News

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British and American embassies in homophobic UAE boldly fly Pride flags

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British and American embassies in the United Arab Emirates raised the LGBT+ Pride flag in a historic regional first. On Monday (28 June) the two embassies tweeted their support for LGBT+ rights as they raised the Pride flag alongside their national flags at their Abu Dhabi residence in the UAE. t marked the first time any diplomatic mission has flown a Pride flag in the religiously conservative Arab Gulf, where homosexuality is punishable with prison time, chemical castration, public flogging, or even death. “On the anniversary of Stonewall, a milestone in the American civil rights movement, the US Mission shows its support for […]

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First-ever Malawi Pride sees brave activists deliver demands to the president

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Braving the threat of persecution, dozens of queer people packed the streets of the capital of Malawi for the country’s first-ever Pride parade Saturday (26 June). Organised by the Nyasa Rainbow Alliance, some 50 LGBT+ people marched through the streets of Lilongwe in a show of defiance. After an hour-long march through winding but silent thoroughfares as masked attendees sang and danced, the protesters handed a petition over to city officials demanding marriage equality and better access to healthcare, Malawi 24 reported. Principal administrative officer for Lilongwe City Council, Hudson Kuphanga, told the outlet he has received the petition and pledged to […]

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Gay widower takes on Hong Kong’s government; wins victory for LGBT+ rights

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Same-sex couples in Hong Kong will now be allowed to own subsidised housing together after a landmark High Court ruling which saw a gay widower take on the government. Henry Li was not able to inherit the government-subsidised flat his late husband Edgar Ng bought in 2018 after they wed in the UK because the city’s housing policies deny same-sex partners joint occupancy and ownership rights. The court said that the refusal to acknowledge married same-sex couples in Hong Kong’s subsidised housing policies “constitute[s] unlawful discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation”. Justice Anderson Chow, who presided over the case, […]

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San Diego gay man shot & robbed in brutal gayborhood attack

A gay man living in San Diego has appealed to the public for help with medical expenses and in identifying his assailant after a brutal attack left him hospitalized. Jack Castillo, 31, was born in the United Kingdom but has long since taken up residence in San Diego. Following a drag show in San Diego’s Hillcrest neighborhood on Saturday night, an unknown man approached him on the street. The assailant put a gun to Castillo’s head and demanded the fanny pack he was wearing. Castillo refused, at which point the assailant shot him in the leg. The attacker then took the […]

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Free LGBTQI History Class Via Zoom Starts August 18

Santa Rose Junior College OLDER ADULTS PROGRAM FREE Non-Credit Course OA 505 Discussion Group Via Zoom Wednesdays August 18 through December 15, 2021 1:30 – 3 p.m. 1:30  –  3pm Researched topics from Sonoma County LGBTQI+ History. Guest speakers articulate the dynamic development of our vibrant community as they lived it.  All are welcome!  Everyone is encouraged to share stories that add to ourunderstanding of how Sonoma County became home to a robust LBGTQI+ community. NEW STUDENTS need to first complete an application for Santa Rosa Junior College at  https://santarosajuniorcollege.formstack.com/forms/srjc_noncredit_application_for_admission. REGISTERED AND CONTINUING STUDENTS can enroll in the class at; https://santarosajuniorcollege.formstack.com/forms/non_credit_enrollment_form Use the following info: Course OAP 505. Section […]

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Biden Appoints Special Envoy On LGBTQ Rights

The Hill reports: President Biden on Friday named Jessica Stern as the State Department’s U.S. special envoy to advance the human rights of LGBTQI+ persons, an announcement that coincides with the White House’s celebration of Pride month. The position was left vacant under the administration of former President Trump. Biden will introduce Stern during remarks in the East Room Friday afternoon outlining his administration’s agenda to advance rights of LGBTQ+ people in the United States, the White House said. Stern is currently the executive director at OutRight Action International, a group that advocates for human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and […]

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Sebastopol Center for the Arts is offering Kids’ Summer Camps

The Sebastopol Center for the Arts is officially open, and so are our kids’ summer camps! It’s not too late to get them busy and active this summer. Here are last-minute summer camp ideas for kids and teens of all ages and interests. Only a few spots remain! Sign up your child for some summertime fun and memories to last a lifetime. UkuleleThe Ukulele is the perfect instrument for beginners to feel successful right away! We’ll learn about rhythm, we’ll learn to strum and sing and find out how much fun playing a string instrument can be! Ages 8-12June 28 – July 2 […]

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LGBTQ community center opens in Half Moon Bay

The CoastPride Center opened its doors in Half Moon Bay for the first time Tuesday, hailed as a much-needed and pioneering LGBTQ community center for the coastal community. “This is the first time there has ever been a brick-and-mortar LGBTQ center ever on the coast, which I think is why some are finding it so historic and progressive,” CoastPride Board Member David Oliphant said. Organizers of CoastPride, which opened the center, recognized all the resources for the LGBTQ local community and its allies were on the Peninsula, just not on the coast. Many kids couldn’t use the resources or support […]

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Supreme Court won’t hear dispute over bathrooms for transgender students

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to take up the issue of whether the nation’s schools must allow students to use the bathroom that match their gender identities. The court declined, without comment, to hear the case of Gavin Grimm, who has been at the center of a long legal battle with the school board in Gloucester County, Virginia. Grimm was born female but identified as male after his freshman year in high school, legally changing his name and beginning hormone therapy. The principal at first gave him permission to use the boys’ bathroom, but the school board later adopted a policy saying […]

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They fought for gay marriage. A decade later, advocates reflect on the ‘herculean feat.’

Today, 70 percent of Americans support same-sex marriage. But on June 24, 2011, when the New York Legislature passed the state’s marriage equality measure, only 46 percent did, barely surpassing the 45 percent who opposed the right of gay couples to wed.  Five years earlier, in 2006, the New York Court of Appeals had determined the state constitution did not guarantee same-sex couples the right to marry. That left advocates with only a legislative remedy.  Failed attempts to pass marriage equality measures in 2007 and 2009, however, left supporters deflated.  Christine Quinn, an out lesbian who served as speaker of the New York […]

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