Civil Rights

Polish State TV Apologizes For Anti-LGBTQ Propaganda

The Associated Press reports: An LGBTQ rights activist in Poland said Tuesday that he believes it’s a “new beginning” in Poland after a host on state television apologized on air for the homophobic propaganda aired by state media in recent years. “It took me by surprise,” said Bart Staszewski, one of two activists invited on air Sunday evening when the …

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Tennessee Town To Pay $500K For Banning Pride Event

The Washington Post reports: A Tennessee city must pay $500,000 as part of a settlement with the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups over an ordinance designed to ban drag performances from taking place on public property, attorneys announced Wednesday. Last year, the Tennessee Equality Project — a nonprofit that advocates for LGBTQ+ rights — filed a federal lawsuit …

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PA Supreme Court Rules Abortion Access Is A Right

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports: Pennsylvania’s highest court on Monday recognized for the first time that access to abortion is a right guaranteed by the state’s constitution, a significant finding in the wake of the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning nationwide abortion rights. The finding came in a case focused on a much narrower issue — whether Medicaid should cover …

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Texas Hit With UN Complaint Over LGBTQ Rights

The Texas Standard reports: Texas lawmakers were behind 1 in 5 of all anti-LGBTQ plus bills introduced nationwide in 2023. That’s according to the Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBTQ political lobbying group in the U.S. Several of the Texas bills cited by the group became law, including one that blocks trans minors from accessing gender-affirming medical care and another …

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SCOTUS Hands Victory To Indiana Trans Students

USA Today reports: The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to decide if schools can bar transgender students from using a bathroom that reflects their gender identity, leaving in place a lower court ruling that allowed a transgender middle school boy in Indiana to use the boys’ bathroom. The case arrived at the Supreme Court against the backdrop of a shifting …

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FL Abortion Petition Has Enough Names To Make Ballot

Miami’s PBS affiliate reports: Groups behind the push to put abortion rights on the Florida ballot next year have reached a major milestone: They believe they have collected all the signatures needed to put it to a vote. The petition aims to place a state constitutional amendment to protect the right to an abortion on the 2024 ballot. It would …

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Evangelical: Buy My Book Now Because God Took Me To Heaven And Revealed That He’s Killing Us All Very Soon

Via press release from Christian Newswire: After many years of hearing God speak to him and calling him to be a last day’s prophet, Ken Bailey, has published his stunning new book, The End is Now Coming: God’s Urgent Warning to His Church and the Nations. In it, Bailey reveals the incredible messages that He has received from God, to …

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FL Town Becomes State’s First “LGBTQ+ Sanctuary City”

West Palm Beach’s NBC affiliate reports: The city of Lake Worth Beach has become a sanctuary city for the LGBTQ+ community and their families, the first of its kind in the Sunshine State. On Tuesday, Sept. 5, commissioners voted unanimously for the declaration. “I think it’s time to take a stand that we affirmatively accept the people as they are,” …

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Hong Kong Top Court Approves LGBTQ Rights Appeal

Reuters reports: Hong Kong’s top court partially approved on Tuesday a landmark appeal by an LGBTQ activist for recognition of same-sex marriages, calling for new regulations for gay couples to protect their basic social needs. The ruling by Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal followed a five-year legal battle fought by jailed democracy and LGBTQ rights activist Jimmy Sham. It …

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Court Advances Suit To Repeal 1849 WI Abortion Ban

Courthouse News reports: A lawsuit seeking to invalidate a nearly two-century-old Wisconsin statute outlawing abortion will proceed, after the presiding judge on Friday denied a motion to dismiss the closely watched legal action. Days after the U.S. Supreme Court upended Roe v. Wade last summer, making abortion law an issue for individual states to decide, Democratic Wisconsin Attorney General Josh …

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2023 Global Survey: 9% Of Adults Identify As LGBT+

From Ipsos Polling: The Ipsos LGBT+ Pride 2023 survey finds that an average of 9% of adults in 30 countries identify as LGBT+, with sharp generational differences. The survey was conducted by Ipsos on its Global Advisor online platform in February and March 2023 among more than 22,500 adults under the age of 75. On average, across the 30 countries …

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NAACP Issues Travel Advisory: Florida Is Openly Hostile Towards Blacks, People Of Color, And LGBTQ+ People

Tampa’s NBC affiliate reports: The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on Saturday issued a travel advisory for the state of Florida. According to the NAACP national headquarters, the advisory is a “direct response to Governor Ron DeSantis’ aggressive attempts to erase Black history and to restrict diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in Florida schools.” The advisory reads …

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PA House Approves Statewide LGBTQ Protections

Harrisburg’s ABC affiliate reports: The Pennsylvania House narrowly passed a bill that would prohibit discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression. The bill, dubbed The Fairness Act, passed the House on Tuesday by a 102-98 vote after previously passing the House Appropriations and Judiciary committees. The bill amends the 1955 Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, which already …

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Senate Republicans Block Equal Rights Amendment

The Hill reports: Senate Republicans on Thursday night blocked a measure that would have allowed the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to be added to the Constitution. Senators voted 51 to 47 to invoke cloture on a motion to proceed, falling short of the 60 votes it it needed. Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine) were the lone Republicans …

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Montana House May Vote To Expel Trans Lawmaker

The New York Times reports: Legislators in Montana are expected to vote Wednesday on whether to censure or discipline the state’s only transgender lawmaker, after an escalating standoff over her ability to speak in the House of Representatives led to heated protests and arrests on Monday and the abrupt cancellation of Tuesday’s session. The lawmaker, Representative Zooey Zephyr, shared a …

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Massachusetts Town Bans Drag Show At Pride Event

CBS News reports: A battle is brewing in the town of North Brookfield over a Pride event and whether a drag show should be allowed as part of the celebration on the town common June 24. In a 2 to 1 vote last week, the Board of Selectmen reversed itself from a vote in March, saying the Pride celebration could …

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Schumer: Senate To Vote On Equal Rights Amendment

Via press release from Sen. Chuck Schumer: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today stood at NYC’s Roosevelt House alongside trailblazing women, including Gloria Steinem, the Honorable Carolyn Maloney, Hunter College Pres Jennifer Raab, students and other national and local leaders, and announced that he will set up a historic vote in the Senate this week on S.J. Res 2, …

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Activist, Actor, Singer Harry Belafonte Dies At Age 96

The New York Times reports: Harry Belafonte, who stormed the pop charts and smashed racial barriers in the 1950s with his highly personal brand of folk music, and who went on to become a major force in the civil rights movement, died on Tuesday at his home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. He was 96. The cause was …

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Civil Rights Groups Warn Against Traveling To Florida

Via press release from Equality Florida: Today, Equality Florida took the extraordinary step of issuing a travel advisory, warning of the risks posed to the health, safety, and freedom of those considering short or long term travel, or relocation to the state. The move comes in response to a wave of safety inquiries Equality Florida has received following the passage …

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DOJ Files Appeal In Texas Ruling To Ban Abortion Pills

The Huffington Post reports: The Department of Justice filed an immediate appeal following a Texas federal judge’s shocking decision Friday to pull the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone, one of two drugs used in medication abortion. The Justice Department appealed directly to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on Friday night, only a few hours …

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