LGBT News

Today Online reports: A Russian court on Tuesday (April 26) hit Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta and video platform TikTok with fines for refusing to take down LBGT content. In separate hearings, a Moscow court ordered Meta to pay four million rubles (S$74,000) and TikTok 2 million rubles for failing to delete content with LGBT “propaganda”, news agency Interfax …

Florida Politics reports: Sen. Rick Scott said Monday that he has no plans to go back to Disney World and that he’s canceled his subscription to the Disney+ streaming service in the wake of the company’s opposition to the state’s Parental Rights in Education law. The Senator, during an appearance on the Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria,” contended that …

Bloomberg News reports: Exxon Mobil Corp. plans to prohibit the LGBTQ-rights flag from being flown on the corporate flagpole outside its offices during Pride month in June, prompting a furious backlash from Houston-based employees. Exxon updated company guidance on what flags can be displayed outside its offices, banning “external position flags” such as PRIDE and Black Lives Matter, according to …

From the Justice Department: A California man was arrested on Tuesday, April 20, 2022 and charged in federal court in Springfield, Mass. in connection with making threats against Merriam-Webster. Jeremy David Hanson, 34, of Rossmoor, Calif., was charged by criminal complaint with one count of interstate communication of threats to commit violence. Hanson was released on conditions following an initial …

The Palm Beach Post reports: When a Palm Beach County judge stepped into the courtroom on Thursday to sentence Alexander Jerich for using his truck to burn a 15-foot-long skid mark into a gay pride memorial painted on Delray Beach street, he said he was pretty sure what kind of character he would meet. “I was expecting someone who displays …

Miami’s ABC News affiliate reports: Members of a Ukrainian refugee family appeared in a South Florida courtroom on Wednesday. That’s where they are facing hate crime and attempted murder charges for an alleged family ambush. Police say Oleh Makarenko was in a nine-month homosexual relationship, which would end with his lover being beaten so badly by Makarenko’s family that the …

Detroit’s ABC News affiliate reports: Michigan State Sen. Mallory McMorrow delivered a passionate speech on the Capitol floor in Lansing on Tuesday, defending herself from what she said was an attack from a fellow lawmaker. McMorrow, a Democrat from Royal Oak, defended herself from baseless claims by Republican State Sen. Lana Theis in a fundraising email. Theis is from Brighton. …

Gothamist reports: Rep. Tom Suozzi wants to make clear: He doesn’t support Florida’s controversial new law restricting discussion of sexual identity in schools — despite saying some aspects of it were “reasonable” and made “common sense” just last week. Suozzi said his prior comments were “very inartful in the way I spoke.” He said he opposes both the law – …

Politico reports: The Biden administration is preparing to scrap a Trump-era rule that allows medical workers to refuse to provide services that conflict with their religious or moral beliefs, three people familiar with the deliberations told POLITICO. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that the policy change is underway, saying: “HHS has made clear through …

Fierce Pharma reports: The first of the three pharma juggernauts accused by prominent AIDS and gay rights activist Peter Staley of monopolizing the market for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) drugs is putting its legal woes to bed. Bristol Myers Squibb will hand over up to $11 million to settle a lawsuit claiming it, Gilead Sciences and Johnson & Johnson used …

The Miami Herald reports: When Stacy Ritter, the CEO of Visit Lauderdale, saw professional organizations condemning Florida over legislation like the “Stop WOKE Act” and what critics call the “don’t say gay” law, she worried her job promoting tourism in Broward County could become much more difficult. The agency is reaffirming Fort Lauderdale and its surrounding area as an inclusive, …

The Kansas City Star reports: Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed a proposal on Friday that would have banned transgender athletes from girls sports and another that would have required schools to let parents challenge classroom curriculum — a measure she has called a “teacher demoralization act.” The bills reflect the political trap GOP lawmakers are trying to set for Kelly, …

City & State reports: Rep. Tom Suozzi, who is running against Gov. Kathy Hochul in the Democratic primary for governor, called a controversial new Florida law aimed at discouraging discussions about sexuality and gender in classrooms “reasonable.” “I think it’s a very reasonable law not to try to get kids in kindergarten to be talking about sex,” he said on …

The Springfield News-Leader reports: Local school districts in Missouri would be able to call elections on whether to ban transgender athletes from youth sports under a bill given initial approval by the House on Wednesday evening. A bill originally designed to audit the state’s voter rolls and tweak elections laws was amended by Rep. Chuck Basye, a Rocheport Republican, to …

CBS News reports: Even after two men were found dead in his California apartment, Ed Buck did not stop injecting gay men with walloping doses of methamphetamine. Federal prosecutors said Buck’s unrelenting fervor to satisfy a fetish by preying on vulnerable men, often young and Black, is reason enough to keep him behind bars for the rest of his life. …

From the Justice Department: A criminal complaint was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging John Lhota with the April 3, 2022 arson of Rash, a bar and nightclub in Bushwick frequented by members of the LGBTQ+ community. Lhota was arrested yesterday and will make his initial appearance this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Roanne L. Mann. Breon …

The Daily Beast reports: Fox News’ overtly anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and coverage of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill has generated outrage from elsewhere within the Murdoch media empire. An employee networking and resource group for Fox Corporation’s LGBTQ staffers and allies earlier this month condemned the conservative cable giant’s “hateful” coverage of the new Florida law and issues surrounding sexual orientation …

Changing America reports: The Brooklyn Public Library is trying to fight back against a spike in censorship and book bans in the United States by making its resources available to teens and young adults across the country. On Wednesday, the library launched a new program entitled Books UnBanned, that allows 13 to 21 year olds to apply for a free …

The Miami Herald reports: Three family members have been charged with a hate crime after kidnapping and beating a gay man so severely that he was permanently blinded, Broward County prosecutors said Tuesday. Two parents and their son [photos above] were formally charged Tuesday on counts of first-degree attempted murder, burglary with battery and kidnapping “with prejudice” — all charges …

Politico reports: Weeks before The Walt Disney Co. took a stand against Florida’s contentious “Parental Rights in Education” law — which has been called the “Don’t Say Gay” bill by its critics — the theme park operator and entertainment conglomerate donated $190,000 to support Florida Republicans. The company gave $125,000 to the Republican Party of Florida and $65,000 to a …