Hundreds are expected to gather today for the funeral of Muhlaysia Booker, a 23-year-old transgender woman, who was brutally assaulted in a hate crime in April and murdered ten days ago. The funeral is being held at the Cathedral of Hope in Dallas at 11 a.m. today. A month after the April assault on Booker, […]
Supreme Court Will Hear Cases on LGBTQ+ Rights in the Workplace
The Supreme Court announced yesterday that they have agreed to hear a group of high profile cases regarding the rights of gay and transgender individuals in the workplace. These cases are aimed to determine if existing federal laws banning sex-based discrimination applies to cases of sexual orientation or gender identity. In particular, the case will […]
Women’s Colleges in Japan Begin to Accept Transgender Students
Last week, Chikushi Jogakuen University, a women’s university located in Fukuoka, Japan, on the island of Kyushu, announced they will begin accepting transgender students for admission. The university stated they will give more details towards the end of 2019. The university follows the example of other women’s colleges in Japan that have announced similar policies; […]
Michigan Will No Longer Fund Religious Based Adoption Agencies
Michigan will no longer fund adoption agencies that refuse to provide services based on religious beliefs. Previously, Michigan was one of nine states that provided funding for adoption agencies who refused service based on religious beliefs. Attorney General Dana Nessell reached the settlement with the ACLU, stating that “discrimination in the provision of foster care […]
Anti-LGBTQ+ West Virginia Delegate Called To Resign
This week, Delegate Eric Porterfield (WV-27) is facing numerous calls for his resignation after he compared the LGBTQ+ community and gay activists to the Klu Klux Klan (KKK), a white supremacist group, and called the LGBTQ+ community a “terrorist group.” Despite criticism and backlash for his homophobic comments, he refuses to resign. These comments were […]
After Contentious Debate, Colorado House Advances Comprehensive Sex-Ed Bill
After 10 hours of debate, the Colorado House Health and Insurance Committee voted to advance House Bill 19-1032, a comprehensive sex education bill. The bill allocates $1 million in existing money to fund comprehensive sex education with a special emphasis on rural and underfunded public schools. The bill also requires schools to teach students about […]
Bermuda’s Top Court of Appeals Ruled Bans on Same Sex Marriage Unconstitutional
The Top Court of Appeals in Bermuda ruled that bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional on Friday. The decision follows a long battle for marriage and LGBTQ+ equality in Bermuda and is expected to be challenged by the Bermuda government. Same-sex marriage was first addressed seriously by the Bermuda government in June 2016, when the […]
LGBTQ Migrants are the First to Reach US Border
This week LGBTQ members from the migrant caravan were the first to reach the U.S. border in Tijuana, Mexico. LGBTQ members arrived at the border before the rest of the caravan because they were escaping discrimination and harassment from within the caravan itself as well as the dangers members faced traveling through Mexico. While fleeing […]
Election Night 2018 Historic for LGBTQ+ Candidates
A week after the midterm election, Kyrsten Sinema was declared the winner of the Arizona Senate election, making her the first openly bisexual person elected to Congress and Arizona’s first female Senator. After Tuesday’s election, the total number of LGBTQ+ members of Congress is now eleven, the first time that the number has reached double […]
Tanzania Governor Launched Anti-Gay Surveillance Team
Yesterday, the LGBTQ+ community in Tanzania went on high alert after Paul Makonda, a governor in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, announced the creation of a surveillance team dedicated to hunting down LGBTQ+ people. According to Governor Makonda, the operation was launched to find, arrest, and “educate” gay people. The Independent reported that 1000 names have […]
Senate Confirms Amy Coney Barrett to 7th Circuit Court of Appeals
On Tuesday, Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed as a United States Circuit Judge for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. A law professor at the University of Notre Dame, Barrett has been widely opposed due to her past statements that judges’ Catholic beliefs should take precedent over the United States Constitution.
Arrests in Egypt After Display of LGBT+ Pride Flag
During a concert in Cairo on September 22, audience members waved an LGBT+ pride flag sparking an immediate response from the Egyptian government.
Marriage Equality Activist Edith Windsor Dies at 88
Edith Windsor, LGBTQ and civil rights activist, dies at 88 in Manhattan on Tuesday. After the death of her wife, Thea Spyer, in 2009, Windsor attempted to claim federal tax exemptions on her wife’s estate tax. Since same-sex marriage was not recognized by the federal government under the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Windsor was […]
LGBTQ Celebratory Festival Cancelled in Haiti
An Afro-Caribbean LGBTQ festival scheduled to occur in Haiti was cancelled this past Tuesday in response to eminent terror threats involving arson and death, as well as a ban by a governmental official.
Tanzania Expands on Their Anti-LGBTQI Agenda
This past week, the Tanzanian government and the Deputy for Health, Community Development and Gender issued a threat condemning all LGBTQI equity groups in the country.
House Holds Hearing on Anti-LGBTQ Bill despite Widespread Criticism
Exactly one month after the massacre at Pulse, an LGBTQ nightclub in Orlando, Florida, where a gunman claimed the lives of 49 people and wounded 53 others, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee held a hearing on a piece of anti-LGBTQ legislation known as the First Amendment Defense Act.
House to Hold Hearing on Anti-LGBTQ Bill One Month After Orlando Shooting
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing next week on a federal anti-LGBTQ bill, similar to the one that was just blocked by a federal judge in Mississippi. The hearing will take place on Tuesday morning, exactly one month after the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando that claimed the lives of 49 LGBTQ individuals and allies.
PayPal Cancels Plans to Expand into North Carolina Citing New Discriminatory Law
PayPal CEO Dan Schulman announced on Tuesday that the company made a “clear and unambiguous” decision to cancel plans to open a new global operations center in Charlotte, North Carolina, stating that HB2 “violates the values and principles that are at the core of PayPal’s mission and culture.”
Kentucky Clerk Defies Supreme Court, Refuses to Issue Marriage Licenses
Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis will be summoned to court this morning where a federal judge could hold her in contempt for refusing to issue a marriage licenses to gay couples.
White House Hires First Openly Transgender Official
Raffi Freedman-Gurspan has made history this morning when President Obama appointed her to serve as an official in the White House.