Greg Owens

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“Crying in my arms”: People are moved to tears as these dads come to Pride to play catch

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Over seven years and thousands of tossed balls, “Play Catch With a Dad” has become a ubiquitous part of Pride celebrations everywhere. John Piermatteo started the sessions in 2019 in his hometown of York, Pennsylvania, at their Unity Fest, inspired in part by “Free Mom Hugs.” Now Piermatteo is joined by scores of dads — most of them straight like him — at as many Pride events across the country. The latest are Pride Nights at MLB games. After a Pride Night at Wrigley Field in Chicago last year, the group was invited to play catch at ten Major League games […]

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The Supreme Court’s latest “cruel blow” could make it a lot harder to win trans rights cases

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Shannon Minter, legal director for the newly rechristened National Center for LGBTQ Rights (NCLR), is once again, under a second Trump administration, confronting an avalanche of anti-LGBTQ+ law, policy, and rhetoric set off by the White House. Eight years ago, Minter led efforts by NCLR and GLAD in the first of four lawsuits to challenge Trump’s first ban on transgender service members in the military. Within weeks, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a preliminary injunction that put a temporary halt to the discriminatory policy, which lasted almost two years. President Joe Biden restored trans military service before the Supreme […]

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“Oldest gay bar in Europe” loses liquor license after immigration raid

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Napoleons in Manchester, England — said to be the oldest gay bar in Europe — has had its liquor license revoked. Authorities cited illegal workers, overflowing rubbish, blocked fire exits, and other violations as the cause. The bar opened in 1941 and was long owned by renowned Manchester drag queen Fran Foo Foo Lamar. New owners purchased the property in 1972 and saw Manchester’s renowned Gay Village grow up around it, peaking in the 1990’s with dozens of venues and the area being nicknamed as Gaychester. The original British version of Queer As Folk was set in Manchester and debuted in 1999. […]

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Gay couple walking their dog is violently attacked & stoned

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Ivan Miadini said it was like a scene out of the Old Testament. He and his husband were walking their dog a week ago Saturday night in Drogheda, north of the Irish capital in Dublin, when a gang of teenage boys starting verbally abusing them, calling them “f****t bastards”, “queers” and “pedophiles.” “They threatened to kill us, rape our dog and told us to go back to our own countries,” Miadini told the Independent. “They were going to chase us off the island.” The incident escalated as the teenagers started hurling stones at the couple and their dog and then physically attacked […]