Charles Orgbon III

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The “wealthy gay myth”

What do characters like Will Truman, from the popular sitcom “Will & Grace,” Arizona Robbins, from “Grey’s Anatomy,” and Cameron and Mitchell from “Modern Family” all have in common?  These LGBTQ characters from incredibly popular TV series have all in some sense helped to shape the general public’s understanding of gayness—and they’re all white and wealthy. And from my perspective, they’re not outliers: The overwhelming majority of LGBTQ characters on TV are some combination of rich, white, stylist, and privileged (other sources agree).   “These representations are harmful,” said Jennifer Dazols, a financial advisor and fiduciary who works with LGBT professionals […]

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Continuing the Fight for Equality: The Ongoing Struggle Against Anti-Drag Legislation

“There has been an onslaught of attacks against our innocent children,” Kentucky state representative Lindsey Tichenor said as she put forth a bill banning drag performances to her state assembly.  She’s right about one thing. Our children are under attack, not from drag queens, though, but from hate and intolerance.  Another bill in Idaho would allow parents to be sued up to $10,000 for watching certain shows featuring “sexual content,” and many argue that the language wields a strategic undertone targeting drag shows. Both the Kentucky and Idaho bills have advanced out of committee, and momentum will likely carry them […]

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The infuriating experience of PrEP discrimination

Did you know that you could be discriminated against by insurance companies for taking PrEP?  I didn’t.  Recently, I have been searching for long-term disability insurance options while living in California. Long-term disability insurance could offer some peace of mind if some tragic, unforeseeable event left me unable to work. I chatted with an insurance broker, who scanned providers nationwide, and reported back to me that because I took PrEP daily, most insurers wouldn’t allow me to participate in their program. Drugs prescribed for PrEP such as Truvada, Descovy, and Apretude are on a list of “unaccepted” medications. I received what […]

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Pleasure, consent and more: What I didn’t learn in sex ed, and why it matters (Part II)

Efforts to erase LGBTQ sex education topics from public school curriculum are growing in GOP-led state legislatures and sweeping moves are tightening in Arizona, Tennessee, Idaho, and Missouri. These policymakers would rather punish LGBTQ people for being who they are than provide them with information and educational resources to live healthy, successful lives. In what has become our nation’s latest culture war, it’s disheartening to know that LGBTQ youth stand to lose the most.  Already, there’s no national mandate for sexual education, and for the few states that do offer it, LGBTQ topics are disregarded or degraded. Non-profit organization Sex Ed For […]

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PrEP, STIs, douching, and more: What I didn’t learn in sex ed, and why it matters (Part I)

In Georgia in the early 2010s, what was available to me as a LGBTQ person during my high school sex education class was… inadequate, to say the least. Now, my heart weighs heavy as GOP-led state governments are making LGBTQ* sex education even more inaccessible in public schools across the country.  The latest wave of anti-LGBTQ legislation comes only two years after Arizona lawmakers retracted their efforts to ban HIV/AIDS curriculum that “promotes a homosexual lifestyle” after facing massive public outlash and a lawsuit. However, this state’s legislature has made a second attempt in the spring of 2021, now framing the issue […]

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The pain of racial injustice lingers. Here’s how you can support your Black partner

It takes a strong Black person to date a white person. For better or for worse, romantic relationships are a minefield of opportunities to explore Black/white dynamics in America. It works well when the white partner is able to reduce the harm they create and learn from their partner, but it can also be traumatizing for the Black partner to relive life-alienating societal patterns in one of their most intimate relationships.  When a white man is fascinated with my last name, I don’t expect them to know that it reminds me of how my family history has been ill-kept. In […]