Features

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Republicans Throw Support Behind President Trump’s Ban on Transgender Troops

The Republican National Committee has thrown its support behind President Trump’s ban on transgender people in the military. Donald Trump announced on Twitter last year that all transgender servicepeople would be purged from the US armed forces, claiming they were a burden on the military. The decision was reportedly taken without consultation with military chiefs or legal experts, and the policy has been repeatedly smacked down in the courts. Transgender people were able to openly join the military from last month, after a court blocked Trump’s ban from coming into effect. But the controversy and legal action over the policy hasn’t dissuaded […]

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Illinois Governor Candidate Blasted Over Anti-trans Ad

(Photo from jeanneives.org) A Republican candidate for the role of Illinois governor has been slammed for refusing to take down an advert that spurts anti-trans rhetoric, despite calls from the party to remove it and apologise. Lawmaker and state representative Jeanne Ives released the advert, which is a take on a former advert run by current governor Bruce Rauner, and has since faced a barrage of criticism. Rauner’s original ad shows GOP governors from states neighbouring Illinois thanking the Democratic House speaker for policies which helped their states. Ives’ take on the ad portrays a transgender woman, a woman wearing […]

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Publix Grocery Chain Denies PrEP Coverage to Its Employees

Some parts of the country have weather that signals the arrival of the winter holiday season, but the South has Publix commercials. The Florida-based grocery store chain has made a Christmas tradition of its sentimental short films exalting family, fireplaces, and food bought from its stores and prepared with your love. “Whatever your tradition may be, we’re grateful to be a part of it,” a narrator with a delicate rasp says in the 2017 ad, “Traditions. A Publix Christmas story.” However, Publix is showing a cooler, less compassionate side to some of its 188,000 employees. One of the more prominent […]

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First Same-sex Couple Legally Marry at Sea on a Major Cruise Line

Francisco Vargas and Benjamin Gray In a historic ceremony hosted on board Celebrity Equinox, Francisco Vargas and Benjamin Gray became the first same-sex couple ever to be legally married at sea on a major cruise line. The grooms were joined by their immediate family for an intimate ceremony officiated by Captain Dimitrios Manetas. They exchanged vows against the signature backdrop of the rose wall in Blu Restaurant, the location befitting the most memorable of moments. “Words cannot express how proud I am to congratulate Francisco and Benjamin at this truly historic moment, both for them and for Celebrity. It’s a […]

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RNC Sides With Trump Transgender Military Ban

The Republican National Committee is siding with President Donald Trump on his order to bar transgender individuals from serving in the U.S. military. In a resolution passed at its annual winter meeting Friday, the committee voted to support Trump’s August demand that military recruitment policy consider transgender as “a disqualifying psychological and physical” condition Trump’s order has suffered legal setbacks. Three federal courts have ruled against the ban, prompting the RNC to take the position standing with Trump. An effect of one court ruling was that the military would be required to allow transgender people to enlist beginning Jan. 1. […]

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New Data Released on Attitudes Toward Transgender People

The global research firm IPSOS released the results of a 23 country survey, including the US, on attitudes toward transgender people. The data was collected online between October 24th and November 7th, 2017 and included the following countries: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Ecuador, France, Great Britain, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Poland, Russia, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, and the United States of America. For the purposes of this summary write-up, however, Ipsos has chosen to focus on findings from the 16 countries where internet penetration is sufficiently high to feel […]

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Transgender Soldier from Massachusetts Attending State of the Union

A Massachusetts native and soldier will be among those closely watching President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday. Army Staff Sgt. Patricia King, who is transgender, has been deployed to Afghanistan three times. Last year, the president announced plans to keep transgender individuals out of the military. “I thought to myself, ‘What am I going to wear?’” King said as she prepares for Tuesday. King will attend the speech as the personal guest of Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-MA). “For him to reach out to me and offer me this opportunity, for us to have these similar ideals as […]

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ConnXus Partners with National LGBT Chamber of Commerce to Increase Inclusive Procurement Efforts

ConnXus has announced its corporate partnership with the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC), accelerating the supplier management company’s mission to open inclusive procurement opportunities to diverse businesses. NGLCC is the nation’s exclusive certifying body for LGBT owned and operated businesses. LGBT business owners make up a significant part of the American business landscape, contributing an estimated $1.7 trillion to the U.S. economy. Since its inception in 2010, ConnXus has become a reliable source for over 1.8 million certified suppliers in their database seeking inclusive business opportunities. Justin G. Nelson, NGLCC president and co-founder looks to ConnXus as a strategic […]

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LGBT Workers in the US Lead Global LGBT Community in Retirement Readiness

A new study released today finds that LGBT workers in the U.S. are outperforming LGBT workers in eight other countries with regard to retirement readiness. This first-of-its-kind study, LGBT: Retirement Preparations Amid Social Progress, is a collaboration between Aegon Center for Longevity and Retirement (ACLR) and nonprofits Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies® (TCRS) and Instituto de Longevidade Mongeral Aegon. It is based on findings from a survey of 900 LGBT workers and retirees across nine countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. “In recent decades, the decriminalization of homosexuality and the […]

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New Mormon Leader Claims the Church Loves Gay People

The new leader of the Mormon Church has insisted the religion is supportive of LGBT rights. Russell M. Nelson, 93, was appointed head of the 16-million member church after the previous president, Thomas S. Monson died age 90.  Speaking for the first time as its president – a position which makes him a “prophet, seer and revelatory” – he said God loves people regardless of sexuality. The Church of the Latter Day Saints is opposed to gay relationships and refuses to allow women to be priests. Asked about LGBT rights, he said there were “challenges with the commandments of God, […]

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