News

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When parents are the activists: PFLAG celebrates 50 years of LGBTQ advocacy

In 1982, David Holladay was 16 years old and about to come out to his mother. They lived in a small town in Oklahoma and attended a Baptist church. This was the era of Rock Hudson and Elton John and Billie Jean King, people whose names, he said, “were never far away from something derogatory.”  When Holladay considered his future as a gay person, he saw it only as “the fog of the unknown.”  What Holladay didn’t know then was that a movement was brewing that he and his family would be a part of for decades to come. He […]

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Less than 10% of 2022’s anti-LGBTQ state bills became law, report finds

State legislators across the country proposed a record number of bills targeting LGBTQ rights last year, but less than 1 in 10 have become law, a report published Thursday by the Human Rights Campaign found.  The LGBTQ advocacy group’s 2022 State Equality Index, an annual review of state legislation and policies that affect the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people, found that state legislators introduced 315 bills that the Human Rights Campaign described as “anti-equality.” Just 29 became law.  The majority of the new laws target transgender minors. In the last three years, 18 states have banned trans […]

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Joe Biden calls out “terrible” & “sinful” laws targeting trans youth

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On the heels of the White House vocally condemning a call to eliminate transgender people, President Joe Biden called out Florida for attacking transgender youth. “What’s going on in Florida, is as my mother would say, close to sinful,” Biden told out actor Kal Penn on The Daily Show in an interview that will air later today. The White House press secretary was done being talked over by Simon Ateba. “It’s just terrible what they’re doing,” he continued. “It’s not like you know, a kid wakes up one morning and says, ‘You know, I decided I want to become a man,’ or […]

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Hate crimes jumped nearly 12% in 2021, new FBI figures show

Hate crimes in the U.S. increased by 11.6% in 2021 from the previous year, according to revised figures the FBI released Monday. The statistics showed that 12,411 people were reported to have been victims of hate crimes in 2021, 64.5% of them targeted because of their race or ethnicity, 15.9% targeted for their sexual orientation and 14.1% for their religion. The reports were up from 8,120 in 2020 to 9,065 in 2021 — some crimes had multiple victims. In 2020, reports of hate crimes increased by less than 3% from the previous year. The FBI released initial 2021 data in December that indicated a […]

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Majority of trans inmates in UK are in prisons not matching their gender

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Across the UK, trans prisoners are individually assessed and, in most cases, housed in prisons that don’t relate to their gender identity. The issue of where trans prisoners are housed has become a topic of debate following the case of Isla Bryson, a trans woman convicted by a Scottish court of raping two women prior to her transition. It was reported that Bryson was held at the women’s prison Cornton Vale. Two days after she was found guilty, it was confirmed that she was being moved to a men’s prison. First minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “I don’t see how it’s possible […]

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Italy is reopening an archaeological treasure and it holds secrets about gay sex in Ancient Rome

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After a long period of restoration, one of Italy’s most famous archaeological treasures — the House of the Vettii — is reopening to the public. The house’s extensive collection of fresco wall paintings includes lots of erotic art. But while some commenters have claimed that the house’s original owners were preoccupied with sex or even running a brothel, a gay Roman historian has said that those claims show a misunderstanding about the role queer sex played in ancient Rome. The house was originally constructed for two freed male slaves who were likely owned by the same master. These men became wealthy […]

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If Elected Danica Roem Would Be the First Trans State Senator Ever Elected in the South

LGBTQ Victory Fund, the only national organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ leaders to public office, named Danica Roem a 2023 LGBTQ ‘Spotlight’ candidate, a designation given to candidates with exceptional potential to be national leaders of the LGBTQ equality movement. Roem, who currently serves in the Virginia House of Delegates, made history in 2017 when she became the first out-and-seated trans state legislator in American history. There are currently just nine trans state lawmakers serving in the U.S., according to LGBTQ Victory Institute. “Danica is a remarkable leader who consistently shows both grit and compassion when delivering results for her community, from […]

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Sex Workers Call Foul On SFPD’s Prostitution Sting 

The Erotic Service Provider Legal Education and Research Project (ESPLERP) joins with the Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club in calling foul on the San Francisco Police Department’s (SFPD) ramping up of prostitution stings – they call it “enforcement operations” and “prostitution abatement” – in the Mission district Capp Street corridor. There is ample evidence that police crackdowns on sex work do not reduce the incidence of prostitution, but instead simply displace it to more dangerous and hidden locations. As a result, there is increased violence against sex workers, as well as harm to the broader community.   “Police enforcement doesn’t work when it comes […]

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Help Sonoma County Pride Update Their Rainbow Flag to be Inclusive by Making a Donation Today

Join Sonoma County Pride as we fundraise to update downtown Santa Rosa’s rainbow flags to be more inclusive! Sonoma County Pride is looking for community support to update the county’s largest rainbow flag that we raise every year on top of the Rosenberg Building in downtown Santa Rosa to officially kick off pride month for Sonoma County. Since 2018 we’ve been raising a 10ft by 6th 6 strips classic LGBT Pride flag. This year we ask for your help for us to update this flag as well as all the street flags in downtown Santa Rosa. The new design is […]

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Continuing the Dream: Reflections on 38 years of collecting SF LGBTQ history

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On March 16, the GLBT Historical Society marks 38 years since our founding. To celebrate the occasion, we are thrilled to provide an interview with Greg Pennington, a founding member of the Society. To learn more about our history, visit glbthistory.org/timeline. Was there a specific event that spurred you and the other founders to organize in 1985? I moved to San Francisco in March 1977 as part of the wave of gay men that came here in the late 70’s. I heard about the election of Harvey Milk and George Moscone and wanted to live somewhere where I could truly be […]

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