Alex Bollinger

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Federal judge says Christian teacher has no right misgender students

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A federal appeals court just told a public school teacher that he does not have a constitutional right to misgender transgender students. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, based in Chicago, ruled that Brownsburg, Indiana orchestra teacher John Kluge could not use his religion as an excuse to violate the school’s policy on transgender students. “School will be a more comfortable environment” without the conservative Christian teacher. Kluge said that he was forced to resign in 2018 because he didn’t want to follow Brownsburg High School’s policy on transgender students. The policy said that trans students who […]

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Even most Republican voters think the GOP is attacking transgender kids too much

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A new poll found that a majority of Democratic, independent, and even Republican likely voters believe that there is “too much legislation” aimed at reducing LGBTQ+ rights at the state level. The progressive polling firm and think tank Data for Progress conducted a survey of 1220 participants and asked about the 429 bills presented at state legislatures attacking LGBTQ+ rights. Most of the bills are aimed at transgender youth, and 17 have already become law this year. Republican lawmakers have worked round the clock to pass oppressive bills targeting gender-affirming care, bathroom usage, drag shows, and trans students.  72% of Democratic voters […]

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Nebraska lawmaker with trans son tells GOP colleagues she’s done with them in righteous speech

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A Nebraska state senator is causing waves in the state legislature after a scathing speech where she told her Republican colleagues that she is done being polite with them since they’re attacking her family. Namely, her 12-year-old son, who is transgender. “My son is trans,” said state Sen. Megan Hunt (D), vowing to filibuster every bill the legislature takes up until a trans medical ban proposed by a Republican is withdrawn. “And this bill, colleagues, is such an affront to me personally and would violate my rights to parent my child in Nebraska.” Despite Democrats’ filibuster that has shut down […]

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Joe Biden calls out “terrible” & “sinful” laws targeting trans youth

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On the heels of the White House vocally condemning a call to eliminate transgender people, President Joe Biden called out Florida for attacking transgender youth. “What’s going on in Florida, is as my mother would say, close to sinful,” Biden told out actor Kal Penn on The Daily Show in an interview that will air later today. The White House press secretary was done being talked over by Simon Ateba. “It’s just terrible what they’re doing,” he continued. “It’s not like you know, a kid wakes up one morning and says, ‘You know, I decided I want to become a man,’ or […]

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Mondaire Jones knows the best defense queer people have is the ballot

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In the last three decades, some of the most egregious attacks on equality — the Defense of Marriage Act, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, not to mention the infamous 1950 “Employment of Homosexuals and Other Sex Perverts in Government” report — came from Congress. Some of the most significant advances – passage of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009 and the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell in 2010 – also came from Congress. And while the Supreme Court found in 2015 that some federal jobs protections against discrimination based on sex also protect […]

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Trans employee wins $20K settlement against Shake Shack

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A transgender man won a $20,000 settlement in a lawsuit against the fast food chain Shake Shack after he faced a month of transphobic harassment on the job with no support from his employer. The man, who has not been identified in the media, worked at Shake Shack in 2020 in Oakland, California. He said that he was harassed daily and referred to as female. He told his supervisors about the harassment and instead of helping him they told him to “explain his gender to co-workers rather than rely on management to correct discriminatory behavior,” according to the California Civil […]

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13-year-old boy died by suicide after homophobic bullying at French school

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A 13-year-old boy in France named Lucas died by suicide last Saturday, January 7 after facing anti-LGBTQ+ bullying at school. People close to his family say that the school did little to stop the bullying. The student at the Louis Armand de Golbey middle school in the Vosges department was out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, the French magazine Têtu reports. “He was constantly harassed for the way he dressed, his mannerisms, his presence,” said Stéphanie, a family friend. “He didn’t hide himself and that bothered some people.” She said Lucas was “always pleasant, caring, spontaneous, full of dreams and a […]

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Republicans are quietly looking for a replacement for George Santos

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Even though out Rep. George Santos (R-NY) just got sworn in as a member of Congress this past Saturday despite lying about his entire past to get into office, party leaders are already searching for someone to replace him, either in a special election or in 2024. “The wheels are already spinning,” one unnamed GOP official told the Washington Times. “People are getting ready to start primaries.” GOP leaders in New York are also getting ready for a possible special election if Santos ends his term in Congress early. Names being considered include New York Assemblyman Mike Durso (R), Nassau County Comptroller […]

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Will Pete Buttigieg run for Senate now that Debbie Stabenow is retiring?

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With Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) announcing that she will not seek reelection in 2024, the internet is abuzz with speculation that out Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg could run and become the first out gay male U.S. senator. “Inspired by a new generation of leaders, I have decided to pass the torch in the U.S. Senate. I am announcing today that I will not seek re-election and will leave the U.S. Senate at the end of my term on January 3, 2025,” Stabenow said in a statement. Stabenow has served in the Senate since she won her first Senate election […]

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Justice Neil Gorsuch angrily calls anti-discrimination training a “reeducation program”

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During heated arguments at the Supreme Court yesterday in the case of 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis – about a web designer who doesn’t want to make websites for same-sex couples – Justice Neil Gorsuch appeared angry and even suggested that a Colorado baker had been forced into a “reeducation training program” after he discriminated against a gay couple. The case is about a web designer named Lori Smith, who says that Colorado’s anti-discrimination law might make her make websites for same-sex couples even though she wants to make them only for opposite-sex couples. Her complaint, which cites the Bible as well […]

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