Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) said that debate on the Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA) is suspended and will continue on Nov. 28, when the Senate reconvenes after Thanksgiving, LGBTQ Nation reported. The RFMA would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and require the federal government to recognize same-sex marriages performed by the states. The bill would also require all other states to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages performed by other states.
A California state commission confirmed Gov. Gavin Newsom's nomination of Kelli Evans, an Alameda County Superior Court judge and former civil-rights attorney, to the California Supreme Court, filling the vacancy that will be created when Patricia Guerrero becomes chief justice in January. Evans is the first out LGBTQ+ woman and second out African American to serve on the court, per The Bay Area Reporter.
Openly gay U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Chris Magnus submitted his resignation to President Joe Biden, The Washington Blade reported. Magnus was reportedly told by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas that he should resign or expect to be fired—and Magnus allegedly initially defied the order to resign. Pressure on the White House to remove the embattled CBP commissioner came from within the administration as well as from House Republicans on Capitol Hill. Magnus started his public safety career in 1979 as a dispatcher with the City of Lansing, Michigan. He later became the police chief of Fargo, North Dakota; Richmond, California; and Tucson, Arizona, according to his official bio.
In advance of Transgender Day of Remembrance on Nov. 20, Campus Pride published a new report titled "The Changing Nature of Gender in the 21st Century: How Trans and Nonbinary Students Applying to College Today Self-Identify," a press release noted. It's a research project analyzing the largest body of data on the gender identities of incoming college students that have ever been available. The report is produced by Campus Pride and written by Dr. Genny Beemyn (they/them), coordinator of Campus Pride's Trans Policy Clearinghouse and Director of the Stonewall Center at UMass Amherst, who was given exclusive access by the Common App to analyze the data on gender identity and pronouns of more than 1 million students who filled out the application during the Fall 2022 college admissions cycle. See www.CampusPride.org/Research.
At its annual Western Jurisdiction Conference, held at Christ United Methodist Church in Salt Lake City, a married gay clergyman from California was among 13 new bishops elected by delegates, according to Q Salt Lake. The delegation voted to elect the Rev. Cedrick D. Bridgeforth as the California-Pacific Conference bishop, which has about 50,000 members in churches in Southern and Central California, Hawaii, the Pacific Islands, Guam, and Saipan. This spring, conservatives launched a new Global Methodist Church that would accept denominations leaving the United Methodist Church system; it would ban openly LGBTQ+ pastors and deny same-sex marriages.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation released "An Epidemic of Violence: Fatal Violence Against Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming People in the United States in 2022," according to a press release. It's a report honoring the lives of at least 32 transgender and gender non-conforming people killed in 2022 and shining a light on data that HRC has continued to collect on the epidemic of violence. People can read the report at https://reports.hrc.org/an-epidemic-of-violence-2022.
Former Equality California Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur won his race for Assembly in a district that includes the heart of Los Angeles's LGBTQ+ community, per an organizational press release. Zbur is a longtime civil-rights and environmental leader, having been board chair of California Environmental Voters (formerly California League of Conservation Voters); he is currently on the board of Planned Parenthood Los Angeles. Equality California Executive Director Tony Hoang said in a statement, "My friend, Rick Chavez Zbur, has spent his career fighting for justice and is exactly the type of champion LGBTQ+ Californians need in the Assembly."
On Nov. 14, the Milwaukee County Landmarks Committee unanimously approved historic landmark designation for the site of the Black Nite Uprising (400 N. Plankinton Ave.)—the first documented act of LGBTQ+ resistance in Wisconsin history, according to a press release. The Black Nite Uprising of Aug. 5, 1961 was the first time in Wisconsin history that LGBGQ+ people came together to take action against homophobic and transphobic violence as one united community. This event happened nearly eight years before the Stonewall Uprising, long bookmarked as the start of LGBTQ+ history.
The Los Angeles LGBT Center issued a statement in light of Mayor-Elect Karen Bass' historic win over billionaire Rick Caruso. "We are confident that Mayor-elect Karen Bass will continue to champion the issues that impact our communities and we look forward to working with her and her staff to make Los Angeles a city in which LGBTQ people can truly be healthy, equal and complete members of society," said Los Angeles LGBT Center CEO Joe Hollendoner. Bass, a member of Congress, is the first woman and Black woman elected to the position.
A New York judge dismissed Mary Trump's lawsuit against former President Donald Trump, saying her claims are barred by an earlier settlement she reached more than 20 years ago, according to CNN. Mary—an out lesbian who happens to be the former president's niece—had alleged in the lawsuit that she was defrauded of millions of dollars in a 2001 family settlement. In 2020, Mary sued Donald Trump; his sister Maryanne Trump Barry, a retired judge; and the executor of her late uncle Robert Trump's estate, alleging "they designed and carried out a complex scheme to siphon funds away from her interests, conceal their grift, and deceive her about the true value of what she had inherited." Mary plans to appeal this latest ruling.
Queer|Art, New York City's home for the creative and professional development of LGBTQ+ artists, announced the winner of the third annual Illuminations Grant for Black Trans Women Visual Artists, Ute Petit, according to a press release. The New Orleans-based visual artist will receive a $10,000 cash grant, professional development support and individual studio visits with members of the judges panel to support her practice. Other finalists included Courtney Washington, Tia Jackson, z tye and Ava Tuitt.
A tweet posted by newly elected gay Congressman Robert Garcia (formerly the mayor of Long Beach, California) that was aimed at Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has gone viral, according to Queerty. Reposting a TikTok video of NeNe Leakes sashaying in a pair of towering high heels, Garcia said, "As a reminder this will be me when I walk by Marjorie Taylor Greene in the Capitol next week at orientation." The tweet received more than 100,000 likes but also garnered criticism that Garcia appeared not to take his new job seriously—although many came to his defense.
The department store Macy's (a corporate ally of the queer community) has ended a longstanding partnership with the Salvation Army, LGBTQ Nation noted. The charity has been accused of being anti-LGBTQ+ but has made a dramatic turnaround over the past decade. "We re-evaluated our cause and community work and made a significant commitment to driving societal change by empowering underrepresented youth in our community," a Macy's spokesperson said.
Former United States goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris announced her retirement from professional soccer, ending her 13-year senior career, ESPN noted. Harris, 37, was capped 25 times by the USWNT and played a part in the World Cup-winning squads in 2015 and 2019. She and her wife, defender Ali Krieger, were traded to Gotham last December; however, Harris made just eight appearances this season due to knee surgery in September.
Greg Louganis, who dominated world diving competitions in the 1980s, winning double gold medals in back-to-back Olympic Games, is auctioning off Olympics memorabilia and other historical items to raise funds for charity and help finance the next chapter of his life—a focus on health and wellness, social justice and inclusion, according to a press release. More than 50 items are available, with proceeds going to two non-profits—Children's Rights, a national organization holding governments accountable for protecting children and keeping families together; and The Damien Center, Indiana's largest and oldest AIDS service organization.. The auction ends at 5 p.m. CT on Dec. 4. See greglouganis.com/auction-items/ .
