation of the New York Times best-selling novel from Emily Henry, per Deadline. In the movie, idealistic romance novelist January Andrews (Phoebe Dynevor) and cynical literary fiction writer Augustus “Gus” Everett (Patrick Schwarzenegger) strike an unlikely bet to swap genres—and the lines between fiction and romance start to blur.
Execs behind Heated Rivalry are giving creator Jacob Tierney all the space he needs to make the second season as compelling as the first, Deadline noted. Bell Media General Manager of Original Programming Carlyn Klebuc said, “We would have liked [the second season] faster, but Jacob is writing and directing, and he needs the time to make another beautiful season, which we’re confident he will do.”
Out Tony- and Grammy-winning actor Jonathan Groff is joining Daniel Radcliffe in Trust the Man, a Vietnam War thriller, per Deadline.
Months after Karamo Brown abruptly walked away from the rest of the group on the eve of the 10th and final season of Queer Eye—saying he “worried about being bullied”—he broke his silence, per Queerty. Brown told People that there were years of behind-the-scenes toxic behavior from cast members and production executives. However, in an interview that was published prior to Brown’s talk, co-host Antoni Porowski told Variety that he was confused about how everything took place.
Gay British actor Rupert Everett said he’s suffering serious consequences from his ‘90s workout routines, per Page Six. “I could never be bothered to do all those things, like stretching, which were necessary for lifting weights, because your tendons get tighter and tighter,” he said. “So boring. I didn’t do any of that. So now my demise will be musculoskeletal, I think.”IN BRIEF Transgender troops, rural colleges, Rainbow Map, Pussy Riot’s album, Black queer panel, Nina Nguyen