News

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GOP Congressman tries to win over LGBTQ voters now that his district includes Palm Springs

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After spending 30 years opposing LGBTQ rights, Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) is now trying to win over LGBTQ voters. The Republican congressman representing California’s 42nd district, says his views on LGBTQ issues have changed, and his very recent change in views comes just as his district was redrawn to include the very LGBTQ city of Palm Sprints. The Los Angeles Times reports that Calvert, who is facing an out gay challenger in Democrat Will Rollins, now believes that the Supreme Court’s 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodgesshould not be overturned. “It wasn’t always my position,” Calvert told the paper. “It’s a different country than […]

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Antigua and Barbuda: High Court Decriminalizes Gay Sex

The High Court of Justice for Antigua and Barbuda struck down discriminatory legal provisions that criminalized same-sex relations in a landmark ruling on July 5, 2022, Human Rights Watch said today. The court found that such laws violated the right to liberty, protection of the law, freedom of expression, protection of personal privacy, and protection from discrimination. Antigua and Barbuda’s Sexual Offences Act of 1995 sanctioned “buggery,” defined as “sexual intercourse per anum by a male person with a male person or by a male person with a female person,” with up to 15 years in prison. The act also penalized “serious indecency,” defined as “an […]

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Iraq’s government proposes law to ban homosexuality

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The Iraqi government has drafted a plan to criminalize homosexuality, according to a member of the country’s Parliamentary Legal Committee. “It was agreed within the parliament to collect signatures after returning to session to legislate a law prohibiting homosexuality in Iraq,” Aref al-Hamami, an MP with the State of Law coalition said on Friday. “[The] legislation of such a law will be reinforced by legal provisions that prevent homosexuality and the perversions associated with it.” Amir Ashour, head of the LGBTQ group IraQueer, said that the proposed law would “allow the Iraqi government to legally get away with murder.” In a […]

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California COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations rise with highly contagious variant

Coronavirus activity remains on a steep rise in California, with COVID-19 infection and hospital numbers surging as the highly contagious BA.5 subvariant of omicron spreads across the country. The state’s daily case rate has held relatively flat in recent weeks, reported Tuesday by the California Department of Public Health at 36.1 per 100,000 residents, an 11% decline from one week earlier. But that is largely due to a continued drop in testing volume, with residents tending toward at-home rapid tests whose results usually go unreported to the state, as well as the July 4 holiday. Labs in California are now processing about […]

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Boston LGBTQ senior housing project vandalized with hate speech

A Boston affordable housing project for LGBTQ seniors was vandalized with homophobic and threatening graffiti Sunday. The Massachusetts-based nonprofit organization that is leading the housing project’s construction, LGBTQ Senior Housing Inc., shared photos of the hateful messages — including “we will burn this” and “the f—– will die by fire” — on Facebook over the weekend. “We were heartbroken to wake up this morning to the terrible news that The Pryde was vandalized overnight with hate speech and threats spraypainted on virtually every sign,” the group wrote in a statement on Facebook, referring to the project’s name. “We will not let bullies and […]

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Raise The Roof Festival to Benefit The Peace & Justice Center August 13

The Raise The Roof Festival benefiting the Peace & Justice Center of Sonoma County takes place on Saturday, August 13 at the beautiful Monte Rio Amphitheater. Bandleader, Leo Rosales, says, “MOMOTOMBO SF is honored to be participating in the Raise The Roof Festival benefiting the Peace & Justice Center. It is important for us musicians to give back to the community of fans that have supported us throughout the years. We look forward to bringing the spirit of Latin Rock music and helping to make a difference in the Sonoma County community.” Notably, the Latin Rock band Malo celebrates 50 […]

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Same-sex couples updating legal status after abortion ruling

Emails and phone calls from same-sex couples, worried about the legal status of their marriages and keeping their children, flooded attorney Sydney Duncan’s office within hours of the Supreme Court’s decision eliminating the constitutional right to abortion. The ruling last week didn’t directly affect the 2015 decision that paved the way for same-sex marriage. But, Duncan said, it was still a warning shot for families headed by same-sex parents who fear their rights could evaporate like those of people seeking to end a pregnancy. “That has a lot of people scared and, I think, rightfully so,” said Duncan, who specializes […]

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This Month at Sonoma Public Library

Join the Sonoma County Library for in-person and virtual events throughout the month of July. We have programming for all ages, including author talks, comic workshops, and more. All events are free and you don’t need a library card to attend; registration is required for select events. Check out some of our July events below! Kids & FamiliesEnjoy traditional music and dance with Cascada de Flores’ bilingual events for children and families! Join the fun at these library locations: Cloverdale, Healdsburg, Rohnert Park-Cotati, and Roseland.Tweens & TeensCreate your own mini comic book in illustrator Gio Benedetti’s Comic Workshops for tweens! For grades 4-6 at five library locations: Healdsburg, Rincon Valley, […]

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Hawaii museum revisits history of gender-fluid healers

More than 500 years ago, Hawaiians placed four boulders on a Waikiki beach to honor visitors from the court of Tahiti’s king who had healed the sick. They were “mahu,” which in Hawaiian language and culture refers to someone with dual male and female spirit and a mixture of gender traits. The stones were neglected for many years, as Christian missionaries and other colonizing Westerners suppressed the role of mahu in Hawaiian society. At one point a bowling alley was built over the boulders. Officials restored the stones multiple times since the 1960s but informational plaques installed next to them […]

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Turkey Pride crackdowns only strengthen LGBTQ resistance

The waving colors of the thousand shades inside of a rainbow, The sparkling joy from the pride and honor of self-declaration,  The echoing sounds of the steps for solidarity in the cobblestone streets of İstanbul,  To unite for equality, for justice, for solely our right to be.  This was our goal, our expectation and our hope for Pride Turkey 2022. It has, however, been overshadowed by the government’s vicious attempts to repress the colors of the LGBTQI+ community.  First, it started with the ban of Pride speeches and panels that many district governors and other local authorities across Turkey announced. […]

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