John Casey

When Tim Cook was named to replace the legendary Steve Jobs as Apple’s CEO in August 2011, it was a wild and electric moment, not just for the tech world but for our community. His sexuality was already being widely whispered about in corporate circles, with reports circulating as early as 2011 that Cook was gay, though he was working to keep his personal life private. In fact, in April of 2011, our sister outlet, Out Magazine, named him as one of the most influential LGBTQ+ people in America. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email […]

I went to a Catholic school for eight years, so I had no choice when it came to learning about the Bible. I remember being confused by scripture on many occasions. As a child, I could not comprehend how Noah got all those animals onto a small boat. It was around the same time I began to wonder how Santa could carry presents for all the children in the world on his small sleigh. Nevertheless, I came to respect the Bible and what it stood for. Some might say it was eight years of brainwashing, but I prefer to think of […]

I’m old enough to remember what it looked like when the government decided AIDS wasn’t its problem. I remember the silence from the Reagan White House as funerals piled up. I remember watching and hearing about brilliant sons, partners, uncles, friends, entire communities disappear while officials shrugged and said this was a “gay” disease, something that happened to people who had brought it on themselves. Stay up to date with the latest in LGBTQ+ news with The Advocate’s email newsletter, in your inbox five days a week. Working on the Hill at the time, I listened to the horrid bigotry […]

When the U.S. Supreme Court commences proceedings Tuesday to hear oral arguments over whether a Colorado therapist can offer “conversion therapy” to queer youth, the stakes are far greater than one state’s law.  Chiles v. Salazar, a challenge to Colorado’s ban on ‘conversion therapy for minors, is about whether the highest court in the land will once again choose bigotry over humanity and call it constitutional. And it will likely do it based on a lie. The Alliance Defending Freedom, which is defending conversion therapy in the case, is accused of misquoting and misrepresenting a 2016 study by scholars Lisa Diamond and Clifford Rosky. In […]

It’s hard to know where to begin. The last week since the Charlie Kirkassassination has been a jumble of feelings I can barely sort through.  Shock turns to sadness, which turns to anger, which turns to frustration, which turns to abject sorrow. I know I’m not alone in this cycle. His shooting death was horrific. And there are times I could kick myself for watching that gruesome video.  I’m someone who hates violence, who has always recoiled from confrontation, who can’t bear to see people hurt, both physically or emotionally. Even at the age of 61, I can’t fathom why people […]