National

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Schools Saw Record 12,000 Book Bans In Last Year

PEN America today reported nearly 12,000 book bans in public schools nationwide during the 2025-2026 school year—the largest number in a single year. New state censorship laws accounted for much of the increase, coupled with the use of artificial intelligence to remove books en masse including popular manga series and other graphic novels. In a report released to coincide with Banned Books Week, the latest accounting of book bans increased to 34,000 instances since PEN America began documenting the spreading book censorship crisis in schools in 2021. Texas recorded the largest number of book bans during the 2025-2026 school year […]

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Fox pundits enraged that Obama praised women leaders without being transphobic

A Fox News commentator slammed former President Barack Obama for saying women should run the world because he “has never for us defined what a woman is.” Political analyst Katie Zacharia told Fox Host Laura Ingraham that Obama has no business complimenting women’s leadership skills when “his administration was quite hostile toward biological women.”  His trans-inclusive policies, she claimed, negate his ability to respect and believe in the power of women.  “So I want to first ask, what is a woman, Barack Obama? And who are you gonna put up as a woman? What if it’s a man who identifies […]

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Florida trans woman and her partner attacked while walking to work by women in a car

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A Florida transgender woman and her partner were assaulted on a Miami street Sunday night while walking to work. Video footage shows the confrontation. Felyz Rodriguez and Davin Lopez told South Florida NBC affiliate WTVJ that women in a passing car yelled at them for walking in the road. Lopez said he gestured toward the car, its driver turned around, and the confrontation became physical. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. “It was all unprovoked. We were just walking,” Rodriguez, who is trans, told WTVJ. Lopez said one of […]

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Federal court rules against voluntary “X” gender markers because they could out nonbinary people

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The First Circuit Court of Appeals is denying accurate gender markers for nonbinary people born in Puerto Rico, with new reasoning that has not been seen in other trans rights cases. The ruling claims to protect the privacy of nonbinary people by denying them accurate gender markers on birth certificates. Critics say the ruling might do the opposite and lead to the erasure of nonbinary people instead.  The case was sent back to the U.S. District Court for Puerto Rico for further debate. “This case is about the fact that every person should have access to government-issued identity documents that […]

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Pro-LGBTQ+ Senate candidate Mary Peltola denies using anti-gay slur around staff

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Pro-LGBTQ+ Senate candidate Mary Peltola has denied an allegation that she used the anti-gay slur “f*****”, after a New York Times investigation detailed claims from former staffers about angry outbursts and offensive language. The Alaska Democrat, who is running for the US Senate, was accused by former aides of using slurs during workplace blow-ups. Four former staffers reportedly told the Times they personally witnessed Peltola use “f*****” over the years they worked for her, sometimes referring to staff members. The report was based on interviews with nine former staff members and included references to text messages and photos which were seen by […]

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Gay Dutch prime minister & Zohran Mamdani visit LGBTQ+ archive — and hear from young New Yorkers it serves

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Rob Jetten, the gay prime minister of the Netherlands, met with New York CityMayor Zohran Mamdani on Thursday afternoon for a visit to a historic LGBTQ+archive and community center in Manhattan. The Advocate was invited to tag along. Jetten, the nation’s youngest and first out gay prime minister, is currently visiting New York for the United Nations General Assembly. He has also made visiting LGBTQ+ cultural institutions a visible part of his trip. Earlier this week, Jetten stopped by the Stonewall Inn, which is widely regarded as the birthplace of the gay rights movement. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in […]

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A school board passed a blanket ban on rainbow imagery in schools. Students are suing.

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Two students are suing their Minnesota school district over a recently adopted policy banning Pride flags, rainbow stickers, and other symbols of support for the LGBTQ+ community. The lawsuit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota last week on behalf of the students and their parents, claims the Detroit Lakes Public School District and four members of the district’s school board violated the students’ rights to free speech and equal protection under the state constitution and that the policy violates the Minnesota Human Rights Act’s prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. According to the ACLU, […]

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Oregon promises safe homes for LGBTQ+ foster kids, but just dropped a requirement to support their identities

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Oregon will no longer require prospective foster and adoptive parents to agree in advance to affirm a child’s sexual orientation or gender identity. The change follows a settlement between the Oregon Department of Human Services and Jessica Bates, who was represented by the conservative legal group Alliance Defending Freedom. The state has removed the affirmation requirement from its rules, though officials say they can still consider a child’s individual needs when deciding where to place them. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. Bates, a widowed mother of five, […]

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WH Finalizes Repeal Of LGBTQ Student Protections

Bloomberg Law reports: The Trump administration Monday rolled back a Biden-era rule that expanded Title IX’s protections against sex discrimination and harassment to include sexual orientation and gender identity. The changes reinstate the first Trump administration’s 2020 Title IX rule. According to the final rule issued Monday, the Education Department anti-discrimination policy will only recognize sex as being born male or female. The move reverses protections the department had extended to LGBTQ students and employees in federally funded schools, which the Biden administration was the first to implement. “Thanks to today’s action, the published Title IX regulations faithfully reflect court orders […]

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Fauci Accepts Award From LGBTQ Equality Forum

The Washington Blade reports: Dr. Anthony Fauci accepted an award from the Equality Forum on Sunday in which he told the audience that he is honored to be part of the LGBTQ community’s history. “Over these many decades I have not simply admired the community — I have genuinely enjoyed being part of the conversation with it,” Fauci said. “I’ve enjoyed the arguments, debates, disagreements, the humor, the friendship and above all the extraordinary commitment to alleviate suffering and prevent premature death for persons living with HIV.” Longtime HIV/AIDS activist Peter Staley presented Fauci with the award, recalling the early days in […]

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