National

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Covid crisis is exacerbating LGBTQ alcohol abuse, studies find

Social-distancing measures and lockdowns have disproportionately increased alcohol use in the LGBTQ community, studies find. Abigail Mazzarella, 26, often went to gay bars in Baltimore before Covid-19 stay-at-home measures were introduced. “I don’t live anywhere near my family, so I did depend on that community and friendships to get by and have a type of family here,” she said. When bars in the state closed, this physical community disappeared as Mazzarella needed its support the most. But the liquor store across her street remained open. Around the same time Covid-19 infection rates were increasing early last March, Mazzarella’s mother unexpectedly […]

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Mike Pence Hired By Anti-LGBTQ Hate Group

Via press release: The Heritage Foundation announced today that former Vice President Mike Pence will join the organization as a distinguished visiting fellow. “Over the course of the past four years, our team at Heritage has worked closely with members of the Trump administration on a host of policy accomplishments,” said Heritage President Kay C. James. “That’s why I am excited Vice President Mike Pence will join forces with Heritage to ensure we continue to advance conservative principles and policy solutions. His allegiance to the Constitution and commitment to advancing a conservative policy agenda make him an outstanding fit for […]

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Report: Hate groups in decline, migrate to online networks

During one of the most politically divisive years in recent memory, the number of active hate groups in the U.S. actually declined as far-right extremists migrated further to online networks, reflecting a splintering of white nationalist and neo-Nazi groups that are more difficult to track. In its annual report, to be released Monday, the Southern Poverty Law Center said it identified 838 active hate groups operating across the U.S. in 2020. That’s a decrease from the 940 documented in 2019 and the record-high of 1,020 in 2018, said the law center, which tracks racism, xenophobia and anti-government militias. “It is […]

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Biden Memo Pledges To Defend LGBTQ Rights Globally

The Associated Press reports: Asserting a broad reset of American foreign policy, President Joe Biden said Thursday that he would halt the withdrawal of U.S. troops stationed in Germany, end support for Saudi Arabia’s military offensive in Yemen and make support for LGBTQ rights a cornerstone of diplomacy. In his first visit to the State Department as president, Biden called for a return to the “grounding wire of our global power.”  He also signed a presidential memorandum on Thursday that his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said would focus on “protecting the rights of LGBTQ individuals worldwide.” “It reflects his deep […]

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Rand Paul grills Biden’s education nominee with transphobic questions

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Rand Paul was the picture of bitterness as he repeatedly pushed questions on transgender student athletes to Joe Biden’s education secretary nominee, Miguel Cardona. President Biden signed an executive order on his first day in office allowing trans students to participate in the sporting events that match their gender identity. This inclusive order seemed baffling to Rand, who was determined to press the matter during Cardona’s confirmation hearing in the Senate on Wednesday (3 February). “If you’re confirmed, will you enforce that Office of Civil Rights opinion?” he asked the nominee. “I understand that there are a lot of concerns about that,” Cardona replied neutrally. […]

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Almost every senator who voted against Pete Buttigieg’s historic cabinet post is anti-LGBT+

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There were few surprises on the list of senators who voted against Pete Buttigieg’s cabinet position, as almost every single one has a history of opposing LGBT+ rights. Pete Buttigieg – a.k.a. Mayor Pete – became America’s first openly LGBT+ cabinet member on Tuesday (2 February) when he was confirmed as secretary of transportation by a vote of 86-13. All of the 13 lawmakers who sought to block Pete Buttigieg are Republicans, almost exclusively from the South – and almost all are overtly anti-gay. The votes came from senators Richard Shelby and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama; Tom Cotton of Arkansas; Marco Rubio and Rick Scott of […]

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Buttigieg Confirmed With 13 GOP No Votes

ABC News reports: The Senate is poised to approve Pete Buttigieg to be transportation secretary, the first openly gay person ever confirmed to a Cabinet post, tasked with advancing President Joe Biden’s wide-ranging agenda of rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure and fighting climate change. Buttigieg’s nomination was set for a final vote Tuesday in the full Senate, after the 39-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and Biden’s one-time rival in the Democratic presidential primaries received bipartisan praise at his confirmation hearing last week. UPDATE: The vote was 86-13 with one vote outstanding at this writing. Voting against in the order it was […]

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Puerto Rico: Number one in hate crimes

It is hard to believe that an island of only 100 x 35 miles has the highest hate crimes rate in the United States. In 2020, six of the 44 deaths that occurred on the island consisted of transgender and gender non-conforming individuals. These deaths represent the majority of the murders of trans people that happened in the U.S. in 2020. Followed by Florida (4), Louisiana (4), Ohio (3), Texas (3), New York (3) and 17 other states. Puerto Rico is the U.S. jurisdiction with the most murders of trans people, according to statistics from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC). Puerto Rico […]

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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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Half of U.S. States Get Failing grade on LGBTQ Protections, Advocacy Group Says

Half of U.S. states lack basic protections for LGBTQ people, according to a report released Wednesday by the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy group, The campaign’s State Equality Index, an annual ranking of laws and policies, found that 25 states lack inclusive anti-discrimination statutes and are considered at a “high priority to achieve basic equality,” the lowest of the report’s four categories. (See a map of the states here.) “These states are most likely to have religious refusal or other anti-LGBTQ laws,” the report said. “Advocates often further LGBTQ equality by focusing on municipal protections for LGBTQ people […]

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