Sakshi Venkatraman

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The number of LGBTQ AAPIs running for office has doubled in the past few years

Janani Ramachandran, 30, says she’s always lived at the intersection of two isolations.  As an openly gay South Asian woman growing up post-9/11, she felt that few people could understand her specific experience — and that representation was nonexistent. “I think it definitely is difficult for LGBTQ South Asians to feel their full selves in different spaces,” she told NBC Asian America. “I can feel uncomfortable in predominantly LGBTQ spaces, because I see very few people that look like me. In predominantly South Asian spaces, I also sometimes feel uncomfortable in not being reflected.” Running for Oakland City Council this […]

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‘Togetherness in a virtual space’: LGBTQ students create community online

Ro Redfern-Taube, 20, was finishing up their sophomore year at the University of Chicago last March when the school decided to shut down its campus and send students home because of the spread of the coronavirus. Redfern-Taube, now a junior, returned to their parents’ home in New York City, where they said they’re not comfortable openly talking about their gender identity. However, as a leader of GenderQ, their university’s only organization for transgender and nonbinary students, Redfern-Taube said they have felt compelled to be present and to create a safe space for a group of students that is starved of […]

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Transgender Athlete Sues USA Powerlifting over Competition Ban

Transgender powerlifter JayCee Cooper is suing USA Powerlifting, the sport’s biggest U.S.-based organization, after it barred her from competition on the basis of her gender identity. “It came as a surprise to me that when I applied to compete at my first competition, I was told that I couldn’t compete specifically because I’m a trans woman,” Cooper said at a news conference Tuesday. “I was gutted. I had been training for months and up until that point had experienced so much love and community around the sport.” Cooper’s lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Minnesota state court by the Minnesota-based advocacy group Gender […]

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Adrian Tam Defeats Local Proud Boys leader, Becomes Only Gay Asian in Hawaii House

Adrian Tam, a 28-year-old gay Asian American son of immigrants, defeated a leader of the Hawaii chapter of the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group, to become the only openly LGBTQ person in Hawaii’s Legislature. Tam, a first-time candidate, took 63 percent of the vote against Nicholas Ochs. “It feels really good to know that someone who is openly LGBT can win,” Tam told NBC Asian America. “There was a time when people like me could not win. I’m glad that I can bring that representation to the capital.” Tam described what was a nerve-wracking election season, from trying to connect with […]

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A Gender Neutral Spanish Pronoun? For Some, ‘Elle’ is the Word.

Ivon Garcia, 26, grew up two exits from the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego. Garcia was so steeped in Mexican-American culture and Spanish that Garcia “didn’t really conceptualize someone not knowing Spanish.” At a young age, Garcia identified as nonbinary. But this got consistently swept under the rug by Garcia’s extended family, who was often hostile to anyone different. “To me, Spanish and Mexican, Chicano, Xicano, Mexican-American culture has consisted of being a matter of ‘one or the other, otherwise not acknowledged,’” Garcia said. “There is so much unsaid, but still judged, because it simply doesn’t fit.” It didn’t take […]

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Chicago’s LGBTQ Neighborhood Dropping ‘Boystown’ Nickname

Chicago’s LGBTQ neighborhood is dropping its longtime nickname, “Boystown,” following a petition started by a local activist claiming the moniker lacks inclusivity and promotes bigotry. “The Castro, Greenwich Village, West Hollywood, and many more. LGBTQ neighborhoods exist for all intersections of queer identity. Chicago’s is the only gendered nickname,” said the petition, which was addressed to the Northalsted Business Alliance. Last week, the alliance announced that it would no longer use the nickname in its marketing campaigns when referring to the neighborhood, which sits on the city’s North Side. Instead, it will revert to the name Northalsted. “While a personal identifier cannot […]

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Ex-Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum Comes Out as Bisexual in TV Interview

Former Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum came out as bisexual Monday in an interview with broadcaster Tamron Hall. “You put it out there whether or not I identify as gay, and the answer is I don’t identify as gay, but I do identify as bisexual,” Gillum told Hall. It’s the first time the 2018 Democratic nominee for governor in Florida has spoken publicly about his sexuality. “Coming out as bi+ looks different for every person,” tweeted Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBTQ civil rights group. “No matter the circumstances, all people deserve respect. @AndrewGillum sharing his story will […]

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‘Brave’ and ‘Outspoken’ Marilyn Cazares among Six Transgender Americans Killed in July

Rosa Diaz and her daughter were riding their motorcycles through rural Brawley, California, this year when they noticed a young person who appeared lost walking down the town’s main street. Diaz, who runs the only LGBTQ resource center for miles, sensed that the person might be in need of support. She told her daughter to continue ahead, and Diaz made a U-turn. “I asked her for her name,” and the person shared a male name, Diaz said in an interview. “I said, ‘Is there another name that you prefer?’ And that’s when she told me, ‘Well, I like Marilyn.’” Diaz […]

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Russian Voters Back Referendum Banning Same-sex Marriage

Russian voters supported a national referendum defining marriage exclusively as a union between one man and one woman. The referendum, which included more than 200 constitutional amendments, also paves the way for Russian President Vladimir Putin to stay in power until 2036 if he so chooses. The proposals, voted on by the public over the past seven days, were supported by more than two-thirds of voters, though the opposition maintains that the referendum was rigged from the start. Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ advocacy organization, slammed the gay marriage ban and said Putin is a “threat to the […]

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For LGBTQ Youth, Home Might not be a Safe Place to Self-isolate

For Fabliha Anbar, 20, her LGBTQ identity is an important part of her social and academic life. She’s out to friends, on social media and at her progressive university, where she founded the South Asian Queer and Trans Collective. But last month, when her campus closed due to the global coronavirus pandemic, Anbar returned home — and back to the proverbial closet. “Having to go home and act a certain way 24/7 is a means for survival,” said Anbar, who asked that the name of her university and hometown not be published. “That can be straining emotionally and extremely damaging.” For […]