LGBT News

But it’s not a complete win. Reuters reports: A high court judge ruled on Tuesday that an HIV pill to prevent infection can be funded by the state health service in England, in a victory for AIDS campaigners who have been calling for its widespread use. So-called pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) against HIV, using Gilead Sciences’ medicine Truvada, can cut the …

Via press release from the National Center for Lesbian Rights: Today, Seattle City Council unanimously voted to protect LGBTQ youth in the city from conversion therapy, making Seattle the 10th jurisdiction—along with California, New Jersey, Oregon, Illinois, New York, Vermont, Washington, D.C., Cincinnati, and Miami Beach, FL—to protect youth from this dangerous practice. Today’s 9-0 vote protects LGBTQ youth from …

ABC News reports: Vice President Joe Biden officiated his first wedding ever — and it was for a same sex couple. Biden officiated over the wedding of two longtime White House staffers, Brian Mosteller and Joe Mahshie, at the Naval Observatory on Monday, his office said. Posting a photo of the ceremony on Twitter, Biden wrote, “Proud to marry Brian …

Chris Geidner reports at Buzzfeed: Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant had asked U.S. District Court Judge Carlton Reeves to issue a stay of his preliminary injunction order during the appeal. If granted, the state would have allowed the state to enforce the law during its appeal of the ruling against the law. In dismissing the state’s argument for why a stay …

Remember the nutcase who sued Apple in 2013 because his computer didn’t block him from accessing the porn which ruined his marriage? And then in 2014 when he attempted to intervene in one of Florida’s same-sex marriage cases so that he could marry that porn-filled laptop? And then in April of this year when he tried the same thing in …

Dominic Holden reports at Buzzfeed: A federal judge expressed skepticism on Monday that North Carolina lawmakers were solving a legitimate safety problem when they passed a law in spring that bans many transgender people from restrooms in government facilities that match their gender identity. US District Court Judge Thomas D. Schroeder also seemed flummoxed at one point by how the …

IMPORTANT UPDATE BELOW. Earlier….. Entertainment Weekly reports: Orlando’s Pulse nightclub will reopen as a memorial for the 49 people killed at the venue in the June 12 mass shooting, its owners announced via Facebook Sunday night. The news was shared on the onePULSE foundation page, a nonprofit established in the aftermath of the attack to “provide financial assistance to the …

Several days ago the organizers of Cleveland Pride issued an abrupt and murky cancellation statement, blaming a “changing social climate” for the move. Today we learn that an ad hoc group of Clevelanders will put together an event of their own. Via Cleveland’s ABC affiliate: The event will take place the same day the festival and parade was originally scheduled—Aug. …

Pink News reports: Far right activists admitting interrupting Pride in Stockholm, claiming that “traditional family values” are “threatened”. Nordisk Ungdom, or Nordic Youth, admitted to attempting to interrupt the Pride event on Saturday. Speaking to Göteborgs-Posten, spokesman Fredrik Hagberg confirmed that the group had attempted to counter protest during the festivities leading to a scuffle. He said: “We were there …

Chris Geidner reports at Buzzfeed: A federal appeals court on Thursday rejected a woman’s claim that existing civil rights law protects against sexual orientation discrimination — ruling that only the Supreme Court or Congress can make that the law. “Kimberly Hively has failed to state a claim under Title VII [of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for sex discrimination,” …

Here’s their full press release, but the reason for the cancellation is not at all clear. The Board of Directors of Cleveland Pride, Inc. announced today that the 28th annual parade, rally and festival has been cancelled for 2016. “We have been entrusted by our community to create a secure parade and festival environment for our LGBTQ brothers, sisters, mothers, …

Lucas Grindley reports at the Advocate: The hotel that had become a symbol of support for Ted Cruz’s antigay policies is now closing. The Out Hotel in New York City faced a heated boycott last year after its gay owners held a fundraising dinner party at their home for the Texas senator and Republican presidential hopeful. Ian Reisner and his …

Dominic Holden reports at Buzzfeed: A federal judge should not halt enforcement of Obama administration policies that advance protections for transgender students and workers under existing civil rights laws, according to a dozen states that will file a brief in federal court on Wednesday. “The bottom line is that the federal guidance at issue here threatens no imminent harm,” reads …

Chris Johnson reports at the Washington Blade: Democrats ratified a party platform late Monday called the most LGBT-inclusive in history and a unifying document after a bitter primary. As convention chair Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) presided, delegates at the Democratic National Convention approved the platform by voice vote. Although loud “nays” were heard, the overwhelming “yays” in favor of the …

NBC News reports: There is a record number of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender delegates at this year’s Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. And while they come from a variety of different states and backgrounds, most seem to have at least two things in common: their support for the Equality Act and their contempt for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. …

Via press release from ACT UP: Over the weekend, the New York and Philadelphia chapters of ACT UP, the AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power, teamed up with allies UAEM (Universities Allied for Essential Medicines) and The Other 98% to stage a tug-of-war with pharma bro’s outside Hillary Clinton’s Philadelphia campaign headquarters ahead of the Democratic National Convention. Activists targeted candidate …

The Week reports: Jeremy Clarkson has called the proposal to install gender-neutral toilets in the House of Commons “potty”. In a column for The Sun newspaper, the journalist and TV presenter said that while many in the house regard the move as “part of an ongoing struggle to fight sexism and prejudice”, it is “more like part of an ongoing …

Yesterday afternoon Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe attended a welcoming mixer for LGBT delegates to the Democratic National Convention. Watch my video below as McAuliffe proudly notes that his first act in office was to ban discrimination against LGBT state employees. McAuliffe added to great cheering that he was the “first Southern governor” to perform a same-sex marriage.

Politico reports: Hillary Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook suggested Sunday that internal DNC emails leaked last week were an effort from the Russians to help Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. “What’s disturbing to us is that experts are telling us Russian state actors broke into the DNC, stole these emails, and other experts are now saying that the Russians are …

The Democratic National Committee today unveiled an extensive list of convention speakers in addition to the top-billed names released in previous weeks. Human Rights Campaign president Chad Griffin will speak on the convention’s final night. Here’s the new list via press release: Monday, July 25 Congressman Keith Ellison (Minnesota) National Education Association President Lily Eskelsen Garcia Congressman Raul Grijalva (Arizona) …