National

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Court blocks Trump admin’s anti-LGBTQ+ restrictions on grants for domestic violence and homeless shelters

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A federal judge in Rhode Island has granted a temporary restraining order blocking conditions the Trump administration had placed on grants to organizations serving survivors of domestic and sexual violence, LGBTQ+ youth, and people experiencing homelessness. U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose issued the order Thursday in Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence v. Kennedy, which was filed just four days earlier. While the case is named for the Rhode Island group, it was brought by a nationwide coalition of organizations that serve these populations. The plaintiffs will submit a proposal for the scope of the restraining order for the court’s review, focused on the organizations […]

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LGBTQ festival canceled after 16 years due to Trump DEI order, organizers say

The organizers of an LGBTQ film festival in Phoenix have canceled the annual event “in direct response” to President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs at publicly funded institutions.  The nonprofit Desperado LGBTQ+ Film Festival is hosted by a student organization at Paradise Valley Community College, which receives federal funds. The festival’s mission, according to its website, is to showcase quality films that are related to the experiences of the LGBTQ+ community.” The festival was first held in 2009, and the most recent edition — which included seven feature films and seven shorts — was […]

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Kansas public universities end LGBTQ+, DEI programs

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The University of Kansas and Kansas State University are ending LGBTQ+ and diversity, equity, and inclusion programs due to a new state law. A provision in the latest state budget bill, Senate Bill 125, directs all state agencies, including colleges and universities, to end any programs or activities related to DEl. It also bars state employees from using gender-identifying pronouns or anything related to “gender ideology” in email signatures. It doesn’t define DEI or gender ideology, Inside Higher Ed notes, and takes up just a few lines in a 300-page bill. But the universities are implementing it in their own way. Kansas State announced last week that […]

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21 states that have passed anti-LGBTQ+ laws in 2025 so far

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21 states, 67 laws Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation isn’t slowing down in 2025 — it’s gaining traction.  Five hundred and ninety-eight bills restricting the rights of queer people have been proposed in state legislatures across the United States so far this year, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, with 67 becoming law. That’s compared to 533 proposed in all of last year, and 510 in all of 2023.  The 67 laws that have been enacted this year come from only 21 states, with just four of them accounting for 26 laws. Most target transgender people’s access to public facilities, gender-affirming care, and recognition in society.  […]

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Ohio GOP wants to forcibly out queer students to unsupportive parents

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Ohio State Republicans have introduced numerous anti-LGBTQ+ bills during this legislative session, including one that would out LGBTQ+ students to their parents if they receive any related counseling, a bill requiring transgender politicians to list their deadnames on public records, a law restricting trans students’ ability to use preferred names and pronouns in schools, and a ban on drag (even though federal courts have blocked similar laws for violating free speech rights). State Democrats have also introduced legislation to enshrine LGBTQ+ non-discrimination protections as well as a ban on so-called conversion therapy into law. None of the bills have received hearings so […]

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LGBTQ rights group Human Rights Campaign launches tour through mostly red states

The Human Rights Campaign, the country’s largest LGBTQ rights organization, is taking its LGBTQ equality message on the road with a multicity tour focused on changing more hearts and minds, particularly in red states. The “American Dreams Tour” will kick off Wednesday in Columbus, Ohio, and travel to cities in predominantly Republican-led states through November. The tour’s goal, according to HRC, is to amplify LGBTQ people’s stories “at a time of rising political attacks and cultural erasure” and “celebrate the communities pushing back against hate and fighting for a future of equality for all.” “For half a century, our movement […]

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Judge orders city council reinstate member who praised Pulse shooter for targeting gay people

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The Florida woman who was thrown off a small-town city council by her colleagues for racist and homophobic tweets has been reinstated by a local judge. Judi Fike was kicked off the Groveland City Council after her history of obscene and offensive social media posts was uncovered and published in a local paperahead of a city council primary. Fike was appointed to her seat last year and is running for a full term. She called publication of the story a timed “political attack” just weeks ahead of her August primary. Circuit Judge Dan Mosely issued a temporary injunction on the city, reinstating Fike […]

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Judge Halts Mississippi’s New Anti-DEI Education Law

Mississippi Today reports: A federal judge has temporarily paused enforcement of the state law that prohibits diversity, equity and inclusion programs from Mississippi public schools and universities. U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate approved the request for a temporary restraining order sought by a coalition of civil rights and legal organizations on behalf of students, parents and educators. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Mississippi Center for Justice are representing the plaintiffs, who filed the lawsuit alongside other groups on June 9 against the state’s education boards. The order is in effect for 14 days, and allows Wingate to extend it […]

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This Republican governor vetoed anti-LGBTQ+ book ban and bathroom bills

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New Hampshire Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte has gone against her party and vetoed two anti-LGBTQ+ bills and three other far-right ones. Ayotte vetoed the bills Tuesday, while signing 101 others into law. House Bill 324 would have barred schools from distributing books and other materials deemed “harmful to minors.” It was aimed primarily at sexual content and likely would have been used against books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes. It also would have required school districts to strengthen the process through which parents could challenge these materials. “Current state law appears to provide a mechanism for parents through their local school district to […]

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Trump libel lawsuit over alleged Jeffrey Epstein letter will be heard by gay Obama-appointed judge

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A gay Obama-appointed judge will preside over Donald Trump’s libel lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal over claims the president once sent an NSFW birthday card and doodle to the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.  Trump is suing for $10 billion after denying he ever wrote the letter, and now Judge Darrin Gayles, who became the first out gay Black man appointed as a federal judge, has been assigned to the case.  The Senate unanimously confirmed Gayles after he was appointed by former President Barack Obama in 2014. Politico pointed out he earned such widespread support for being relatively bipartisan. Two Republican governors […]

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