LGBT News

The Guardian reports: The US state department has frozen all applications for passports with “X” sex markers and changes to gender identity on existing passports, following a new executive order signed by Donald Trump on his first day of office. In an internal cable obtained by the Guardian, the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, instructed department staff on Thursday to …

Yahoo Entertainment reports: At long last, the 2025 Oscar nominations are here — and there are a number of snubs and surprises in the field. Some people have expressed concerns about moving forward with the Academy Awards after wildfires devastated parts of Los Angeles. Following a few delays in the nominations announcement, the show is planned to go on, airing …

The Bay Area Reporter reports: A new report estimates that roughly 266,000 LGBTQ+ young people and their families have uprooted their lives and left a state because of anti-LGBTQ politics or laws. It is also detailing in stark relief the positive outcomes on the health and wellbeing of LGBTQ youth that state lawmakers can have when enacting policy. The eight-page …

NPR reports: Hundreds of same-sex couples tied the knot across Thailand on Thursday, as the country became the first in Southeast Asia to legally recognize equal marriage. A luxury shopping mall in Bangkok hosted over 150 same-sex weddings alone, as members of the LGBTQ+ community celebrated the landmark ruling. “I feel more secure in our life because we can be …

The right wing Washington Free Beacon reports: The Trump State Department implemented a landmark “One Flag Policy” policy, barring U.S. outposts at home and abroad from flying any other flag but the Stars and Stripes. The newly issued order, a copy of which was obtained by the Washington Free Beacon, effectively bans American facilities from displaying flags affiliated with left-wing …

Politico reports: President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday night that repeals a provision allowing transgender troops to serve in the military, part of a wide-ranging effort to end Biden-era policies his first day in office. Trump issued a ban during his first administration that prevented transgender troops from serving, which former President Joe Biden eliminated. While Trump did …

Boston’s NBC affiliate reports: A New Hampshire man is under investigation for possible civil rights violations. Frank Hobbs Jr. is accused of swiping someone else’s signs supporting gay rights. New Hampshire authorities say Hobbs was caught on camera stealing signs from a Goffstown intersection. A woman had lawfully placed signs in support of the LGBTQ community, and when one of …

The Washington Post reports: The Supreme Court agreed Friday to hear a case about whether public schools must give parents of elementary schoolchildren a chance to opt out of instruction on gender and sexuality that they say goes against their religious convictions. The case stems from a challenge by a group of parents in Maryland’s largest school system, who objected …

Politico reports: It’s been a dozen years since the Stonewall Democrats, a once-prominent LGBTQ+ rights group, went defunct. But now, on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration, a new coalition of state-level advocacy groups is reestablishing a national presence to gird against the incoming president and a Republican-controlled Congress. The group, the National Federation of Stonewall Democrats, comes together at …

The Washington Post reports: As Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House, Amazon has cut commitments to protecting the rights of Black and LGBTQ+ people from a public listing of its corporate policies. Statements that said Amazon supported the rights of transgender people and would protect the safety of Black employees and customers disappeared from a webpage stating …

Rochester, New York’s PBS affiliate reports: Love and resilience were on full display this past weekend at the inaugural Big Gay Wedding Day, held at Rochester’s First Universalist Church. Organized by local Unitarian Universalist congregations, including First Unitarian Church of Rochester, First Universalist Church of Rochester and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Canandaigua, the free event offered LGBTQ couples the …

The New York Times reports: The Vatican has approved new guidelines for Italy that say that an applicant for the seminary cannot be rejected simply because he is gay, as long as he remains celibate. The guidelines say that seminary directors should consider sexual orientation as only one aspect of a candidate’s personality. They do not change the Roman Catholic …

The Hill reports: Ohio’s Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed legislation Wednesday requiring educators to reveal a student’s gender identity to their families and allow parents to opt their kids out of lessons that touch on sexuality and gender. House Bill 8, known to its critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill because of its similarities to a 2022 Florida law, …

NBC News reports: Meta will allow its billions of social media users to accuse people of being mentally ill based on their sexuality or gender identity, among broader changes it made to its moderation policies and practices Tuesday. The company’s new guidelines prohibit insults about someone’s intellect or mental illness on Facebook, Instagram and Threads, as have previous iterations. However, …

User Mag reports: For months, Meta has been restricting content with LGBTQ-related hashtags from search and discovery under its “sensitive content” policy aimed at restricting “sexually suggestive content.” Posts with LGBTQ+ hashtags including #lesbian, #bisexual, #gay, #trans, #queer, #nonbinary, #pansexual and dozens of others were hidden for any users who had their sensitive content filter turned on. Teenagers have the …

CBS News reports: The Pentagon has reached a historic legal settlement with more than 35,000 gay and lesbian military veterans who were dismissed because of their sexual orientation, and in many cases denied an honorable discharge and the array of services they had earned, CBS News has learned. Under the terms of the agreement, veterans whose discharge papers reference their …

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports: Since Donald Trump’s reelection in November, nontraditional gun groups across the city and country have seen a flood of interest. The national Liberal Gun Club said it has received thousands of training requests since the election, more than in all of 2023. A spokesperson for the group estimated that roughly a quarter were from LGBTQ people. …

Law.com reports: Eli Lilly & Co. has been hit with a suit claiming it fired a New Jersey drug sales representative for holding a biblically based view on sexual morality. In a case that pits an employee’s right to religious expression against the company’s support of its LGBTQ+ workers, plaintiff Jonathan Samaniego claims he was terminated based on his religious …

The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports: Shortly before midnight on New Year’s Eve, Angel Nunes decided it was time to visit his partner, Chris Dillon, who was alone at his Fort Lauderdale home. Nunes, 50, made it through the door just in time for the two men to enjoy a celebratory embrace on the pool deck behind Dillon’s home in a …

Another action-packed year has come and gone for this here website thingy, which in a few months will mark its 21st anniversary. Which just seems…impossible. The last 12 months we saw an unprecedented number of anti-LGBTQ bills, some of which were spawned by the same hate groups that have antagonized us for decades. Most of those bills targeted our trans brothers …