The Advocate

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Minnesota Hopes to Become Refuge for Trans Minors Seeking Health Care

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Minnesota is advancing a bill to make the state a refuge for transgender youth seeking gender-affirming care and for their supportive parents. The state’s House of Representatives Friday approved House File 146, which “would prevent state courts or officials from complying with child removal requests, extraditions, arrests or subpoenas related to gender-affirming health care that a person receives in Minnesota,” as explained by Minnesota Public Radio. The bill passed by a vote of 68-62 after debate that stretched from Thursday night to early Friday morning. It now goes to the Senate. Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, has promised to sign it […]

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NASCAR Racer Zach Herrin Wears His Gay Identity Proudly

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When out NASCAR driver Zach Herrin recently returned to the track after a 10-year absence, corporations weren’t exactly knocking down his door to slap their logos on his racing suit. Even though his team has conversations “all day, all week, every month, all throughout the year” with various brands, they were constantly told Herrin doesn’t “fit” within the multimillion dollar marketing budgets of the companies. This challenge wasn’t new for Herrin — auto racing isn’t known as the most inclusive of sports. Still, Herrin loves racing after being “practically raised on the track” and managed to turn a weekend hobby […]

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Man Charged in Stabbing Death of Oakland Drag Queen, Chorus Singer

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Police in California announced they have arrested a university janitor in the murder of a local drag queen, barber, and member of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus. Curtis Marsh, 53, was found stabbed to death in his burning Oakland apartment near Lake Merritt on Saturday, March 4. Marsh was a popular member of the Oakland Gay Men’s Chorus who also performed as a drag queen under the stage name Touri Monroe. On Friday, Oakland Police Department (OPD) announced the arrest of Sweven Waterman, 38, and the Alameda District Attorney later charged him with Marsh’s murder. Waterman had worked as a senior custodian […]

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LGBTQ+ Youth Are Uncomfortable In Their Own Skin: Study

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Data from a new study suggests that young LGBTQ+ people in America aren’t comfortable in their own skin — literally. The latest study results from the Trevor Project on LGBTQ Youth and Body Dissatisfaction are out. Researchers found that some LGBTQ+ youth are overwhelmingly dissatisfied with their bodies, with trans and nonbinary youth showing even higher rates. Also, LGBTQ+ youth who reported body dissatisfaction were significantly more likely to have attempted suicide in the past year than those who expressed being satisfied. The Trevor Project is a nonprofit organization that provides crisis mental health services to LGBTQ+ young people and also conducts research on […]

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Here Are the 21 States Trying to Ban Gender-Affirming Care

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Bills seeking to restrict access to gender-affirming care have been introduced in 21 states this year, and one of those states, Utah, has passed one into law.. Much of the legislation focuses on young people, although some bills go beyond this population and beyond banning surgery (genital surgery almost never performed on minors). Most seek to ban nonsurgical procedures such as the administration of hormones and puberty blockers, in addition to surgery. Several of the bills warn of dire consequences from these procedures, but in reality, both the surgical and nonsurgical treatments are endorsed as safe and effective (when age-appropriate) […]

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Questions Every Gay, Bi Man Should Ask at Their Physical

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The end of the year or the start of a new one is typically called the “annual physical” season as most are trying to take advantage of the benefit of no-cost physicals provided by most insurance coverage. The good news for most of us is that if you are insured, it’s very likely your annual physical is 100 percent covered by insurance. The better news is that many types of diseases and cancers can be caught early in the annual physical with many treatment options that will not impact your life too drastically. However, many men don’t actually undergo an […]

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Right-Wing Group Targets LGBTQ+ Existence In Michigan Schools

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Michigan right-wingers are working together to challenge LGBTQ+-inclusive education in public schools.  An organization called the Great Schools Initiative (GSI) is offering parents an opt-out form to prevent all discussions about gender identity and sexual orientation in schools.  Last week, the group began an initiative called “Operation Opt-Out,” which asks parents to submit an opt-out form authored by GSI to be added to their children’s school files, Michigan Advance reports. Nearly three pages of proscriptions against facts about reproductive health, family planning, contraception, LGBTQ+ issues, and social justice are contained in the document — which happens to contain numerous spelling errors. The form mandates […]

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Feds Seek Input on National PrEP Coverage

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The federal government is seeking public input concerning whether its Medicare department should cover HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and PrEP medication nationwide, including a new injectable drug that has been developed. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is considering whether it will cover HIV prevention pre-exposure prophylaxis drugs (PrEP) such as Apretude, a prescription injectable given every two months to individuals at risk of contracting HIV. As part of the analysis, CMS seeks comments from the public, particularly those that include scientific evidence. As of 2020, Medicare coverage for PrEP varies by state or county, but the average cost of […]

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Gay Rep. Garcia Vows to Check Boebert & Greene on Oversight Committee

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Republicans now in control of the House of Representatives and progressive lawmakers fear the GOP will use their slim majority to engage in frivolous investigations into the Biden administration.   With his appointment to the powerful House Oversight and Reform Committee, California’sgay Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia says he will act as a safeguard against such moves by Republicans. The committee works to oversee the “efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of the federal government and all its agencies,” according to its website.  The Democrat announced his appointment to the committee on Twitter yesterday while noting a certain excitement about his opportunity to be a thorn in the […]

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Flipping the Script on Stories of Black Trans Women

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It can often feel like joy and optimism went on sabbatical around 2015 and have yet to reappear. Counter that despair with the Black Trans Femmes in the Arts, a young organization building community and mobilizing resources for underrepresented artists. Since its founding in 2019 by Jordyn Jay, the grassroots organization has raised over a million dollars to support Black trans artists. Members of the collective have appeared on HBO Max’s Legendary, staged exhibitions at Los Angeles’s Armand Hammer Museum, and performed on Broadway. Jay says their organization is necessary because disparities of funding and safe spaces, and the general inaccessibility of […]

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