Tag Archives: LGBT History

From a just-issued White House proclamation: Today, we honor and celebrate the achievements and resiliency of transgender individuals and communities. Transgender Day of Visibility recognizes the generations of struggle, activism, and courage that have brought our country closer to full equality for transgender and gender non-binary people in the United States and around the world. Their trailblazing work has given …

The Verge reports: The Bank of England has revealed the design for the UK’s new £50 note featuring computer scientist and codebreaker Alan Turing. Turing was selected to appear on the note in July 2019 in recognition of his groundbreaking work in mathematics and computer science, as well as his role in cracking the Enigma code used by Germany in …

CNN reports: The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Dr. Rachel Levine as assistant secretary of health at the Department of Health and Human Services, the first out transgender federal official to be confirmed by the chamber. The vote was 52-48. Levine, a pediatrician, previously served as Pennsylvania’s secretary of health and as physician general — the state’s top health official and …

CBS News reports: President Biden on Wednesday morning is set to swear in Pete Buttigieg as transportation secretary, making the former South Bend, Ind., mayor the nation’s first openly LGBTQ Cabinet secretary. The Senate confirmed Buttigieg on Tuesday by 86-13 vote. Biden is scheduled to hold the ceremony at 9:30 a.m. 

ABC News reports: The Senate is poised to approve Pete Buttigieg to be transportation secretary, the first openly gay person ever confirmed to a Cabinet post, tasked with advancing President Joe Biden’s wide-ranging agenda of rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and fighting climate change. Buttigieg’s nomination was set for a final vote Tuesday in the full Senate, after the 39-year-old former …

The Independent reports: Greece has appointed its first openly gay minister as part of a cabinet reshuffle. Nicholas Yatromanolakis made history after he was named the new deputy minister of culture on Monday. The 44-year-old was promoted from his role as general secretary of contemporary culture at the same department. The appointment which made him the first openly gay minister …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: Although the Parliament House will be demolished, its distinctive multicolored sign will be preserved as a piece of Orlando history. “The City of Orlando is working on saving the sign,” city spokeswoman Samantha Holstein wrote in an email. “Staff has been in conversations with the property owner and working on coordinating the removal and storage for …

Deadline Hollywood reports: Leanza Cornett, the American TV personality and former Miss America winner, has died at the age of 49 after suffering a head injury earlier this month. The Miss America Organization and her former husband Mark Steines both confirmed the death in separate social media posts. Reports said she suffered the head injury on October 12 and had …

From the Parliament House’s Facebook page: For over 45 years, The Parliament House has called Orange Blossom Trail our home. We have to announce that our home at its current location will be closing Monday, November 2, 2020. We put up a good fight over the last 11 months to secure financing and renovate our existing property. Unfortunately, that fight …

The Wrap reports: James Randi, a magician and illusionist known as “The Amazing Randi” as well as a scientific investigator who debunked paranormal and occult phenomena through his organization the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, has died. He was 92. Among one of Randi’s more famous instances of debunking — a word he frequently said he disliked in favor of “investigator” …

CBS News reports: A large crowd of people gathered on the steps of the Supreme Court on Friday night after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Well-wishers left flowers and signs and broke into applause and songs, and the American flag outside the Supreme Court was lowered to half-mast. “I think it’s a testament to who she was as …

Gentle readers, today is Madonna’s 62nd birthday. Below is a short story that first appeared on JMG on this day in 2006, a date which, as you’ll see, plays a role in the story. Ricky Loved Madonna Twenty years ago today, August 16th 1986, I was a few months into a new job with AMC Theatres, a position that I …

V Magazine reports: The historic Julius Bar, located in the heart of New York City’s Greenwich Village, may close its doors due to financial insecurities caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, Governor Andrew Cuomo delayed restaurants from serving patrons indoors as coronavirus cases rapidly increased across the country. Julius Bar, a historic pre-Stonewall bar, is feeling the brunt …

Just in via press release: The Gill Foundation today announced it will match contributions up to $250,000 to protect the Stonewall Inn, which is on the brink of closure due to the economic impact of the coronavirus crisis. The support will be earmarked to support rent and utility costs. In addition to its $250,000 pledge to protect the legacy of …

Just in from the Democratic National Committee: “51 years ago today, the LGBTQ+ community in New York City, led by transgender and lesbian women of color, fought back against harassment, persecution, and police brutality. Their activism at Stonewall and in the years to come rippled across America and the world — changing hearts, minds, culture, and law. “One year later, …

It was 51 years ago today that the queer community of New York City finally said “Enough!” As I’ve done for the last few years on this day, I’m reposting the story that the New York Daily News ran one week after the Stonewall Riots. Note how the story drips with condescension and ridicule. We’ve come a long, long way …

“We’re almost 51 years since the night when the patrons at the Stonewall Inn stood up for their rights and set one of America’s defining victories for civil rights. “Because of the movement they sparked and the decades of work that followed, marriage equality became the law of the land five years ago, and just this month the Supreme Court …

USA Today reports: The four justices appointed by Democratic presidents were joined by Justice Anthony Kennedy, a Republican appointee. Within two years, more than 150,000 same-sex couples got married. According to U.S. Census estimates, there are more than 500,000 married same-sex couples in the country. The impact of those unions has been more than cultural. Same-sex weddings have generated more …

Gentle readers, I’m rerunning my annual Pride rant for the sixteenth year. I wrote this post in 2005 a couple of days after attending Pride in NYC. In the following years I’ve reposted it in advance of NYC Pride in the hope of encouraging you to attend your local events. While the pandemic has canceled most of this year’s festivities, …

The Hill reports: Former President Obama took to Twitter on late Monday to wish the country a “Happy Pride month” after the Supreme Court ruled that gay and transgender people are protected against employment discrimination under exiting civil rights laws. The tweet also featured a photo captured by former White House photographer Pete Souza in 2015 showing rainbow colors cast …