Activism

WASHINGTON: National Equality March Organizers Issue Route Map, Seek Donations And Volunteers

From the National Equality March: Today, the Equality March for Unity and Pride, a grassroots movement to center the most marginalized in the LGBTQ+ communities, released the map and route details for its June 11th march. The starting location will be on I (Eye) Street between 17th and 14th Street NW. Beginning at 10:00am ET, marchers will walk south on …

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AUSTRALIA: Ben & Jerry’s Bans Buying Two Scoops Of The Same Flavor Until Same-Sex Marriage Is Legal

NBC News reports: Declaring “love comes in all flavors,” Ben & Jerry’s said Thursday it’s banning its Australian customers from buying two scoops of the same flavor of ice cream until same-sex marriage is legalized across the country. Ben & Jerry’s, based in Vermont, is famous for its socially conscious advocacy, from combatting climate change to promoting ethical treatment of …

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ABC To Broadcast NYC Pride March 2017

Via press release: NYC Pride announced that WABC-TV will be its official television partner and broadcast the 48th NYC LGBT Pride March on Sunday, June 25, 2017. The NYC Pride March started in 1970 as a civil rights demonstration on the 1-year anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising. Today, it is one of the world’s best known LGBT events, with 350 …

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CHINA: Mothers Of Gay Kids Advertise For Them At “Marriage Market,” Cops Send Them Packing [VIDEO]

The Shanghaiist reports: Spring is here and love is in the air as dozens of elderly parents flock to the park, desperate to find a suitable partner for their still unmarried sons and daughters. Parents carry with them signs listing all the important details of their marriageable children — their height, salary, age, education level, but notably not their sexuality. …

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Notre Dame Graduates Walk Out On Pence [VIDEO]

The Indianapolis Star reports: When Mike Pence took the stage at Notre Dame’s commencement on Saturday, more than 100 students quietly got up from their seats and left. There were a few cheers. Some boos. This was not a surprise, but rather a staged protest some students had been planning for weeks. When Notre Dame announced that the vice president …

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Joe Biden Pens WaPo Op-Ed: Americans Must Stand Against The Persecution Of LGBT People Worldwide

Former Vice President Joe Biden marked today’s International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia with a stirring op-ed published by the Washington Post. An excerpt: Progress doesn’t happen by chance. It happens because good people come together and demand change. And any person of conscience, regardless of their religious or partisan beliefs, should be able to agree: Violence against any person, …

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NEW YORK CITY: Tribute March And Rally For Late Rainbow Flag Creator Gilbert Baker Set For June 14th

Via press release: Friends and family of the late Gilbert Baker will hold an activist march and rally against LGBT oppression in memory of the world-renowned artist who created The Rainbow Flag, the international symbol of LGBT pride and liberation. Baker, a lifelong LGBT and social justice activist, died suddenly March 31 in his Manhattan home. He was 65. The …

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RUSSIA: Police Arrest Five Activists As They Attempt To Deliver Petitions Calling For Action In Chechnya

The BBC reports: Five gay rights activists have been detained in Moscow as they tried to deliver a petition to the office of Russia’s prosecutor general. Police said they were held because their action was unauthorised. The activists said more than two million people had signed the petition to investigate alleged torture and detentions of gay people in the Russian …

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VIRAL VIDEO: Debra Messing Rips Into “The Orange Man” In Scathing GLAAD Awards Speech [VIDEO]

Mashable reports: It’s time to make America gay again. And Debra Messing’s acceptance speech for Excellence in Media at the 28th annual GLAAD Media Awards on Saturday may be the perfect place to start. Equal part hilarious and scathing, the actress, who recently signed on for the impending Will & Grace revival, didn’t mince words in her call to action. …

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JAPAN: Thousands March In Tokyo Pride Parade With Support From Politicians And 200 Companies [VIDEO]

The Japan Times reports: Thousands of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people paraded through Tokyo’s Shibuya district on Sunday to express hope that Japan will further embrace gender equality and diversity. The LGBT parade was the finale to the annual Tokyo Rainbow Pride festival, and this year’s theme was “Change.” “I believed that nothing would change. But, little by little, …

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Your Weekly Debrief With Matt Baume [VIDEO]

Clip recap: Despite rumors, the long-feared “license to discriminate” order failed to materialize this week — but Trump DID sign an order that could be used to attack LGBT Americans. And Congress voted to replace Obamacare with a system that could put health care out of reach for a lot of queer people. Also gay man in Mississippi says a …

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The ACLU Mocks Trump’s “Fake News” Religious Order As An “Elaborate Photo-Op” Not Worth Suing Over

BOOM. Via press release from the ACLU: Today’s executive order signing was an elaborate photo-op with no discernible policy outcome. After careful review of the order’s text we have determined that the order does not meaningfully alter the ability of religious institutions or individuals to intervene in the political process. The order portends but does not yet do harm to …

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National Equality March Site Goes Live

The website for the National Equality March went live last night with a listing of nearly 40 sister marches. They write: The “Equality March for Unity & Pride” is a grassroots movement which will mobilize the diverse LGBTQ+ communities to peacefully and clearly address concerns about the current political landscapes and how it is contributing to the persecution and discrimination …

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Code Pink Activist Goes On Trial For Laughing During Confirmation Hearing For Attorney General Jeff Sessions

The HuffPost reports: The U.S. Capitol Police officer who decided to arrest an activist because she briefly laughed during Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ confirmation hearing in January is a rookie cop who had never conducted an arrest before nor worked at a congressional hearing. Nevertheless, prosecutors persisted this week in pursuing charges against the 61-year-old woman the rookie had taken …

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Details Emerge For National Equality March

The National Equality March in Washington DC is just five weeks away and only in the last few days have some details trickled out. From an announcement posted to Facebook on Friday: The Equality March for Unity and Pride named a diverse group of leaders with years of advocacy and community mobilization in LGBTQ+ liberation movements across the country and …

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RUSSIA: St. Petersburg Police Arrest Activists At May Day Protest Against Chechen Persecution Of Gay Men

The Independent reports: Russian police have detained LGBT activists attempting to raise awareness about the persecution of gay men in Chechnya. The demonstration was held during a May Day march in St Petersburg, with a group of around 10 protesters arrested near the Anichkov Palace in the centre of Russia’s second city. Images shared on Twitter showed activists lying on …

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Somebody Chained A Plain Wooden Cross On NYC’s Gay Street So The Neighbors Made Some Improvements

The HuffPost reports: On Good Friday, a mysterious giant wooden cross appeared on Gay Street in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City, chained and locked to an apartment gate. Over the next nine days, the cross’ owner would return and chain the cross to different parts of the street making it impossible for others to move it. “To …

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NEW YORK CITY: Preservationists Launch Interactive Map Of Historic Sites Of LGBT Activism And Culture

DNA Info reports: Just after the 1969 Stonewall riots — largely considered a seminal moment in the quest for LGBT rights — many gay rights groups were still organizing in the shadows, quietly meeting in neighborhoods such as Brooklyn Heights to lay the groundwork for the movement. The historic preservationists working on the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project are now …

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Matt Baume’s Weekly LGBT News Debrief [VIDEO]

Clip recap: Alabama’s anti-gay Chief Justice Roy Moore is lashing out against his colleagues on the Alabama Supreme Court, who this week told him, essentially, “get out and stay out.” A lawmaker says he wants to expand opportunities for adoption, but his solution is to prevent gay couples from adopting. We’ll cover the latest from Chechnya, including new measures from …

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New Font Honors Rainbow Flag Creator Gilbert Baker

Via press release: On March 31, 2017, Gilbert Baker the creator of the iconic Rainbow Flag sadly passed away. Mr. Baker was both an LGBTQ activist and artist, and was known for helping friends create banners for protests and marches. To honor the memory of Gilbert Baker, NewFest and NYC Pride partnered with Ogilvy & Mather’s design team and created …

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