LGBT News

The New York Times reports: The Obama administration is considering whether North Carolina’s new law on gay and transgender rights makes the state ineligible for billions of dollars in federal aid for schools, highways and housing, officials said Friday. Cutting off any federal money — or even simply threatening to do so — would put major new pressure on North …

From the Los Angeles Times: Los Angeles prosecutors on Friday charged a 69-year-old man with fatally shooting his son outside the family’s North Hills home because the son was gay. The shooting occurred Tuesday when police responded to a call at the family home and found the bodies of Amir Issa, 29 [photo], and his mother, who was not identified. …

This morning the Mississippi House voted overwhelmingly to send the state’s hate bill to the desk of Gov. Phil Bryant. But this afternoon Democrats filed a motion to reconsider, which is essentially a procedural delaying tactic meant to buy time in order to build pressure for a veto. Dominic Holden has more at Buzzfeed: Bryant did not immediately respond to …

Andrew Sullivan is coming out of semi-retirement to join New York Magazine as a contributing editor. From their announcement: He will write features throughout the year, and cover the 2016 Democratic and Republican National Conventions. He begins his new role today. “I have had the privilege of working with Andrew from the beginning of his career (mine too). He is …

From Jackson’s ABC affiliate: The Mississippi House on Friday passed a final version of a bill that allows government employees and private business people to cite religious beliefs to refuse licenses or other services for same-sex couples who want to marry. House Bill 1523 is now headed to Gov. Phil Bryant, who is expected to sign it into law. The …

Video below. From Miami’s CBS affiliate: Police are looking for at least one man, and possibly up to three, involved in the violent attack of a gay couple at a Miami Beach restaurant. A Miami Beach police officer was standing in front of the police station when he noticed something going down right across the street. It turns out 25-year-old …

After 27 seasons, Waylon Smithers finally comes out of the closet on Sunday’s episode of the The Simpsons. As it turns out, there’s a great inside story too. Eric Hegedus reports at the New York Post: Longtime show writer Rob LaZebnik tells The Post he penned the episode in support of his own 21-year-old son, Johnny, who is gay. “I …

The Perchy Bird reports: Greenland’s same-sex marriage law went into effect today (April 1st). The marriage bill, which is an adoption of Denmark’s matrimonial laws, was passed unanimously by both the Greenlandic Parliament and Danish Parliament. The two-year long journey from the first marriage bill’s submission to marriage equality in Greenland began back in 2014 when the same-sex marriage bill …

Yesterday was the International Day of Transgender Visibility and in support Wells Fargo lit its 48-story Duke Energy Center tower in Charlotte in pink, white, and blue, which are the colors of the transgender pride flag. Also yesterday Wells Fargo joined the 80+ major corporations who have called for the repeal of North Carolina’s hate law. From the Charlotte Observer: …

Some GOOD news out of Mississippi! From the Jackson Clarion-Ledger: A federal judge granted a preliminary injunction to bar Mississippi from carrying out its law preventing same-sex couples from adopting, according to a court order filed Thursday. The order was issued the day after the state Senate passed the Religious Liberty Accommodation Act, which would allow businesses to deny services …

From the Los Angeles Times: In a first that gives HIV-infected patients yet another chance for long lives, surgeons at Johns Hopkins University Medical Center have transplanted a kidney and a liver from a dead donor who was HIV-positive into two HIV-positive recipients. The transplant surgeries, which used organs donated by the family of an HIV-positive woman, ended a 25-year …

From the Human Rights Campaign: This morning, Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin, Equality NC Executive Director Chris Sgro, transgender advocate Candis Cox-Daniels, and other LGBT equality advocates went to the North Carolina State Capitol to hand deliver a letter from more than 100 major CEOs & business leaders urging Governor McCrory and the North Carolina General Assembly to repeal …

According to a report in a Saudi newspaper, authorities are seeking to expand the death penalty for homosexuality to include those who merely say they are gay on social media. From Britain’s Mirror: The government in the Sunni Kingdom is reportedly demanding tougher punishments on those found guilty and claimed social media has caused a boom in homosexuality. According to …

Last night Late Show host Seth Meyers delivered a great take on the anti-LGBT bills in North Carolina and Georgia. Watch below. Meyers’ bit already has right wing sites denouncing him as an anti-Christian bigot. Because of course. Via the wingnut Newsbusters: Days after he smeared the Last Supper as bland and ruled the didn’t [sic] blame Judas for betraying …

Mississippi state Sen. Jenifer Branning has taken down her campaign Facebook page after last night’s passage of a sweeping anti-LGBT “license to discriminate” bill that some are calling even worse than the one just enacted in North Carolina. Branning spent hours at the Senate podium defending the bill to angry Democrats, one of whom introduced an amendment that would have …

Politico reports: The criticism and backlash to North Carolina’s new law that eliminated anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people reeks of hypocrisy in several ways, North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory said Thursday. Voters in the Final Four host city of Houston, McCrory remarked during an interview with “Fox and Friends,” last November overwhelmingly rejected Proposition 1, known …

In response to near-universal criticism of North Carolina’s hate bill from the media, from big business, and from major political figures nationwide, the state’s Republican Senatorial Committee has launched a “Stand With McCrory” website so that haters can send messages of support to the governor. And of course, there’s a money beg link. The site features the above image of …

Late last night Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff posted the below gorgeous clip in thanks for the veto of Georgia’s anti-LGBT bill. The video features audio from Harvey Milk’s legendary “you gotta give ’em hope” speech as scenes of gay pride parades, the San Francisco skyline, and a diverse collection of people go by. JMG reader Cuberly tells us that the …

Moments ago the Mississippi Senate voted 31-17 along party lines to approve a sweeping bill that legalizes anti-LGBT discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations. The bill’s chief Senate sponsor, Sen. Jenifer Branning [photo], faced some tough questioning, most of all from black Democrats, but the haters once again simply outnumbered the good guys. The bill now goes back to …

The vote is starting. Dominic Holden reports at Buzzfeed: Mississippi lawmakers are scheduled to take a final vote Wednesday on what critics believe is the most sweeping anti-LGBT legislation in the United States. The bill passed in the state House in February, and opponents are hoping to kill it in the Senate by delaying a possible vote until after a …