LGBT News

Montana House May Vote To Expel Trans Lawmaker

The New York Times reports: Legislators in Montana are expected to vote Wednesday on whether to censure or discipline the state’s only transgender lawmaker, after an escalating standoff over her ability to speak in the House of Representatives led to heated protests and arrests on Monday and the abrupt cancellation of Tuesday’s session. The lawmaker, Representative Zooey Zephyr, shared a …

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200+ Drag Queens And Allies Protest At Florida Capitol

ABC News reports: Hundreds of drag performers and allies rallied in Florida Tuesday afternoon against recent legislation that organizers say is attacking the LGBTQ community. The rally drew advocates from across the state to Tallahassee for a march to the state Capitol, where speakers included state Sen. Shevrin Jones. “First of all, I want to acknowledge your existence,” Jones said …

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Massachusetts Town Bans Drag Show At Pride Event

CBS News reports: A battle is brewing in the town of North Brookfield over a Pride event and whether a drag show should be allowed as part of the celebration on the town common June 24. In a 2 to 1 vote last week, the Board of Selectmen reversed itself from a vote in March, saying the Pride celebration could …

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Anti-Drag TX College President Loses Confidence Vote

The Texas Tribune reports: Most West Texas A&M faculty have lost confidence in university President Walter Wendler, according to the results of a campuswide vote that came weeks after he canceled a charity campus drag show. Faculty senate leaders announced the results of the weeklong no-confidence vote Tuesday evening. According to faculty senate president Ashley Pinkham, there were 179 votes …

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VIRAL VIDEO: Kevin Bacon Backs “Drag Defense Fund”

The Independent reports: Kevin Bacon has gone viral with a video he made in protest of the drag bans. On Sunday, he posted a video of him and his wife, the actor Kyra Sedgwick, dancing to Taylor Swift’s song “Karma” and wearing t-shirts with the slogan “Drag is an art and drag is a right”. In the caption to the …

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Bud Light Parent Puts Two Marketing Execs On Leave

The Wall Street Journal reports: Anheuser-Busch InBev said it had placed on leave two executives who oversaw a Bud Light collaboration with a transgender activist. Alissa Heinerscheid, Bud Light’s vice president of marketing, had come under fire from some customers and media outlets over the company’s decision to send a personalized Bud Light can to transgender activist and influencer Dylan …

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Lizzo Brings Out Drag Queens At TN Show [VIDEO]

The Los Angeles Times reports: It was bad b— o’clock Friday night in Tennessee when Lizzo protested the state’s anti-drag-show legislation by inviting more than a dozen drag queens to participate in her concert there. During her Knoxville show at Thompson-Boling Arena, the “Special” artist danced onstage with a number of drag queens dressed in colorful, glittery costumes. Among the …

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Hungary’s President Vetoes Anti-LGBTQ Snitch Law

Bloomberg News reports: Hungary’s president rejected a bill that would enable citizens to report anonymously same-sex families to authorities, a rare rebuke from an otherwise loyal ally of Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The draft law approved by parliament earlier this month would allow people to report those who contest the “constitutionally recognized role of marriage and the family” and those …

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“Hacking” Takes Down Missouri’s Anti-Trans Snitch Site

Christopher Kane reports at the Washington Blade: The office of Missouri’s Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey on Friday removed an online form, first made available in March, that was used to collect reports or complaints about gender transition interventions that Missourians have either experienced or observed. A spokesperson for Bailey, Madeline Sieren, told the Washington Blade the move was necessary …

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Ali Forney Center Founder Carl Siciliano Issues Plea To Assist LGBTQ Youth Homeless Shelter In Poland [Video]

Via email from LGBTQ youth advocate Carl Siciliano: Since stepping down as the Ali Forney Center’s Executive Director in 2020, I’ve been overseeing our efforts to support programs housing LGBTQ youth across the country and around the world. One group that I’ve worked especially closely with is the Warsaw House Foundation in Poland. They have recently begun to offer housing …

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Uganda President To Sign LGBTQ Death Penalty Bill

Reuters reports: Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said he would sign some of the world’s harshest anti-LGBTQ legislation once provisions are added to “rehabilitate” gay people, vowing not to cede to international pressure. The United States, European Union and major corporations have condemned the bill. Museveni predicted Uganda would face sanctions once the legislation goes into effect, as it did in …

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FL Pride Parade Canceled Over Impending Drag Law

From Treasure Coast Pride’s Facebook page: As all of you know, the political climate that we are currently in has us all very concerned for our community. After multiple meetings with city officials, it is with a heavy heart that Pride Alliance of the Treasure Coast has to announce that this weekend’s Pridefest will now be a 21 and older …

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House Passes Anti-Trans Sports Bill In Party Line Vote

CNN reports: The House voted on Thursday to pass a GOP-led bill that would ban transgender athletes from women’s and girls’ sports at federally funded schools and educational institutions. The bill is not expected to be taken up by the Democratic-controlled Senate and the White House has issued a veto threat. But the vote shows that Republicans are working to …

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House To Vote On Banning Trans Student Athletes

Reuters reports: The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote Thursday on a bill that would ban transgender women and girls from competing in women’s and girls’ school sports, weighing in on an issue that has riled social conservatives. The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023 has no chance of passing the Democratic-controlled Senate, …

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Texas Bill Could Ban Local LGBTQ Rights Ordinances

The Texas Tribune reports: In a major escalation of Republicans’ efforts to weaken the state’s bluer cities and counties, lawmakers in the Texas Legislature are advancing a pair of bills that would seize control of local regulations that could range from worker protections to water restrictions during droughts. A bill backed by Gov. Greg Abbott and business lobbying groups, House …

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FL Likely To Approve K-12 “Don’t Say Gay” Law Today

Reuters reports: Florida officials are expected on Wednesday to consider largely prohibiting classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in all grades, expanding on a law signed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis that barred such lessons for elementary-age students. The proposed rule, which does not require legislative approval, is part of a broader rightward push on cultural issues that …

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Twitter Drops Policy Against Anti-Trans Harassment

The Associated Press reports: Twitter has quietly removed a policy against the “targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals,” raising concerns that the Elon Musk-owned platform is becoming less safe for marginalized groups. Twitter enacted the policy against deadnaming, or using a transgender person’s name before they transitioned, as well as purposefully using the wrong gender for someone as a …

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North Carolina GOP Moves To Criminalize Drag Shows

Raleigh’s NBC affiliate reports: Anyone who performs in a drag show in public could potentially be arrested and charged with a crime, under a new bill proposed by North Carolina Republican lawmakers Tuesday. House Bill 673 would lump at least some drag performances — what the bill calls “male or female impersonators who provide entertainment that appeals to a prurient …

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Man Charged In Threat To Burn/Shoot Mall’s Pride Flag

Mass Live reports: Hingham police arrested and charged a man who they said made phone calls threatening to shoot down and burn a Pride flag outside the Derby Street Shoppes on Thursday. Gage Scammell, 29 of Weymouth, was charged with interference with civil rights, use or presence of deadly weapons and threatening to commit a crime, police said in a …

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Missouri AG Limits Gender-Affirming Care For Adults

The Associated Press reports: Missouri’s attorney general announced new restrictions Thursday on gender-affirming care for adults in addition to minors in a move that is believed to be a first nationally and has advocacy groups threatening to sue. Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced plans to restrict health care for transgender people weeks ago, when protesters rallied at the Capitol to …

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