NATIONAL
In a major development, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld state bans on transgender girls and women competing in girls’ and women’s school sports, The Advocate reported. In a six-to-three decision written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the court ruled that Idaho’s and West Virginia’s laws do not violate the Equal Protection Clause or Title IX, and that states may ban trans students. The majority rejected arguments that the laws discriminate against trans students, citing the court’s recent decision in United States v. Skrmetti to say the bans classify students by sex, not by gender identity or transgender status.
Just before the Twin Cities Pride Parade, a small group of city council members and community leaders gathered at Minneapolis City Hall as Mayor Jacob Frey signed the ordinances to repeal the adult bathhouse ban, MPR News noted. The city council voted nine to two (with one abstaining and one absent) to repeal the ban on adult bathhouses and sex venues.
Pete Buttigieg said that an anonymous child protective services allegation brought police and a Child Protective Services worker to his family’s home—resulting in his 4-year-old twins being put into forensic interviews and being briefly separated from him before authorities concluded the report was false, The Advocate noted. Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson, a mother of two children, was among those condemning the scheme.
Hours before marching in the Chicago Pride Parade, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) signed three trans-rights bills into law, LGBTQ Nation noted. HB 5095 solidifies the process for trans people to correct the gender marker on their IDs to male, female or X while HB 5492 mandates that insurance companies cover up to a six-month supply of prescribed hormone therapy. In addition, HB 4834 updates the Illinois Prescription Monitoring Program to remove testosterone and ban the addition of estrogen, mifepristone and misoprostol so that certain drugs aren’t overprescribed.
In Oregon, Eugene/Springfield Pride organizers announced that a rally and march would not go forward, although the group’s festival at the Lane Events Center was slated to proceed, per The Advocate. Authorities stated that officers might not protect marchers unless organizers obtained a parade permit—which was part of the reason for the cancellation.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) denied trans man Flint del Sol’s case against his former employer, a Southern California school district where he taught for more than a decade, per The Advocate. “I’m sorry to let you know, but we are not pursuing transgender discrimination cases,” Del Sol recalled the EEOC investigator telling him. “It’s coming from the top.”
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators confronted gay California state Sen. Scott Wiener while he attended San Francisco’s Trans March over his position on Israel and Gaza, with activists following him through the event and urging him to leave, Newsweek noted. The incident happened as Wiener campaigns to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in California’s heavily Democratic 11th Congressional District after she stated she would not seek re-election.
Christopher Michael Leahy—charged with first-degree murder over the fatal stabbing of 19-year-old transgender University of Washington student Juniper Blessing—was found incompetent to stand trial, The Advocate reported. King County Superior Court Judge Joe Campagna ordered Leahy to spend up to 90 days at Western State Hospital to undergo competency restoration treatment.
Seattle’s World Cup host committee and the LGBTQ+ community refused to cave in to demands that its June 26 World Cup Pride Match—which featured anti-LGBTQ+ countries Iran and Egypt playing to a 1-1 tie—disappear, according to Time. However, the pre-match festivities on the field did not include any references to Pride and, by halftime, some fans said they were disappointed by the lack of Pride-related celebrations, The Times of Israel noted.
Ft. Lauderdale’s Stonewall National Museum, Archives & Library concluded Pride Month festivities with its third annual re-enactment of the original Stonewall uprising, a press release noted. This year, communications leader Kal Gajraj and Ft. Lauderdale City Manager Rickelle Williams threw the first bricks.
Alleria Stanley—a retired U.S. Army combat veteran and transgender-rights advocate—advanced to the general election for the Maryland House of Delegates, moving one step closer to what pro-LGBTQ+ advocates say would be a first for the state, The Advocate noted.
Out CNN personality Anderson Cooper reportedly told colleagues that he doesn’t want to work with CBS News boss Bari Weiss (who also happens to be LGBTQ+) ahead of a corporate merger that would put the two media outlets under the same ownership, The Independent noted. Since Weiss became CBS’ first editor-in-chief, top producers have quit on ideological grounds, saying Weiss is dragging CBS News’ editorial stance to the right.
On July 1, the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum unveiled a series of 16 bobbleheads featuring key figures from this country’s 250-year history, a media release noted. There will be bobbleheads of Thomas Edison, Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Ben Franklin and even the Declaration of Independence for sale.
U.S. Reps. Randy Fine and Greg Steube (both Florida Republicans) sent a letter to An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha, the Dublin-based governing body for Irish dance, and the Irish Dance Teachers’ Association of North America ahead of the North American Irish Dance Championships in Orlando—in order to attempt to stop a trans girl from competing in the girls’ category, The Advocate noted. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has also threatened legal action against the dance organizations before the July 2-7 event.
WORLD
In England and Wales, people found guilty of “conversion therapy” against LGBTQ+ individuals could face up to five years in prison under proposals called “historic and long overdue” milestone by campaigners, The Guardian reported. It has been eight years since Theresa May first vowed to introduce anti-conversion therapy legislation; however, political obstacles have slowed its progress.
Florence, Italy’s chapter of Caritas—the official humanitarian and development arm of the Catholic Church—launched what appears to be its first structured project for young queer adults and their families, per New Ways Ministry. The initiative, called Andrea’s Project, includes temporary housing, psychological support, educational programs and community outreach, among other things.
In Turkiye (formerly Turkey), authorities barred a cruise ship catering to U.S. LGBTQ+ travelers from docking in the country’s ports, citing “moral standards” and “family values,” CNN noted. The “Athens to Venice” cruise, which was slated to depart from Greece on July 5, was expected to dock in the Turkish port town of Kuşadası two days later, followed by a trip to Istanbul—but Turkish authorities intervened. Atlantis Events said the ship (owned by the Richard Branson-backed cruise line Virgin Voyages) would stop in Cairo, Egypt and the Greek island of Crete instead of Turkey.
A conference of African states (known as the African Inter-Parliamentary Conference on Family Values and Sovereignty) that’s hoping to advance an anti-LGBTQ+ agenda announced that it will hold two editions next year—one in Burkina Faso and one in Eswatini, Erasing 76 Crimes noted.
World of Wonder revealed the premiere date and cast of queens appearing in the all new series Drag Race Down Under vs The World, premiering July 24, on WOW Presents Plus, a press release noted. Michelle Visage returns to host the runway with Rhys Nicholson on the judging panel alongside season four winner Lazy Susan. Five Drag Race Down Under queens (including Coco Jumbo and Nikita Iman) will battle six drag artists from around the world, including two from the United States: Raven and LaLa Ri.
SHOWBIZ
More than 200 of New York City’s fiercest dancers accomplished their mission of infiltrating Hammerstein Ballroom for Broadway Bares: License to Strip on Sunday, June 21, according to a press release. The event raised a record-breaking $2,534,428 for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, which produces the evening. Included in that total was a record $1,251,972 raised through Stripathon, the online fundraiser led by the show’s cast and crew.
X-Men ‘97 stars JP Karliak (the voice behind the shapeshifting Morph) and Lenore Zann (who voices the powerhouse Southern belle Rogue) talked with Out about LGBTQ+ sensibility and other issues during the show’s second season, which has just debuted. During last season’s finale, Morph transformed into Jean Grey to confess his love for Wolverine; “I think you’re going to see some emotions Morph has yet to explore in this season,” Karliak revealed.
Romeo Beckham—one of the sons of soccer icon David Beckham and fashion designer/former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham—will make his acting debut in a gay tennis movie, per Outsports. Romeo will star in Forty Love, an upcoming romantic drama set in the world of professional tennis that’s scheduled to hit theaters in France in the fall.
Controversial musician Tyler, The Creator has called the normalization of artificial intelligence an abomination and said that Meta glasses should be banned, Vice noted. He reposted an article from Wired about how people secretly record videos of conversations without anyone’s consent.
Jussie Smollett reacted to rapper 50 Cent mocking his comeback Pride performance in Harlem, EW noted. “We hope he had a happy Pride,” the Empire actor’s publicist, Pamela Sharp, told Entertainment Weekly. The rapper/actor has long criticized Smollett over the years, having previously made fun of Smollett for referring to himself as the “gay Tupac” in 2019.
Also regarding Jussie Smollett, he seems to be in a relationship with former Queer Eye host Karamo Brown, per Yahoo! News. Smollett—who recently reportedly ended a three-year relationship with fiancé Jabari Redd—and Brown were seen grabbing lunch with Brown’s mother and running errands before going on a hike through L.A.’s Runyon Canyon.
Isaac Mizrahi will return to NYC’s 54 Below for his annual summer residency with his jazz band in Hooray—a show including songs by everyone from Cole Porter to Billie Eilish—on Aug. 12-15, per a press release. Mizrahi has spent more than 35 years at the intersection of entertainment, media and fashion, working as a performer, host, writer, designer, producer and cultural commentator.
It turned out that Daveigh Chase—the one-time child actor best known for her work in Lilo & Stitch and The Ring—died at age 35 from AIDS and substance abuse, per NBC News. Chase was homeless in Los Angeles and suffering from severe malnutrition, her father said.
Village People founding lead singer Victor Willis—a co-writer of “YMCA,” “Macho Man” and “In the Navy”—died at age 74, Variety noted. Willis first departed Village People in 1980 as the group prepared for the musical film Can’t Stop the Music, although he contributed lyrics to two of its songs. President Trump noted Willis’ passing on Truth Social; Willis and the band performed at an event for the president’s second inauguration last year, according to The Hill.
LGBTQ+ Batwoman actress and Orange Is the New Black star Ruby Rose posted to her Threads that she broke two of her ribs while gardening, according to Just Jared.
Queer supermodel/actress Cara Delevingne confirmed that she and Amber Heard were an item, Page Six noted. “We were close for a long time,” Delevingne explained on the Louis Theroux Podcast, adding that they became “entangled” when Heard and ex-husband Johnny Depp were divorcing.
MGA’s Miniverse Real Music has released a special-edition Britney Spears collectible featuring an exclusive miniature vinyl of “Toxic” that plays on the Miniverse Real Music Record Player (sold separately), a press release noted. The set also includes a curated collection of Britney-inspired accessories, including a matching album cover and keychain sleeve, a T-shirt keychain that can be styled on fashion dolls, a notebook, stickers, tote bag and poster.
Dwayne Johnson caught backlash on social media after he told Esquire that he will no longer speak publicly on politics, according to Yahoo! News. Among the critics was openly gay Star Trek icon George Takei, who wrote on Threads: “Silence is complicity.”