LGBT News

Via press release from the Justice Department: A Louisiana man was indicted and charged today in federal court in the Western District of Louisiana on six counts, including hate crime, kidnapping, firearm and obstruction charges. Chance Seneca, 19, of Lafayette, was charged by a federal grand jury on March 18 based on his attempted murder of a gay man and …

The Washington Post reports: In some ways, full LGBTQ rights has never seemed more within reach. First came the Supreme Court’s 2015 decision legalizing same-sex marriage. Then its decision last year banning LGBTQ discrimination in employment. And now, for the first time since those rulings, a Democratic-led Congress and a president who vows to pass sweeping legal protections by April. …

The Associated Press reports: A Japanese court ruled Wednesday the government’s ban on same-sex marriages is unconstitutional, recognizing the rights of same-sex couples for the first time in the only Group of Seven country that doesn’t acknowledge their legal partnership. Even though the court dismissed the plaintiffs’ demand for government compensation, the precedent is a major victory for same-sex people …

The Hill reports: Marvel is introducing a new “LGBTQ+ hero” into the “Captain America” world, a character the comic book publisher says “stands for the oppressed and the forgotten.” The debut of Aaron Fischer, known as the Captain America of the Railways, is timed to coincide with Pride Month in June, Marvel Comics said in a Monday news release. The …

Reuters reports: The Vatican said on Monday that priests and other Catholic Church ministers cannot bless same-sex unions and that such blessings are “not licit” if carried out. The Vatican’s doctrinal office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), issued the ruling in response to questions and moves in some parishes to impart such blessings as a sign …

Metro Weekly reports: A three-judge panel on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that Vimeo is immune under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, a 1996 Internet law dealing with private blocking and screening of potentially offensive material. As a result, the company cannot be sued for removing videos that violated its policies regarding what type of …

The Associated Press reports: The European Parliament has overwhelming adopted a resolution declaring the entire 27-member European Union a “freedom zone” for LGBT people, an effort to push back on rising homophobia in Poland and elsewhere. The parliament announced late Thursday that there were 492 ballots in favor of the resolution and 141 against in a vote that came after …

The Daily Beast reports: Amazon has decided that it’s not going to lend a helping hand to Republican senators who are desperate to turn the lives of transgender people into a toxic culture war. The e-commerce behemoth has reportedly informed a cabal of GOP senators that it will no longer sell any books that treat transgender or other sexual identities …

The Associated Press reports: The European Parliament is scheduled to debate a resolution on Wednesday that would declare the entire 27-member European Union a “freedom zone” for LGBT people. The move comes largely in reaction to developments over the past two years in Poland, where many local communities have adopted largely symbolic resolutions declaring themselves free of what conservative authorities …

Chris Johnson reports at the Washington Blade: The U.S. House narrowly rejected Saturday morning a Republican amendment to the coronavirus relief package that would have defunded schools allowing transgender kids to participate in sports. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), was proposed as part of the American Rescue Plan and defeated by a vote of 49-50 largely along …

Bloomberg Law reports: President Joe Biden was to fire Sharon Gustafson, the Trump-appointed general counsel of the EEOC, at 5 p.m. Friday, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation. The Biden administration demanded in a March 2 email that Gustafson, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s top litigator, resign, said two different sources who spoke on condition …

The Colorado Sun reports: First Gentleman Marlon Reis was feeling crummy the day it happened. His condition was deteriorating after battling a coronavirus infection for more than a week. His oxygen saturation levels had dropped to a concerning level. A doctor told him it was time to go to the hospital. “I was getting my things ready. My daughter was …

The Asheville Citizen-Times reports: A Buncombe County commissioner who gained national prominence in the campaign to fully legalize same-sex marriage has said she will seek the congressional seat held by far-right Republican Madison Cawthorn. The Rev. Jasmine Beach-Ferrara of Asheville announced her run March 3 for the 11th District seat, taking an immediate shot at Cawthorn and his Washington speech …

Southern Baptists are very upset about yesterday’s move by a major evangelical adoption group to begin serving LGBT couples. Southern Baptist president Al Mohler: The moral revolutionaries are now demanding that every single individual in this society every single institution, every single school, every single religious denomination, every single adoption, and foster care agency, must pivot. In this case, that …

Michigan Live reports: Michigan lawmakers have reintroduced legislation to expand Michigan’s civil rights law by including protections against discrimination for LGBT people. Sponsored by Rep. Laurie Pohutsky [photo], House Bill 4297 would add sexual orientation and gender identity or expression to the list of protected classes under the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on several factors when …

The New York Times reports: One of the country’s largest adoption and foster care agencies, Bethany Christian Services, announced Monday that it will begin providing services to L.G.B.T.Q. parents nationwide effective immediately, a major inflection point in the fraught battle over many faith-based agencies’ longstanding opposition to working with same-sex couples. The Michigan-based evangelical organization announced the change in an …

NBC Washington reports: Virginia lawmakers passed a bill that will ban the use of a person’s perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity as a defense in court for the assault or murder of an LGBTQ person. “It’s done: We’re banning the gay/trans panic defense in Virginia,” Del. Danica Roem, D-Manassas, said in a Twitter post. Roem introduced House …

The Associated Press reports: Once known for singer Anita Bryant’s anti-gay rights campaign and a ban on gay and lesbian adoptions, Florida is now home to two metro areas with among the highest concentrations of gay and lesbian coupled households in the U.S., according to a new report released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Orlando and Miami had the fourth …

Politico reports: Republicans worry that this week’s controversial antics from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who harassed Rep. Marie Newman (D-Ill.) over her transgender daughter, have stomped on their attempts to sensitively communicate why they are opposed to the LGBTQ rights bill. Most Republicans say they oppose the measure due to its perceived infringement on religious freedom, not out of …

Politico Huddle reports: The House is set to vote today on the Equality Act, which amends the 1964 Civil Rights Act to ban discrimination against people based on sexual orientation and gender identity. It also provides sweeping protections for the LGBTQ community against discrimination. Your Huddle host caught up with Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), the House co-sponsor of the bill, …