Washington Blade

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One non-binary person’s perspective on how to transition thoughtfully and safely

Miami and Baltimore– Urban Health Media Project reporter Vanessa Falcon, a high school student in Miami, interviewed Arin Jayes, 30, of Baltimore, about his gender identity journey and experience transitioning to a non-binary trans man. Jayes, a behavioral health therapist, is also an urban farmer and embroidery artist. Q:  How was your transitioning process? Was it overall very difficult? Why? How long did it last? A: As a non binary person, I have a flexible view of how individuals develop their gender identity. It’s something that may evolve throughout a person’s lifetime, based on experiences; changes in personal values and relationships; bodily […]

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Biden seeks to ramp up funds to beat HIV/AIDS in budget request

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President Biden, unveiling on Friday his initial budget request to Congress in the first year of his administration, called for ramping up funds to beat the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States, signaling he’d continue the PrEP-centric initiative that began in the previous administration. In the preliminary budget request for fiscal year 2022, known in Washington parlance as the “skinny budget” in anticipation of broader request at a later time, Biden seeks an increase of $267 million for Ending the HIV Epidemic, building on the more than $400 million Congress has appropriated for the program since 2019. As it was […]

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National LGBTQ Task Force holds first virtual Creating Change conference

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The 33rd annual Creating Change conference hosted by the National LGBTQ Task Force held its events virtually over the weekend for the first time due to the pandemic.  The country’s largest LGBTQ activist conference brought participants from across the U.S. to connect and share knowledge, skills and mutual dedication to ensuring equity for LGBTQ people and other marginalized groups. Hosted by comic Sandra Valls, the multi-day event emphasized the importance of togetherness and intersectionality.  The conference featured special guests like Adrienne Maree Brown, a Black feminist author and women’s rights activist; and American rapper Big Freedia. Dominique Jackson, who plays […]

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Two groups Team up to Help Trans, Non-binary Puerto Ricans

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Two organizations have entered into a partnership that seeks to improve the health and quality of life of transgender and non-binary people in Puerto Rico. The collaboration between the South Florida-based Arianna’s Center and the Puerto Rico-based Waves Ahead seeks to strengthen and improve programs and/or services to these communities. They include free mobile HIV testing, prevention and care, case management to help with name changes, legal referrals and links to medical care and mental health services. Both organizations will offer workshops to help trans women and non-binary people enter the workforce. Arianna’s Center and Waves Ahead will also train […]

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Biden, Harris Inauguration Events Mostly Virtual

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The Presidential Inaugural Committee for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is calling on the LGBTQ community to participate in several planned virtual inaugural events that reflect the theme of “America United,” an inaugural official told LGBTQ representatives at a Jan. 12 online briefing.  “We are looking forward to the inaugural ceremonies in which the American people and the world will witness the peaceful transition of power,” said Rina Patel, the inaugural committee’s Associate Director of Coalitions before a Zoom gathering of close to 50 representatives of LGBTQ organizations from across the country.  “This will mark a new […]

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Anti-LGBTQ School where Karen Pence Teaches Obtained $725K in PPP Money

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A Christian school in Virginia infamous for banning LGBTQ teachers and students after second lady Karen Pence took a teaching job there obtained nearly $725,000 in PPP funds despite its anti-LGBTQ policies, the Washington Blade has learned. A look at the distribution for the COVID-19 bailout funds, as documented by the government watchdog Accountable.US, reveals Immanuel Christian School in Springfield, Va., obtained the six-figure grant as part of the Paycheck Protection Program, which sought to keep small businesses afloat amid the coronavirus pandemic.  Immanuel Christian School claimed 115 jobs saved with the PPP money, according to the raw SBA data. “It is […]

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Transgender Woman Murdered in Miami

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A transgender woman who was a well-known activist and performer in Miami was murdered on Tuesday. A spokesperson for the Miami Police Department told the Washington Blade that 28-year-old Ygor Arrudasouza had placed a 911 call at around 4:25 a.m. on Tuesday, stating that he had stabbed his girlfriend, 39-year-old Yunieski Carey Herrera also known Yuni Carey, in their downtown Miami high-rise apartment near the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Miami. Responding officers found Carey covered in blood suffering from stab wounds and unresponsive. The police report noted that Arrudasouza had uttered a spontaneous confession admitting […]

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Transgender Woman’s Death Shocks Colombia

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“Please help me make this video viral! The army just killed my wife! Please help me spread it! … They killed Juliana … We don’t have weapons, we don’t have drugs, we don’t have anything, this man killed her. Look, we’re not wearing anything, they killed Juliana, that man shot her in the head.” Unable to contain his tears or anguish, Francisco Larrañaga pleads for help in a video that he recorded himself. His wife, Juliana Giraldo Díaz, a 38-year-old transgender woman, had just been killed instantly by a bullet that a Colombian soldier fired from his gun while she […]

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Michigan’s Lesbian AG Slaps Felony Charges on Homocon’s Wohl, Burkman for Robocalls

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Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a lesbian, announced Thursday she has filed felony charges against conservative hoaxers Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman — who have a history of deceit and unscrupulous dealings — for misleading robocalls discouraging Michigan residents from voting by mail. Nessel said in a statement the robocalls, which were made in Black-majority areas around Detroit, go above and beyond those “flooding our cell phones and landlines each day” in a battleground state for the 2020 election. “Any effort to interfere with, intimidate or intentionally mislead Michigan voters will be met with swift and severe consequences,” Nessel said in a statement. “This effort specifically targeted minority voters […]

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Washington Blade Sues Trump Administration

The Washington Blade, the nation’s oldest LGBTQ newspaper, today announced it has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over its refusal to turn over emails related to a rule change allowing federal contractors to discriminate against LGBTQ workers.  The Blade filed a FOIA request for emails within the Department of Labor related to the Trump administration’s proposed rule change allowing a religious exemption in employment non-discrimination requirements for federal contractors. The request sought to shed light on the motivation behind the proposal and whether it was to enable anti-LGBTQ discrimination in the name of religious freedom. The Department has […]

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