Perspectives

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How the world’s first gay rugby club saved lives, smashed stereotypes and changed the sport forever

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When Israel Folau’s homophobia sent ripples through the world of rugby, he had no way of knowing his bigotry would inspire a bigger story. Folau’s claims that “hell awaits” gay people saw him sacked by Rugby Australia in disgrace. Undeterred by the backlash, he simply doubled down on his beliefs by claiming the devil is to blame for trans kids and bushfires are “God’s judgment” for same-sex marriage.×ADVERTISING Halfway around the world, the journalist and amateur player Eammon Ashton-Atkinson was listening to Folau’s words – and he knew LGBT+ childrenwould be listening too.SPONSORED CONTENTPandemic or Not, Don’t Skip These 3 Health ChecksBy Sutter Health “My first thought was, […]

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To pod or not to pod?

Is it me or do others find COVID social pods (aka bubbles) elusive? I watched from the Wharf’s dock as the pod boat sailed south. Where was the pod sign-up sheet? Was there an email campaign? When did registrations end? According to an Axios-Ipsos poll, almost half (47 percent) of Americans have formed a COVID-19 pod for pandemic interaction with trusted friends. In general, participation favors women and people with college degrees. City dwellers aren’t as hip to it as suburbanites. I’d estimate with the DMV’s educated population and our LGBTQ networks, participation may be higher. What happened to the […]

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500 athletes unite to defend trans athletes’ right to play sport against wave of transphobic bills

More than 500 athletes came together to defend trans people and take action on the wave of anti-trans bills making their way through US state legislatures.  On Thursday (March 11), Mississippi governor Tate Reeves signed a bill to ban transgender athletes from competing in sports teams that match their gender, drawing global condemnation. It was the first such ban to be signed into law in 2021, however similar pieces of legislation are currently being tabled in various states. On Wednesday (March 10), college athletes from across the US came together to write to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), urging it oppose such efforts. NCAA […]

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Mississippi officially bans trans athletes from competing as their correct gender

Mississippi’s Republican governor has signed a discriminatory bill to ban transgender athletes from competing on sports teams that match their gender. “I will sign our bill to protect young girls from being forced to compete with biological males for athletic opportunities,” he tweeted last week. “It’s crazy we have to address it, but the Biden EO [executive order] forced the issue. Adults? That’s on them. But the push for kids to adopt transgenderism is just wrong.” Despite Reeves’ claims, legislators pushing the bill gave no evidence of any transgender athletes competing in Mississippi schools or universities. Legal advocates have previously noted that […]

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South Dakota Gov: I’m “Excited” To Sign Anti-Trans Bill

The New York Daily News reports: South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said on Monday that she’s “excited” to sign a bill banning transgender girls and women from participating in sports teams that correspond to their gender identity. Her remarks came just moments after South Dakota became the second U.S. state this year, after Mississippi, to pass legislation targeting transgender sports athletes. HB 1217 is just one among an overwhelming number of similar bills that specifically restrict the rights of transgender and nonbinary youth, and that are currently advancing out of state legislatures. Last week, the GOP governor of Mississippi, Tate Reeves, […]

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Conservatives opposing the Equality Act don’t speak for most people of faith, and they know it

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For years the religious right has trumpeted a lie: that its opposition to LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections has to do with, or is even required by, religion. It has even, on occasion, distorted the meaning of religious freedom to make this argument. But as its opposition to the Equality Act, which passed the House on Thursday, shows, the idea that LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections undermine protections for religious Americans is an egregious mistruth. The Equality Act would expand protections for religious Americans by updating the public spaces where the Civil Rights Act applies. Under current federal law, it is perfectly legal to discriminate against someone […]

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Biden administration withdraws White House support for trans school sports ban case

The Biden administration has withdrawn government support for a federal lawsuit seeking to ban transgender athletes from participating in girls’ high school sports. The lawsuit in Connecticut was filed by several cis runners who argue they’ve been deprived of wins, state titles and athletic opportunities by being forced to compete against two trans sprinters. The Trump administration inserted itself into the case last year when then-Attorney General William Barr signed a statement of interest, arguing the state’s policy runs against Title IX, the federal law that allows girls equal educational opportunities. But Biden’s government has now retracted this statement and pulled all support […]

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Trump’s final blow to patients with HIV

The day before Donald Trump left the White House, his administration dealt one final, brutal blow to some of America’s most vulnerable patients. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced a policy that, if implemented, will put numerous lifesaving drugs off-limits to Medicare recipients.  Medicare provides health insurance to 63 million seniors and people with disabilities. Trump’s gut punch affects Part D, the section of Medicare that covers most prescription drugs. The last-minute policy change would allow the private insurance companies that sponsor Part D plans to stop covering many medications in Part D’s “six protected classes” as early […]

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800 footballers make heartfelt vow to support and ‘fight for’ LGBT+ players still in closet

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Over 800 German footballers have pledged their support to any teammates who may be struggling with their sexuality and afraid to come out while playing. To date no male footballer has ever come out while actively playing in any of the German professional leagues, a troubling reflection of the homophobia engrained in the sport.×ADVERTISING This week, hundreds of players decided that needs to change. “No one should be forced into coming out. That is a personal decision for each individual to make,” the players write in the German football magazine 11Freunde. “However, we want anyone who decides to come out to know they have our […]

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Former WWE superstar Gabbi Tuft comes out as transgender

Former World Wrestling Entertainment superstar Gabbi Tuft said she left the house and walked with her “head up high” for the first time Thursday, after she came out as transgender. She cried when she recalled the moment. “I felt so happy,” she told NBC News. “My hair wasn’t in my face, and I wasn’t clenching my fists and hiding my nails. It just felt so amazing.” Tuft officially announced the news on social media Thursday. In an Instagram photo, she sat alongside an image of herself prior to her transition. “This is me,” she wrote in the caption. “Unashamed, unabashedly me. […]

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