LGBT News

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) …

USA Today reports: In a ballroom at the Wynn hotel and casino in Las Vegas two weeks ago, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, team owners and high-ranking league executives attended a Board of Governors meeting to discuss league issues. In a poignant address, Golden State Warriors president and chief operating officer Rick Welts, 63, who is openly gay, explained his meaningful …

“The sports and entertainment elite, Attorney General Roy Cooper and the liberal media have for months misrepresented our laws and maligned the people of North Carolina simply because most people believe boys and girls should be able to use school bathrooms, locker rooms and showers without the opposite sex present. Twenty-one other states have joined North Carolina to challenge the …

From Equality North Carolina: North Carolina General Assembly leadership and Governor McCrory repeatedly ignored the warning bells as businesses, conferences and entertainers left the state. From the beginning, NBA leadership has been clear that HB2 creates an untenable situation and jeopardizes the safety and comfort of their fans. The withdraw of the 2017 NBA All-Star Game in Charlotte came as …

Sports Illustrated reports: The NBA has pulled the 2017 All-Star Game out of Charlotte, with New Orleans emerging as the favorite to be the new host, reports The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The NBA had discussed moving the game in the wake of North Carolina’s controversial “bathroom bill,” legislation passed earlier this year that has been criticized as anti-LGBT. Formally known …

The Hill reports: Reality star Caitlyn Jenner on Wednesday morning bashed anti-transgender bathroom laws around the country, joking that some Republicans should be banned from public restrooms. “Over the last few years, we have three Republican state representatives who were all arrested for lewd behavior in a men’s bathroom,” she said, mentioning former Mississippi Rep. John Hinson, former Idaho Sen. …

From the Associated Press: Romania’s Constitutional Court has ruled that a request from an anti-gay group to change the constitution to state that marriage is a union between a man and a woman is constitutional. The court’s ruling Wednesday paves the way for Romania’s Parliament to vote to change the constitution, last revised in 2003, which now says marriage is …

Clip recap: Mike Pence may look comparatively stable next to Trump. But he’s actually way more extreme when it comes to LGBT issues — here’s just a sampling of some his worst hits. This is the guy who could be second in line to run the country, and that’s a huge problem since Trump’s one of the most impeachment-ready candidates …

Gays Against Guns, Queer Nation, and other gun control activists groups will stage a join “Stop The Hate, Stop The Guns” protest at 5PM this afternoon outside Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. The protest is designed to coincide with the opening of the GOP convention and your participation is welcomed. Via press release: The GOP has drafted what …

From the San Diego Union-Tribune: When Eric Fanning started working at the Pentagon as an aide, the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy had just begun. The 24-year-old didn’t have gay role models in the building. A lot has changed in the United States military since then. In May, 24 years later, Fanning was appointed secretary of the Army — becoming …

Attendees of the GOP convention will be confronted by the image of Donald Trump preparing to lay a big wet one on Ted Cruz, courtesy of this billboard erected by Planting Peace, the pro-LGBT group behind the rainbow-hued Equality House across the street from the Westboro Baptist Church. From the Huffington Post: In the eyes of Aaron Jackson, President of …

From the Detroit Free Press: A viral video of a man shouting slurs and pointing a gun at another man he believed was gay as he exited a convenience store on Detroit’s west side has sparked outrage and is being investigated by police, an official confirmed Wednesday. “We are aware of it,” said Detroit Police Sgt. Michael Woody. “It was …