Top Stories
Two more hospitals strike DOJ deals to end gender-affirming care for minors
Major hospital systems in New York and Pennsylvania have struck deals with the Justice Department that carry steep financial penalties and keep gender-affirming services closed to minors. NYU Langone Health will pay the department $8.5 million, and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center will pay $950,000, the department announced Friday. The deals come after providers in New York, Texas, Ohio and Connecticutadopted similar agreements. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. President Donald Trump has moved to ban gender-affirming care for minors since his second term began. Last December, the Trump administration threatened […]
Christian nationalist law firm threatens to sue school over trans teacher
A right-wing law firm has threatened to sue North Carolina’s Wake County Public School System unless it lets parents opt their children out of a class taught by a transgender teacher. The Thomas More Society set out its demands in a letter dated 15 September, giving the district 15 days to comply before it files suit. The demands include restrictions around pronouns, LGBTQ+ discussions, and access to facilities, including urging the district to agree not to discipline students for using incorrect pronouns for the teacher. The group also wants assurances that “no employee can retaliate” against a student who opts out of […]
Lauren Boebert denies ethics complaint alleging ‘lesbian’ relationships with staffers
Rep. Lauren Boebert has denied an ethics complaint alleging she had sexual relationships with three staffers, including two women, and arranged a $200,000 payment connected to the claims. The complaint was filed with the House Committee on Ethics on 17 September. A spokesperson for the Colorado congresswoman, 39, said: “Congresswoman Lauren Boebert rejects these allegations as utterly false and there is no truth to them whatsoever. This is nothing more than a politically motivated stunt designed to manipulate the ethics process, create headlines, smear her, and generate clickbait.” The complaint alleges Boebert had relationships with three House employees under her […]
Local News
Tickets Now Available for Positive Images Big Fundraiser Queer Magic GAYLA 2026
You are invited to Positive Images’ 2026 QUEER MAGIC GAYla: Meet Me at the Disco! Join us for a night full of dancing, laughs, celebration, and unforgettable memories to support Sonoma County’s LGBTQIA2S+ Community Center. We’ll be joined by PRXZM for a live performance, a silent auction, and so much more! This is the dance party of the year you will not want to miss! Event Details Saturday, November 14, 2026 5:00-9:00 PM Sally Tomatoes (1100 Valley House Dr, Rohnert Park) Please note, this event is 21 and over. ID’s will be checked at the door. Tickets are now on […]
Free Online LGBTQI+ History Class Will Focus on Local Queer Counter Culture of the 1960s
LGBTQI History: A Sonoma County Timeline 1947-2000. Mondays 6-7:30pm. Online via Zoom. Join us on Monday, 9/21 for a segment on the 1960s Counterculture and early LGBT back to the land communities. Contact me to enroll and receive a Zoom link: cdungan@santarosa.edu
Arts & Entertainment
“Slave Play” Opens September 25 at The Left Edge Theatre
What happens when the past refuses to stay in the past?At the MacGregor Plantation, the old South lives on, in the cotton fields, in the master’s house, and in the complicated relationship between fear, desire, race, gender, and power. In SLAVE PLAY, acclaimed playwright Jeremy O. Harris rips open the history we think we know and brings it into conversation with 21st-century America. Provocative, explosive, and unflinching, this daring play challenges audiences to confront the ways race, gender, sexuality, and power continue to shape our lives. SLAVE PLAY has been recognized with the Rosa Parks Playwriting Award, Lorraine Hansberry Playwriting Award, Lotos […]
Friday, September 25 @7 pm/Sunday Sept. 27 @ 3 pm : Acorn MusEcology Project: ‘The Earth Says’ at Occidental Center for the Arts
Friday, September 25 @7 pm/Sunday Sept. 27 @ 3 pm : Acorn MusEcology Project: ‘The Earth Says’ at Occidental Center for the Arts. Directed by Sarah Dupre, Acorn MusEcology Project is proud to present the Northern California premiere of Alex Berko’s Sacred Place, an immersive exploration of ecological spirituality set to the words of Wendell Berry, John Muir, William Stafford, and Rabindranath Tagore. Acorn’s 27-voice ensemble will be joined by violin, cello, and piano to offer up this song cycle of reverential texts within a richly-layered soundscape. Additional original music by co-directors Sarah Dupre and Robin Eschner includes a new setting of poetry by […]
State News
Teachers stage walk out in response to anti-trans activist outburst at chaotic school board meeting
A Davis, California school board meeting descended into chaos on Thursday night when teachers staged a walkout as Beth Bourne, a local Moms for Liberty chapter president and school board candidate, began speaking during public comment. Video of the meeting is available via the district’s school board meeting video portal. As Bourne approached the lectern, many district-area teachers stood up and left the room. Bourne shouted at the meeting chair: “Ask those teachers to stop interrupting my comment!” She then demanded: “I want my time back! I want my time back!” During the disruption, one attendee shouted “B*******!” at Bourne. Bourne […]
Newsom Signs New Restrictions On Social Media
The New York Times reports: California’s governor on Thursday signed into law restrictions on addictive social media technology and interactions with harmful artificial intelligence chatbots, ushering in some of the strongest online protections for young users in the United States. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, signed a bill that prohibits social media platforms from providing addictive features to users under the age of 16, the first law of its kind in the nation. He also signed a new law mandating that A.I. companies disclose to young users whenever they engage with a chatbot, not a human, and restrict dangerous content on topics […]
