LGBT News

Back in February, I reported that Ali Forney Center founder Carl Siciliano had penned a coming book and today it has gone on sale. From the Penguin Random House press release: Carl Siciliano met Ali Forney—a Black nonbinary teenager overflowing with life—in 1994 while working at a daytime center for homeless youth in New York City. Nineteen years old and …

The Star Observer reports: A new series from NBC called Queer Planet is providing fascinating looks at both homosexuality in the animal kingdom and at the people apparently incapable of even acknowledging that it exists. The trailer for the documentary series was released on May 17th and gave a preview of a “rich diversity of animal sexuality” with gay penguins, …

Indianapolis’s PBS affiliate reports: Indiana’s education department is telling school districts not to adopt new federal protections for LGBTQ+ students and sex-based discrimination until several lawsuits challenging the regulations, including one by the state’s attorney general, are settled. The new Title IX guidelines, released by the U.S. Department of Education forbids discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sexual orientation, …

San Diego’s CBS affiliates reports: Several people were hit with non-lethal rounds after at least four LGBTQ bars were shot at with a pellet gun early Saturday morning. According to San Diego Police, they received reports of a pellet gun being fired out of a vehicle just after 1 a.m. Saturday morning. As of Sunday evening, the locations police could …

NBC News reports: The Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBTQ rights group in the United States, is launching a $15 million commitment to help Democratic President Joe Biden defeat Republican Donald Trump in the 2024 election. The spending blitz, shared first with NBC News, will cover the six key battleground states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada. The …

ABC News reports: The U.S. State Department issued a “Worldwide Caution” alert on Friday, warning U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution due to “the increased potential for foreign terrorist organization-inspired violence against LGBTQI+ persons and events.” The alert is connected to the recent announcement from the FBI and Department of Homeland Security that foreign terrorist organizations might seek to …

The Sarasota Herald Tribune reports: Bridges across Florida, including the Sunshine Skyway and Ringling Causeway, will not gleam in rainbow colors this June in celebration of LGBTQ Pride Month at the behest of Gov. Ron DeSantis. Plans are in place to adorn Florida bridges in red, white and blue lighting between May 27 and Sept. 2 as a part of …

Radio Liechtenstein reports: The state parliament has cleared the way for marriage for everyone in Liechtenstein. The second readings of various laws that needed to be adjusted were successfully carried out. This will allow Liechtenstein to marry same-sex couples like its neighboring countries. Read the full article. The snippet above is via Google Translate as the site is in German. …

Via press release from the FBI: The FBI and DHS are issuing this Public Service Announcement to provide awareness to the public of foreign terrorist organizations (FTOS) or their supporters potential targeting of LGBTQIA+-related events and venues. Foreign terrorist organizations or supporters may seek to exploit increased gatherings associated with the upcoming June 2024 Pride Month. FTO efforts to commit …

Bloomberg Law reports: Maryland’s largest public school system doesn’t have to allow parents to excuse their kids from classroom lessons involving LGBTQ-themed books while the families’ constitutional challenge proceeds, a divided federal appeals court said Wednesday. The parents haven’t shown they’re likely to succeed on their arguments that the Montgomery County school system’s attendance requirements violates their religious freedom, free …

The Hill reports: Four more Republican-led states sued the Biden administration Tuesday over new Title IX rules that bolster protections for LGBTQ students. “Biden’s Department of Education has no authority to do what it is attempting to do,” Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach (R), who is leading the lawsuit, said Tuesday at a press conference at the state capitol in …

The Alabama Reflector reports: A bill that would have expanded Alabama’s “Don’t Say Gay” law died on the final day of the 2024 regular session. HB 130, sponsored by Rep. Mack Butler, R-Rainbow City, would have extended Alabama’s prohibition on discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten to fifth grade to kindergarten to eighth grade. It also would …

Back in February, I reported that Ali Forney Center founder Carl Siciliano had penned a coming book. From the Penguin Random House press release: Carl Siciliano met Ali Forney—a Black nonbinary teenager overflowing with life—in 1994 while working at a daytime center for homeless youth in New York City. Nineteen years old and driven from home, Forney was the heart …

CBS News reports: Leading up to Tuesday’s West Virginia primary, three of the Republican candidates for governor have been trying to outdo each other in proving their opposition to transgender rights. In TV ads running in West Virginia, state Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, Chris Miller and Moore Capito have been accusing each other of harboring transgender sympathies while touting their …

Bloomberg News reports: Target Corp. won’t sell LGBTQ-themed merchandise in some stores during Pride Month in June, after a backlash dented revenue last year. Target faced threats from some customers last year over its Pride merchandise. The Minneapolis-based retailer plans to offer the full assortment online but is considering store-level data to decide which physical locations will carry the products, …

NBC News reports: At least 22 Republican-led states are suing the Biden administration over its new rules to protect LGBTQ students from discrimination in federally funded schools. Attorneys general in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia who sued the administration in separate lawsuits last week argued that the …

Las Vegas’s CBS affiliate reports: A man allegedly shot at his neighbors for being gay, saying in part, “I hope you [expletives] die,” according to documents the 8 News Now Investigators obtained Monday. Larry Walraven, 75, faces a charge of assault with a deadly weapon with a hate crime enhancement, records said. On April 25, Walraven allegedly shot at his …

The Salt Lake Tribune reports: Less than 72 hours after the launch of a reporting form to help Utah enforce its transgender bathroom ban, the Utah auditor’s office says it has received nearly 4,000 complaints — and all of them appear to be “bogus.” “We didn’t see anything that looks credible,” Utah Auditor John Dougall said in a phone call, …

Yahoo News reports: Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed an executive order Thursday objecting to aspects of an updated set of rules related to Title IX — the federal law which bans sex-based discrimination at any schools that receive federal funding. The new rules, released by the Biden administration in April and set to go into effect in the fall, …

The Christian Post reports: The United Methodist Church General Conference voted to drop a ban on funding LGBT advocacy groups and removed a required punishment for pastors who officiate gay weddings after thousands of theologically conservative congregations left the mainline Protestant denomination in the last two years. The change was among the bulk of legislation approved by a vote of …