Ben Jodway

During a time when Ohio’s Republican majority is seeking to reshape the state’s public education system, Youngstown-area middle school teacher Erica Putro was surprised to find her colleagues knew little about anti-LGBTQ+ legislation that would completely change how they interact with queer students. Few of her peers knew much about Ohio House Bill 8 (the “Parents’ Bill of Rights”), which requires schools to out transgender students who “identify as a gender that does not align” with their original birth certificate’s gender marker. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. […]

Billboard advertisements from a Seattle-based organization called Them Before Us popped up across rural Ohio as part of its campaign against LGBTQ+ families. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. The billboard reads, “No child has two dads. No child has two moms,” with the “two dads” and “two moms” in rainbow lettering. Megan Tucker-Manly, a resident of Northwest Ohio, was one of the first to spot the billboards in Lima. Her post with a photo of the billboards quickly went viral reaching over 7,000 […]

Last February, the Little Miami School Board in suburban Cincinnati ordered a social studies teacher to remove a “Hate Has No Home Here” poster because it included images of LGBTQ+ and trans Pride flags, alongside other flags. In response, the Little Miami High School teacher George McIntyre sued the districtfor violating his First Amendment rights.  Depositions from the board president, superintendent, high school principal, and an affidavit from a former teacher not only point to how the controversy started, but also to how the hunt for LGBTQ+ “ideology” has disrupted learning environments and could endanger students. Stay up to date with the latest […]