Features

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Another Trans Victim from Dating App Robbery

Violence against transgender people continues to be a daunting issue within the LGBTQ+ community. Los Angeles, alone, recorded a nearly 13 percent increase in hate crimes toward LGBTQ+ people and black community members last year, as reported by The Los Angeles Times. Yet, there are many transgender people who come face-to-face with assailants and live to tell their story. Jessica-Jean de la Vega, a youth education advocate for a Los Angeles-based trans health clinic, is one of them.  De la Vega had downloaded the notorious LGBTQ+ dating/sex app, Grindr. She, like so many other LGBTQ+ people who frequent the app, was […]

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New Policies to Improve PrEP Access

As pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) gains acceptance, medical experts and policymakers are finding new ways to make this effective HIV prevention tool accessible to more people who could benefit. Last month the California Senate passed a bill that will allow pharmacists to provide PrEP and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) without a prescription. And in June, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommended that health care providers offer PrEP to people at risk of acquiring HIV, paving the way for broader insurance coverage. PrEP at the Pharmacy SB 159, co-authored by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and Assemblymember Todd Gloria (D-San Diego), […]

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Prominent Trans Activist Sarah McBride to Run for Office in Delaware

Sarah McBride, a prominent transgender advocate who made history in 2016 by becoming the first openly trans person to ever address a major political party’s convention, announced Tuesday that she’s running for office in her home state of Delaware. McBride will run for Delaware’s 1st Senate District, where incumbent Harris McDowell, a fellow Democrat, announced July 1 that he would retire in 2020. The district covers Bellefonte, Claymont and parts of Wilmington, the state’s largest and most populous city. “I’ve spent my life fighting for people to have dignity, peace of mind, and a fair shot at staying afloat and getting […]

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206 Companies Urge Supreme Court to Rule Title VII Covers LGBT Workers

A total of 206 companies have signed onto a legal brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to find Title VII of the Civil Rights Act bars discrimination against LGBT people in the workforce. The friend-of-the-court brief — organized by the Human Rights Campaign, Lambda Legal, Out & Equal, Out Leadership and Freedom for All Americans — is signed by the nation’s top businesses and argues anti-LGBT discrimination is a form of sex discrimination, thus illegal under the Title VII. Among the signers are food companies like Domino’s Pizza and Coca-Cola Company, tech companies like Facebook and Mozilla Corp., and defense […]

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Man Serving 30 Years for Failing to Disclose his HIV Status Released

A man serving 30 years for not disclosing his HIV status to sexual partners has been released 25 years earlier. Former college wrestler Michael ‘Tiger Mandingo’ Johnson left Boonville’s prison, Missouri, yesterday (9 July). In 2013, Johnson was the protagonist of what many defined a racially charged trial. His case was also one of the most relevant in the ongoing discussion about the criminalization of HIV transmission. Criminalizing transmission ‘I feel great,’ Johnson told BuzzFeed as he left Boonville Correctional Center. ‘Leaving prison is such a great feeling.’ Police arrested Johnson, a black man, for ‘recklessly’ transmitting HIV to two men and exposing four […]

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Turkish Brewery Defiantly Celebrates Pride with Rainbow Bottles

Established in Istanbul in 1890, Bomonti is Turkey’s oldest modern brewery and produces one of the country’s most popular lagers. The rainbow-coloured bottle was unveiled in an Instagram post by the head of Bomonti’s branding agency, alongside the caption: “We did it!” It’s a bold move in a country which has been named the second-most restrictive on gay rights in Europe. Amnesty International previously told PinkNews in 2018 that Turkish LGBT+ people are “living in more fear than ever.” Although courts ruled in April that the two-year ban on Pride parades could technically be lifted, Amnesty reported in May that “appalling” violence had been used against students holding a Pride […]

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Tour Cancels Ethiopia Trip after Hearing LGBTI Tourists will be Buried Alive

LGBTI tour operator, Toto Tours, has decided to cancel their 16-day package tour to Ethiopia that was schedule for this October, amid concerns for the safety of their clients. The tour itinerary was to include visits to several religious sites. The Ethiopian Orthodox organization, the Sileste Mihret United Association, alluded to violence. The chairperson said: ‘Homosexuality is hated as well as being illegal in Ethiopia. ‘If Toto Tours comes to Ethiopia where 97% of Ethiopians surveyed oppose homosexuality, they will be damaged. They could even die.’ Toto Tours canceled Ethiopia trip after death threats Dan Ware, owner of the company, […]

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Amazon Removes Books by ‘Gay Cure’ Conversion Therapy Author

Amazon has removed books by a ‘gay cure’ conversion therapy author. Joseph Nicolosi penned a book that spread the dangerous and harmful practice of attempting to ‘cure’ a person’s sexual or gender identity. He was the co-founder of the National Association of Research & Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH) and a prominent leader in the ex-gay movement. His book, A Parent’s Guide To Preventing Homosexuality, is one of the most well known ‘conversion therapy’ books. But now, it has been removed from the UK and US versions of Amazon. Rojo Alan, from Peterborough, wrote to Amazon several times to get the book removed from listings. […]

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For Companies, LGBTQ-inclusive Ads Weren’t always Risk-free

As the U.S. — and many other parts of the world — celebrates the 50th anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall uprising, rainbow flags and LGBTQ-inclusive ad campaigns appear to be omnipresent, especially in big cities. The ubiquity of these Pride campaigns make it easy to forget that this was not always the case. While many point to corporate America’s embrace of LGBTQ inclusivity as a major sign of progress, others believe corporations are coopting the movement. Advertisements geared toward gay and lesbian consumers began to appear in earnest in the 1970s, inspired in part by the energy of the Stonewall […]

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Nearly 2 Million LGBTQ Youths Contemplate Suicide each Year

Nearly 2 million LGBTQ youths ages 13 to 24 in the United States consider suicide each year, according to research released Thursday by the Trevor Project. Using data from a variety of sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its own National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health, Trevor Project researchers determined that LGBTQ teens were particularly at risk. Those 13 to 18 were approximately twice as likely to contemplate suicide as those 19 to 24. Amy E. Green, the nonprofit’s director of research, told NBC News that although these numbers are harrowing, they are “conservative […]

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