The results of a new survey published by Knight Foundation in partnership with Langer Research Associates shows that book bans, and the people who promote them, are losing support. The recent primary election results in Florida, home base for book-banning Moms for Liberty, show even more rejection at the ballot box.
First, the survey: Of more than 4,500 adults sampled, two thirds oppose book bans in public schools, and 78% trust school staff to stock shelves with “appropriate” titles. And although 60% of respondents view “appropriateness” as a reason to place restrictions on book access, Book Riot’s Kelly Jensen notes, “‘appropriateness’ here is not about topics like diversity, queerness, social-emotional learning, climate change, and other issues that have been the target of the book banning agenda.”
While Americans largely share a distaste for book bans and 23% are aware that these kinds of censorship efforts are happening in their community, only three percent have gotten involved, with two percent fighting to retain challenged titles and one percent attempting to ban them. In other words, says Jensen, an incredibly small subset of people are “instigating the astronomical rise in book bans nationwide.”
Diminishing Returns
Both Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Moms for Liberty took major hits during last week’s election. Eleven out of 23 DeSantis-backed candidates lost their races.
While Moms for Liberty’s list of school board endorsements in Florida somewhat differs from that of DeSantis, the results match a trend that started with recent elections: Campaigning on book bans is a losing platform. Of M4L’s list of endorsements in Florida, only three candidates won. Six lost their campaigns, while an additional five will be headed to a runoff election in November.
Of note in Indian River County: Candidates endorsed by DeSantis and M4L lost their races. Indian River is the birthplace of M4L. Stitching an article from the Associated Press, author and social media personality Jeffrey Marsh said, “even the people of Florida don’t want school board members who harass LGBTQ kids, who ban books, who push Christian nationalist agendas in schools.”
Florida and the Waning Influence of Moms for Liberty
Last week’s losses come after years of coordinated assault against books by and about LGBTQ people and people of color. According to a PEN America report, July-December 2023 saw more book bans than the entire 2022-23 school year. In Florida alone, there were 3,135 bans in 11 school districts.
Declared that Florida “will not comply” and would “fight back” against recent Title IX rule updates announced by the Biden administration, which include specific protections for LGBTQ students and prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation.
While calling book ban accusations against him a “hoax” and stating that Florida book bans are a “false narrative,” DeSantis walked back earlier book ban efforts under the “Don’t Say LGBTQ” law (House Bill 1557). Florida now limits book challenges to one title per month for “residents who don’t have a child in school.”
Spoke at Moms for Liberty’s 2023 national summit, and appointed M4L co-founder Bridget Ziegler to an oversight board he created to take on Disneyafter the company critiqued DeSantis’ anti-LGBTQ agenda. Ziegler and her husband Christian were later investigated as part of a rape allegation from a woman they had a sexual relationship with.
Signed House Bill 1557 into law in 2022. The legislation, informally known as “Don’t Say LGBTQ” or “Don’t Say Gay,” initially forbade discussion about sexual orientation and gender identity in K-3 public schools. The following year, DeSantis expanded the ban to all grades. Said DeSantis, “Schools are not there for you to try to go on some ideological joyride at the expense of our kids.”
In 2023, DeSantis and the Board of Governors appointed several members to the New College of Florida Board of Trustees. This month, passersby discovered that the college tossedhundreds of LGBTQ-inclusive titles from their dismantled Gender and Diversity Center.
Moms for Liberty appears to be trying to rebuild after its trouncing at the polls in 2023 and 2024, and devastating personal scandals against its co-founder and her disgraced husband. M4L has invited former President Donald Trump to speak at their annual summit this week, Trump’s second time addressing the group.
Kamala Harris’ journey to become the first Black and South Asian vice president of the United States is nothing short of groundbreaking. Now, as the 2024 presidential nominee, understanding Kamala Harris’ political stances offers valuable insight into her vision for the future.
What key issues define her political agenda, and how might they affect her candidacy and the shaping of the nation? Let’s take a look at her stances to explore these questions further.
Gaza
As the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris has articulated her robust support for Israel’s right to defend itself, emphasizing the necessity of protection against threats from militant groups like Hamas. At the same time, she has acknowledged the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza, highlighting its severe impact on Palestinian civilians.
In her recent remarks, Harris affirmed her commitment to working with President Joe Biden to negotiate a cease-fire and secure the release of hostages held by Hamas. “Now is the time to get a hostage deal and a cease-fire deal done,” she asserted in her Democratic National Convention speech.
Moreover, Harris has consistently addressed the rights of Palestinians, advocating for their right to “dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination.” Her stance underscores a nuanced approach, aiming to maintain support from both pro-Israel Democrats and those advocating for Palestinian rights.
However, her campaign has said she doesn’t support an embargo on the sale of U.S. weapons to Israel, something long sought by pro-Palestinian protestors. She risks alienating them and other progressive voters if she doesn’t explain how her administration would differ from the current one’s approach.
If she becomes president, Harris is expected to replace some of the chief architects of the Biden administration’s strategy in Gaza, The Wall Street Journal reported. Her national security adviser, Philip Gordon, has emphasized the need for diplomatic (rather than military) foreign policy solutions. However, she has not yet laid out concrete details about the diplomatic levers she could use to force Israel to end its targeting of Palestinian civilians.
Kamala Harris has consistently championed the need to protect reproductive rights, advocating for national legislation that mirrors the protections once granted by Roe v. Wade. In the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, which overturned Roe, Harris emerged as a key figure in the Biden administration’s efforts to keep the issue at the forefront. Her proactive stance was underscored by a historic visit to an abortion clinic, marking the first such visit by a sitting vice president.
During her tenure in the Senate, Harris was a vocal supporter of abortion rights. She co-sponsored legislation to ban states from restricting abortion rights and opposed a bill to ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. She has also advocated for laws requiring states with histories of restricting abortion rights to obtain federal approval for new abortion-related laws.
In her speech at the end of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, she mentioned that former President Donald Trump and his conservative allies are “out of their minds” for intending to empower extremists, cut social programs, and outlaw abortion across the country.
Taxing the rich
Kamala Harris supports a comprehensive tax plan that would increase taxes on the wealthiest Americans and large corporations to generate nearly $5 trillion in revenue over the next decade. She would increase taxes on individuals earning more than $400,000 a year — a group representing approximately 1.8% of America’s top income earners. She has pledged to ensure that middle and lower-income families don’t face increased tax burdens.
Additionally, Harris wants to raise the corporate tax rate from the existing 21% to 28%, which would generate an estimated $1.3 trillion over ten years, according to the Treasury Department. By targeting affluent individuals and major corporations, she seeks to address economic disparities and secure funding for essential government initiatives without affecting the broader population.
Her campaign spokesman, James Singer, articulated her vision by saying the plan is “a fiscally responsible way to put money back in the pockets of working people and ensure billionaires and big corporations pay their fair share.”
Healthcare
During her 2019 presidential campaign, Harris supported the introduction of a “Medicare-for-all” public option that would allow people to choose between public and private health insurance. While she has since backed away from this plan, during her time in the Senate, she supported bills that expanded Medicare coverage in individual states.
She has supported the Inflation Reduction Act, which allows the federal government to negotiate drug prices for those most commonly prescribed under Medicare. As vice president, she has also spoken about the Biden administration’s efforts to reduce medical debt.
During her current presidential campaign, she has pledged to improve healthcare access by reducing drug prices and expanding coverage under the 2010 Affordable Care Act, a federal law that Republicans have long sought to repeal. She has also publicly opposed Republican proposals to privatize or cut health care programs for elderly and lower-income Americans.
The 2024 Democratic National Platform has also pledged to ensure that health insurers adequately cover mental health and substance use treatment.
Although she has not introduced new policies for tackling climate change, she has supported the Biden Administration’s pledges to fight climate change, pledged U.S. investments into helping other countries fight climate change, and previously supported the Green New Deal, which would invest federal funds into state and local efforts to end pollution and build renewable energy sources.
LGBTQ+ issues
Kamala Harris has consistently demonstrated her commitment to LGBTQ+ equality, building a record of support that spans her career in public service. As California’s Attorney General, Harris played a pivotal role in restoring marriage equality in the state by refusing to defend Proposition 8, a voter-approved measure that had revoked the right to same-sex marriage. Her decisive actions helped pave the way for the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that ultimately struck down the proposition.
As a vocal opponent of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, Harris has condemned policies that restrict the rights of LGBTQ+ individuals, particularly those affecting transgender youth. She emphasized her stance by saying, “The fight for equal rights is patriotic. We believe in the foundational principles of our country; we believe in the promise of freedom and equality and justice.”
As president, she has pledged to support the Equality Act, a bill that would add LGBTQ+ anti-discrimination protections to the 1964 Civil Rights Act. She has also pledged to continue protecting transgender students and gender-affirming care and to oppose anti-LGBTQ+ book bans in red states.
A vision for progressive change
Kamala Harris stands as an advocate for progressive change, pushing for policies that tax the rich, expand healthcare, fight environmental pollution, and expand LGBTQ+ civil rights. While her current campaign hasn’t always detailed the specific policies she’ll pursue as president, the Democratic National Platform and her past actions and statements reflect her long-term dedication to these issues.
The U.S. Census Bureau is testing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) on the American Community Survey (ACS).
The bureau received approval from the White House Office of Management and Budget on July 11 following a brief period to receive public comment on the questions, the Bay Area Reporter reported. The announcement follows through on a commitment by President Joe Biden during Pride Month two years ago when he issued a directive to federal agencies directing them to find ways to better gauge and serve the LGBTQ+ community.
The ACS is sent to 295,000 households every year. The results are used to analyze household data and allocate federal funding.
In 2022, the ACS found approximately 1.3 million same-sex couple households in the U.S. Of those couples, around 741,000 (or 57 percent) were married while the rest were not. Additionally, 31 percent of the married same-sex couples were interracial, significantly higher than opposite-sex married couples.
Of particular interest to the Bureau is the use of proxy reporting in responding to census questions.
“In 2023, the AHS asked SOGI questions of adult respondents in regular, occupied housing units; one-half of the sample included experimental proxy questions for all members of the household along with the self-response questions,” the Bureau wrote in a press release announcing the proposed SOGI questions in June. “This research will help us understand how LGBT households compare to non-LGBT households on things like housing characteristics, housing costs, and housing quality, among others. It will also tell us about differences or similarities in trends between respondent and proxy data.”
The news was welcomed by a former Census Bureau and SOGI expert Nancy Bates, who is a lesbian.
“This is a watershed moment for both the Census Bureau and the entire US federal statistical system,” Bates told the Reporter via email. “I eagerly await the findings and ultimate implications this will have for the LGBTQI+ community.”
A gay former pupil and his mother are suing a school district where he allegedly experienced relentless bullying, including verbal abuse, threats of violence and another student making a “straight pride” poster with his face on it.
The legal complaint, filed by the student’s mother in June 2023, details that when he attended Ronald Reagan Middle School, in Haymarket, Virginia, he faced “regular and relentless anti-LGBTQ+ bullying” from classmates.
The defendants named in the case are the Prince William County School Board, the principal, Christopher Beemer, and assistant principal Jenita Boatwright.
Beemer still works as the school but Boatwright has left.
The claimant alleges that Beemer, Boatwright and the school board responded to requests for help “with victim-blaming and inaction”.
The openly gay student started in sixth grade at the school in August 2019 which is when the alleged victimisation began, with the first incident involving classmates taking his belongings and passing them around the classroom while voicing homophobic slurs, it is claimed.
The teacher reportedly did not put an end to the bullying and it happened three more times.
The verbal harassment is said to have continued and in December 2021 five students surrounded the boy outside the school building, again using homophobic slurs.
In the complaint, the boy’s mother says two teachers who were nearby did nothing to help and when the student got into his mother’s car, the bullies gave her the middle finger.
It is also alleged that in 2022, one student made the “straight pride” poster while a number of bullies cornered him in the toilet, banged on the stall door and shouted: “There’s a girl in here,” threatening violence.
A judge denied a school board motion dismiss the case but Beemer and Boatwright’s was granted in part.
The case asserts four causes of action: sex discrimination under Title IX civil rights protections against the school board, an equal protection clause violation against the individual defendants, a violation against the individual defendants, which the judge dismissed, and gross negligence against the individual defendants.
District judge Rossie D Alston Jr gave the plaintiffs 14 days to file an amended complaint for the charge that was dismissed.
A school board spokesperson told Inside Nova it does not comment on active cases but “remains committed to providing an inclusive and excellent education for every student and has no tolerance for harassment, bullying or intimidation of students”.
Atlanta police are investigating an act of vandalism that damaged property belonging to organizers of an LGBTQ Pride event dedicated to celebrating Black queer communities globally.
The Atlanta Police Department said in a statement Wednesday that the incident happened at a hotel in midtown Atlanta, where an event for Global Black Pridewas taking place.
Authorities added that a preliminary investigation indicated that an intoxicated guest of the hotel caused the damage late Tuesday evening, and that they are still “following up on leads regarding the identity of the suspect and are working to determine why the suspect caused the damage.”
Tables, pamphlets and other memorabilia were scattered on the floor at the hotel, according to photos the organizers of the festival shared with NBC News.
Global Black Pride condemned the incident in a post on Instagram on Wednesday, calling it an “act of hatred.”
“Healing and joy are our priorities in a world that often harbors hate,” the group wrote. “We will not be deterred, and we will not allow hate stop us from celebrating our pride and resilience.”
“When we fight, we win,” it added.
The Global Black Pride festival, which started Tuesday and will end Monday in Atlanta, includes workshops, art exhibits, a health conference and several marches. It began during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and is celebrated every two years. The 2022 event, the first held in-person, was in Toronto.
This year’s celebration headliners include Tony-winning actor Billy Porter and Nigerian singers Yemi Alade and Omawumi.
More than half of Black LGBTQ U.S. adults live in the South, according to a January 2021 report from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law. Of the Atlanta metropolitan area’s population of about 6 million people, roughly 194,000 identify as LGBTQ, according to March 2021 data from the institute, though that data was not broken down by race.
Former president Donald Trump has shared AI-generated images in a bid to imply he has support from the vast majority of Taylor Swift fans. He doesn’t.
In his most recent bid to gain popularity as he battles vice-president Kamala Harris for the keys to the White House, Trump reposted a screenshot on his social media platform, Truth Social, which purports to show women wearing t-shirts that read “Swifties for Trump”, alongside one legitimate image of a woman wearing a similar top.
He captioned the imagery, which also included an AI-generated image of Swift in an Uncle Sam outfit urging people to vote for Trump, “I accept.”
At the start of this month, Swift and Beyoncé were subjects of a rumour about them endorsing Democrat Harris through a joint concert. This remains just gossip.
However, in 2021, Swift said Trump’s presidency forced her “to lean in and educate” herself about politics. A year earlier she backed Joe Biden – not Trump – for president.
Before that she wrote an open letter rejecting Trump’s beliefs and urging the Republican senator in her home state of Tennessee to support the Equality Act, which sought to incorporate protections against LGBTQ+ discrimination into the federal 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Continuing to spread disinformation, Trump also shared a video clip of a woman saying “Swifties are waking up” and supporting Trump, following a terror plot that brought the cancellation of one of the star’s concerts in Austria.
He further reposted content that implied Harris was a communist.
In an accompanying article, with the headline The Reintroduction of Kamala Harris, the vice-president’s campaign rally in Philadelphia earlier this month was compared to a Taylor Swift or Beyoncé concert.
It was branded a “puff piece” by some readers, while Harris supporters called it an “amazing” and “historic” cover and story.
A fight outside of the Shack Shack near Dupont Circle over the weekend is being investigated as a suspected hate crime. According to a police report from the Metropolitan Police Department, Saturday night around 6 p.m., Christian Dingus reported to police that he was assaulted by multiple people. The police report states that the incident is being investigated as a possible anti-gay hate crime based on sexual orientation.
Dingus was treated by D.C. Fire emergency medical service on scene. A video circulating online shows the attack. In the video, what looks to be three Shake Shake employees begin shoving and punching a man on the street outside the store. The attackers knock the man down and begin kicking him. Two more people come from behind and one appears to attempt to pull some of the other attackers away from the man on the ground.
Christian Dingus, 28, was with his partner and a group of friends at a Dupont Circle location Saturday night when the incident occurred, he told NBC News. They had put in their order and were hanging around waiting for their food.
“And while we were back there — kind of briefly — we began to kiss,” Dingus said. “And at that point, a worker came out to us and said that, you know, you can’t be doing that here, can’t do that type of stuff here. And then one of the men, pretty forcefully, like, pushed me out of the way on my shoulder.”
“And then, you know, next thing I know, that kind of just, I think, sparked the rest of them. … They all just kind of started attacking me at that point, dragging me back through the floor and continuously punching me in my head.”
Dingus says he was treated at the hospital for a concussion and contusions. Dupont Circle has been a popular DC gayborhood for decades. Shake Shack, which regularly celebrates Pride Month on social media, says it is investigating the incident.
The 2024 Democratic National Convention begins tonight in Chicago, and will run through Thursday, August 22. Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to accept her party’s invitation for President of the United States, and Gov. Tim Walz will accept the nomination for vice president. The convention will also include an array of party notables, the unveiling of the party platform, panels and meetings, and an address by President Joe Biden.
GLAAD is releasing a fact sheet for reporters covering the Democratic National Convention and historic nomination of Harris.
GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis (she/her) says, ”LGBTQ people are a growing, visible and impactful voting bloc, and our fundamental freedoms are under attack and at stake in this election. Reporters must include LGBTQ voices in campaign conversations. Our issues and concerns are America’s issues: the right to make our own health care decisions; to be safe at school, work and in our communities; to read the books we want and that reflect our lives and history; to belong and be welcome just as we are. GLAAD research shows when news stories accurately include LGBTQ people, acceptance and safety expands. Media covering the convention and campaign beyond must include LGBTQ Americans and the stakes that deeply affect us, our safety, and everyone’s future.”
Facts to include in your coverage:
LGBTQ voters made the deciding difference in the 2020 election and are poised to do so again in 2024. More than 1 in 5 Gen Z Americans (ages 18-26) are out as LGBTQ, the most out generation in history. Nearly 30% of Gen Z women are LGBTQ.
GLAAD’s Accelerating Acceptance Study shows supermajority support for LGBTQ people, though support has dipped in the last year and Gen Z is increasingly a target for harassment and discrimination:
80% of non-LGBTQ Americans support LGBTQ equal rights, down from a record high of 84% one year ago
95% of non-LGBTQ Americans believe schools should be safe and accepting for all youth
93% say children should be taught to appreciate and accept people as they are
70% of Gen Z LGBTQ adults report discrimination based on their sexual orientation
GLAAD is tracking the pro-LGBTQ record of Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, here.
GLAAD has also documented the pro-LGBTQ record of Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
The Biden-Harris administration has been the most pro-LGBTQ presidency in history, with nearly 350 moves to include and protect LGBTQ Americans. GLAAD’s ongoing Biden Accountability Tracker is here.
GLAAD polling shows LGBTQ registered voters are highly motivated to vote, with 94% indicating they are definitely (83%) or probably (11%) voting this year.
GLAAD polling shows 53% of both registered and likely 2024 voters say they would oppose “a political candidate [who] speaks frequently about restricting access to health care and participation in sports for transgender youth.”
GLAAD polling shows all categories of voters overwhelmingly agree that “Republicans should stop focusing on restricting women’s rights and banning medical care for transgender youth and instead focus on addressing inflation, job creation, and healthcare costs.” 94% of LGBTQ voters, 76% of registered voters, 76% of likely 2024 voters, and 82% of swing voters (those who have voted for candidates in both parties) agree.
2023 election returns in Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio show that voters supported pro-equality candidates over candidates who targeted transgender people in their campaigns.
GLAAD has documented the records of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump on the top issues for LGBTQ voters: the economy (Harris, Trump), abortion (Harris, Trump), climate change (Harris, Trump), public safety (Harris, Trump), and education (Harris, Trump).
Abortion is an LGBTQ issue. LGBTQ people can and do get pregnant and need reproductive health care. Many of the same states with abortion bans also have enacted bans on transgender health care even though the care is supported by every major medical association as safe, effective and lifesaving.
GLAAD’s ongoing documentation of Donald Trump’s anti-LGBTQ record is available on the Trump Accountability Tracker, here.
Throughout Trump’s presidency, his administration argued to legalize discrimination against LGBTQ people at work, at school, in health care and housing access, when trying to buy a cake and trying to adopt
Trump nominated three anti-LGBTQ justices to the U.S. Supreme Court who went on to vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. The decision was backed by Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, who said the landmark LGBTQ equality decisions Obergefell (marriage equality), Lawrence (private same-sex relationships), and Griswold (private decisions about contraception) should also be “reconsidered.” Trump’s Supreme Court nominees have ties to anti-LGBTQ groups including Family Research Council and anti-LGBTQ hate group Alliance Defending Freedom. Justice Neil Gorsuch, who had written the Bostock decision expanding civil rights protections to LGBTQ workers (over Trump administration objections), wrote the decision in 303 Creative, a 26-page opinion about a legal dispute that never existed, and websites that do not exist, at the behest of anti-LGBTQ hate group Alliance Defending Freedom on fully fabricated standing.
Though Donald Trump has tried to distance himself from Project 2025, the blueprint for authoritarian takeover of the government created by the anti-LGBTQ Heritage Foundation, his runningmate wrote the foreword to an upcoming book by Heritage’s president. Multiple people and groups behind Project 2025 have direct ties to Trump and his former administration.
Best Practices for Campaign Reporters:
Stories about or that mention LGBTQ people should include LGBTQ voices.
In stories specifically about transgender people, seek and include a transgender person.
Prioritize facts, expertise and LGBTQ lived experience over candidate and campaign opinion in your reporting. For example, any discussion of transgender health care must note this care is supported by every major medical association (30+ statements here).
Review and report a candidate’s LGBTQ record and support from anti-LGBTQ groups. Ongoing documentation is available on candidates, other public figures, and groups via the GLAAD Accountability Project.
Avoid shorthand descriptions of political conversations about LGBTQ people as a “culture war.” This dehumanizes marginalized people as a “side” and allows politicians to escape accountability for creating and fueling the “war.” Descriptors like this add to voter apathy. Focus reporting on the policies, the people directly harmed or helped, and the candidates proposing them and their LGBTQ history.
Be factual and clear in your language: “(candidate name) has proposed policies expanding access to health care for transgender people that is supported by every major medical association.”
Include greater context: 500+ anti-LGBTQ bills were proposed in state legislatures through 2023. This is a broad scale, coordinated attack against LGBTQ Americans, targeting health care, book bans, curriculum and conversation bans, sports bans, and bathroom bans. Inform your readers and viewers about this larger pattern of LGBTQ animus. Note how health care and drag ban bills have been blocked in multiple states and district courts as unconstitutional and discriminatory, and how voters across the country have rejected so-called “parents’ rights” groups that push book bans and discriminatory policies against LGBTQ students, families, and teachers.
When discussing “battleground” states including Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Arizona, note that voters in the most recent elections rejected anti-LGBTQ extremist candidates who sought to ban books and conversations about LGBTQ people, or supported lies about the 2020 election. Moms for Liberty-affiliated candidates in Wisconsin were defeated in 20 of the 28 school board elections
Report connections between anti-LGBTQ extremism and other extremism: states proposing bills targeting mainstream health care for transgender people have also enacted and proposed the most restrictive bans on abortion (including Florida), and denied and denigrated fair elections. Lawmakers in Nebraska passed a bill both banning health care for transgender youth and abortion after 12 weeks. Texas lawmakers proposed more than 140 anti-LGBTQ bills last year as it also targeted women and health care providers over reproductive care and enforced draconian laws.
Report the impact of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and policies, specifically for LGBTQ youth.
Additional resources:
GALLUP: 6% of U.S. adults are out as LGBTQ, including 20% of Gen Z, the most out generation in history.
GALLUP: 69% of Americans support marriage equality including a majority of Republicans.
GLAAD Media Reference Guide: terminology and 20+ topic areas to learn about and accurately report on LGBTQ people
Medical Association Statements Transgender Health Care: 30+ statements from every major medical association and world health authority, across specialties and patient lifespan, supporting health care for transgender people. Health care for transgender people is mainstream care with widely held consensus of both the medical and scientific communities.
88-year-old beloved talk show host and writer Phil Donahue sadly passed away last night. Donahue, who was best known for his iconic talk show Donahue,made waves for nearly 3 decades with groundbreaking and diverse guests featured on the show.
An outspoken ally, Donahue hosted the first ever GLAAD Media Awards in 1990. In addition to hosting, Donahue won an award and was named Media Person of the Year for “his continued excellence in coverage and support of gay and lesbian concerns.”
Donahue and wife Marlo Thomas went on to attend countless GLAAD Media Awards ceremonies, aiding in the organization’s mission to accelerate acceptance for LGBTQ people. Donahue was honored again in 2009 with a special recognition award.
On Donahue’s passing, GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis stated:
“Phil Donahue was one of GLAAD and the LGBTQ community’s earliest and loudest champions. In the 1980s, he revolutionized coverage of LGBTQ people and our stories on his popular daytime talk show, prioritizing fairness and accuracy when misinformation and homophobia were rampant in the media. Using his platform to elevate the personal, human story at the heart of so many issues including HIV, coming out, trans equality, women’s equality and even facilitating the first ever marriage for a same-sex couple to be broadcast on television, Donahue will forever be remembered as a trailblazer for equality and LGBTQ representation on TV. At a time when other notables were hesitant to even speak on LGBTQ issues, Donahue hosted the first ever GLAAD Media Awards in 1990, where he was honored as GLAAD’s Media Person of the Year. GLAAD also recognized his long-time allyship and legacy by giving him a Special Recognition Award at the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in 2009. Our condolences and gratitude go out to his wife and tireless LGBTQ ally Marlo Thomas, as well as his family, friends, and everyone inspired by his hugely successful career as a storyteller and television changemaker.”
Donahue, which aired from the late 60s until 1996, was pioneering in its inclusiveness. Donahue spoke with everyone from politicians and religious leaders to civil rights activists and members of the LGBTQ community.
In 1990, Donahue hosted the first ever same-sex wedding to premiere on U.S. television. The ceremony featured a live studio audience and Donahue even gave the married couple Michael Marlowe and Wayne Watson the opportunity to field questions from the audience and over the phone to talk about their experience as Black, gay men.
Prior to this, in October of 1981, Donahue hosted an episode titled “Are Gays Born This Way?” In the episode, Donahue facilitated an open conversation between live studio audience members and guests Alan Bell, Ph.D. (author of “Sexual Preference”) and Lawrence Hatterer, M.D. (Professor of Psychiatry at Cornell University) about this topic generally found too taboo to discuss at the time.
Donahue has been dubbed by many as the King of Daytime Talk. Fan and friend Oprah Winfrey stated in 2002 that, “If there had been no Phil Donahue Show, there would be no ‘Oprah Winfrey’ show. He was the first to acknowledge that women are interested in more than mascara tips and cake recipes — that we’re intelligent, we’re concerned about the world around us, and we want the best possible lives for ourselves.”
The two spoke in 2002 about his decision to include his first gay guest on the show in 1968. “I was terrified,” he told Oprah. “Terrified?”
He went on to explain, “If you don’t understand those feelings, then you don’t understand homophobia. There’s a reason for the closet. As the years went by after that show, I got involved in gay politics. And through my activism, I began to realize what it must be like to be born, to live, and to die in the closet. I can’t even imagine it. Gayness is not a moral issue, yet no institution on earth has promoted homophobia more than the church. That’s what’s so ironic about the scandal in the Catholic Church. Here you have the most homophobic institution in the world with the largest closet of homosexuals.”
This groundbreaking 1968 episode was the first time countless Americans saw an out LGBTQ person on live TV.
Other notable guests on the show included Elton John, Gloria Steinem, Cher, Gregory Peck, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Williams, Dolly Parton, Muhammad Ali, and many more.
Donahue’s work received critical acclaim, earning him 9 Daytime Emmys and 21 nominations as well as a primetime Emmy for his special Donahue and Kids.
Donahue is remembered by his millions of fans, wife Marlo Thomas, and 5 children. Countless friends and fans have taken to social media to remember the talk show legend.
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) understands the stakes of the upcoming election. He immigrated to the U.S. at age 5, became a U.S. citizen in his early 20s, tackled the COVID-19 epidemic as the youngest and first out LGBTQ+ mayor of Long Beach, California, and—after the virus killed both his mother and stepfather—became the first out gay immigrant ever elected to Congress. Now Garcia is surrounded by some Republican legislators who believe COVID-19 was a hoax, immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country,” and that LGBTQ+ people don’t deserve legal protections.
About a month ago, Garcia was all in on the campaign to re-elect President Joe Biden. He supported Biden’s 2020 campaign as one of the first out LGBTQ+ people to deliver a keynote address at the Democratic National Convention. In April, he helped launch a national initiative focused on rallying LGBTQ+ voters and volunteers behind Biden, and while many Democrats called on Biden to step down following his lackluster June 27 debate performance, Garcia wasn’t among them.
But a lot has changed over the last month. Biden dropped out of the presidential race on July 21 and immediately endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement. Garcia quickly expressed his support for Harris — a fellow Californian — noting that he served as her campaign co-chair during her candidacy for president during the 2020 Democratic presidential primary.
Barely two weeks later, Garcia cheered Harris’s selection of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate, calling him “a home run pick” and adding, “He’s a former teacher and veteran and understands Congress. He has a strong record standing up for working families. Let’s go Harris-Walz because we are not going back!”
“It’s sad to see what’s happening in so many states in the South and Texas and so many other places,” Garcia told LGBTQ Nation about the wave of Republican legislation trying to roll back protections for LGBTQ+, reproductive, and immigrant rights. “And it’s really unfortunate that [these places] send representatives to Congress that can really impact all of our rights.”
With a conservative Supreme Court willing to overturn the court’s past decisionsupholding the rights to contraception and same-sex marriage, “We’re in a really dangerous moment for the community,” Garcia said. “Which is why we need to be very honest and focused on pushing really hard, winning the White House, on flipping the house and making sure that we do everything we can organize in these states.”
Luckily, Democratic enthusiasm has skyrocketed since Harris replaced Biden. According to gay election data analyst Nate Silver, Harris currently leads Trump in five critical swing states.
But history shows us that polls are anything but certain. In 2016, data indicated a promising victory for then-presidential nominee Hillary Clinton just before her shocking loss to Trump despite winning the popular vote.
For his next term, Trump has promised to outlaw gender-affirming care for trans youth (with prison time for anyone complicit in the act), deny federal funds to any hospital or doctors that offer gender-affirming care, and roll back all Biden administration policy protecting trans students “on day one” of his presidency. With the aid of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025, Trump has also promised a nationwide ban on trans student-athletes, a federal law recognizing only two genders, prosecution of schools with LGBTQ+-inclusive policies, and the end of all diversity, equity, and inclusion programs (DEI) that encourage the inclusion of non-white, women, and queer individuals.
Trump is also targeting undocumented immigrant families, and it’s an issue Garcia cares deeply about. Trump has also promised to conduct the largest domestic deportation of immigrants in American history (including individuals who have “anti-American views,” which is worrying since he considers racial justice and anti-fascist protestors to be “terrorists”); to reinstate his Muslim travel ban; to end the 125-year-old U.S. right to birthright citizenship; and to terminate the Department of Education.
“It’s really important that we tell people that we can’t be hopeless, that we have to fight back, and we can’t just allow them to steamroll us and to take our rights away.”Rep. Robert Garcia
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“I have met with folks that are really, really scared,” Garcia said. “I think it’s important to recognize that people are scared, that people are concerned at the same time. I think it’s really important that we tell people that we can’t be hopeless, that we have to fight back, and we can’t just allow them to steamroll us and to take our rights away.”
“It’s really important that we are aggressive and that we fight back, that we bring the fire,” Garcia added. “This is not a moment where we should be, in any way, holding back our punches. We’re going to be punching back really, really hard, and especially when you have nut jobs like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert who are impacting our community and who… are insulting LGBTQ+ families almost every day in Congress.”
Garcia has exemplified his willingness to fight back against the likes of Trump, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and their ilk in Congress.
He has said that Greene “obviously has no business being in Congress and is completely, in my opinion, a traitor to the country,” noting that she supported the Trump-inspired January 6, 2021, insurrection to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election. He has called out hypocritical Republicans for ignoring the Trump family’s numerous (and possibly unethical) foreign business deals while Trump was in the White House; he also led efforts to kick out now-former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) for his dishonesty and financial misdealings.
Garcia has compared Trump’s anti-immigration rhetoric to Hitler’s, saying, “His imagery, the way he supports white nationalism, the way he supports white supremacy, and those kinds of comments are completely offensive to immigrants and hopefully to all Americans in this country.”
For Garcia, the fight over immigrant rights remains particularly personal and important. When he was sworn into Congress in January 2023, he swore on a copy of the U.S. Constitution and three meaningful personal items: a photo of his mother and stepfather, who he had recently lost to COVID, his citizenship certificate, and an original 1939 first-issue copy of a Superman comic from the Library of Congress. Superman is himself an immigrant who arrived in the U.S. as a child and fought for “Truth, Justice, and a Better Tomorrow.”
Trump’s plan to deport 11 million undocumented people — despite his use of immigrant labor at his properties — would break up law-abiding immigrant families who have been living, working, and paying taxes in the U.S. for decades. Not only would the U.S. lose about $100 billion a year that they pay in taxes, according to Mother Jones, but the agriculture, construction, and hospitality industries, which largely rely on immigrant labor, would all take a massive hit.
“We came here when I was a young, young kid, and I grew up like a low-income family, a lot of good families, and it was a struggle and tough, but we all became citizens… very grateful and very patriotic Americans,” Garcia said. “And I certainly believe that other kids should have the same opportunity that was given to me to earn my citizenship.”
“It’s important, particularly in the LGBTQ+ community, to know that we all have shared struggles,” Garcia added, “and for us to have empathy and understand the humanity of migrants and of immigrants: that they are also LGBTQ+ migrants trying to flee oppressive countries or places where they are hurt or not accepted. There are areas where those issues intersect…. And I think it’s important for immigrants to support gay issues and vice versa.”
Garcia also knows that tomorrow may not look certain for LGBTQ+ people either, both domestically and abroad. But as a Congress member, he has shown what it means to fight for queer rights in the Capitol.
“Congress needs more radical homosexuals. I’m proud and openly queer, and we have 10 members of Congress that are gay — we need a lot more.”Rep. Robert Garcia
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For Garcia, “fighting back” not only means voting, though he acknowledges its importance — it means using influence to persuade and organize with others.
“Be vocal, be unapologetic, if you’re able to, with friends and family. Push and do what you can with organizing, volunteering for a campaign, and donating. There are a bunch of ways of organizing, and obviously, the work can happen any place,” Garcia said. “If you work at a school, there’s ways to organize. If you work at a healthcare system, there’s ways to organize. There’s a passion of community in every place, in every type of workplace.”
Garcia’s own means of organizing and persuading has included turning his House speeches into viral moments that raise his profile online. In fact, earlier this year, he won the “The Most Likely to Trumpet His Own Thirsty Award” in Politico‘s second-annual Thirsties Awards, an honor for “the members of Congress who have worked the hardest — at getting attention.”
For Garcia, these moments aren’t just about expressing himself, creating a viral moment, or raising his online profile. He sees it as an important part of the political process, too.
“When I try to incorporate pop culture and other things that I like, I know sometimes reaches a different audience,” Garcia said. “We have to learn how to speak to an entire audience, and we have to learn how to communicate to folks that maybe don’t follow politics.”
Garcia’s approach has made him a rising star in the Democratic Party, and he said he’s working hard to help elect other out and proud LGBTQ+ politicians, like Sarah McBride, who would become the first trans member of Congress out of Delaware, and Emily Randall of Washington who would be the first Latina lesbian in Congress.
“Congress needs more radical homosexuals,” Garcia said. “I’m proud and openly queer, and we have ten members of Congress that are gay — we need a lot more. We need a lot more folks that are aggressive, that stand up for the community: They’re going to talk about trans rights, health care, and the attacks on our community, and be proudly open while doing it.”
