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by Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as theyre published. In California, the federal government was deep into an investigation of alleged racial discrimination at a school district where, a parent said, students called a Black peer racial slurs and played whipping sounds from their cellphones during a lesson about slavery. Then the U.S. Department of Education in March suddenly closed the California regional outpost of its Office for Civil Rights and fired all its employees there. That investigation and others went silent.In South Dakota, the OCR abruptly terminated its work with a school district that had agreed to take steps to end discrimination against its Native American students. The same office that helped craft the agreement to treat indigenous students equally made a stunning about-face and decided in March that helping Native American students would discriminate against white students.During its first 100 days, as the Trump administration has dismantled the Education Department, one of its biggest targets has been the civil rights arm. Now, Education Secretary Linda McMahon is reorienting whats left of it. Part of that shift has been ordering investigations related to the administrations priorities, such as ending the participation of transgender girls and women in girls and womens sports. After hearing that a transgender woman from Wagner College in New York competed in a womens fencing tournament at the University of Maryland last month, the head of the OCR launched a special investigation into both schools and threatened their access to federal funding.Through internal memos and case data, interviews with more than a dozen current agency attorneys, and public records requests to school districts and other targets of investigations across the country, ProPublica has documented how the Trump administration has radically reshaped the OCR. Only 57 investigations that found a civil rights violation and led to change at a school or college were completed in March, ProPublica has learned. Only 51 were resolved by finding violations in April. The Biden administration completed as many as 200 investigations a month. Leadership under President Donald Trump also has made it easier for the OCR to drop discrimination complaints quickly. In March, 91% of cases closed by the office were dismissed without an investigation, and 89% were dismissed outright in April, according to internal case data obtained by ProPublica. Typically, 70% of cases are dismissed because they dont meet criteria to warrant an investigation. With more than half of the Education Departments civil rights offices closed and the division reduced to a fraction of its former staff, families pleas for updates and action have gone unheard. One OCR attorney, who asked not to be named for fear of retaliation, told ProPublica that her caseload went from 60 to 380 as she absorbed cases previously handled by employees who worked in offices that had been closed. Some remaining employees have not been able to access documents, voicemail and email of fired employees.As with civil rights divisions in other federal agencies that the Trump administration has fundamentally altered, the OCR has worked for decades to uphold constitutional rights against discrimination based on disability, race and gender.OCR is the most useless its ever been, and its the most dangerous its ever been. And by useless, I mean unavailable. Unable to do the work, said Michael Pillera, who until recently was an OCR attorney in Washington, D.C. He is now with the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.Investigating cases that allege racism, discrimination based on sexual orientation or mistreatment of students with disabilities now requires permission from Trump appointees, according to a memo from OCR leadership. As a result, thousands of discrimination investigations are idled, even ones that were nearing a resolution when Trump took office again.I thought we were somewhere, and now we are back to square one because they are closed, said K.D., the mother of the Black California student who said her daughter has been called racial epithets by her classmates. She emailed the agency more than a month ago to try to get an update on the investigation, but said the agency has not responded. ProPublica is identifying her by initials to protect her childs privacy. I never would have imagined that something so essential would go away, she said. Education Department spokespeople did not respond to questions and requests for comment sent over several weeks about changes in the civil rights division.The OCR attorney who said she is working through 380 cases said the job is now impossible.The people who remain are doing all they can. Were doing all we can. But it isnt enough, and it keeps us up at night, she said.Another OCR attorney who, like others, asked not to be named for fear of retaliation, said the administrations new vision for civil rights enforcement has harmed families.We were sort of the last bit of hope for them, he said, and now theyre calling and emailing and saying, Hey, I thought you all were going to help me. Protesters rally outside of the headquarters of the Department of Education in Washington in March. More than half of the departments Office of Civil Rights outposts have been closed, and more than half of its employees have been laid off since the new administration took over. (Jason Andrew for ProPublica) A Shadow DivisionThe arduous, grinding work undertaken by OCR attorneys is starkly different from the high-speed investigations that the Education Department announces in press releases every few days.The OCR, historically one of the governments largest enforcers of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, has been known for being a neutral fact-finder. Its investigators followed a process to determine whether complaints from the public met legal criteria for a civil rights claim, then carried out investigations methodically. Help Us Report on How the Department of Education Is Handling Civil Rights Cases We want to better understand how changes at the Office for Civil Rights are affecting students, families and school communities. If you have recently submitted a civil rights complaint or have a pending case, please get in touch. Share Your Story The vast majority of investigations were based on discrimination complaints from students and families, and a large share of those were related to disability discrimination. The inquiries typically took months and, in complex cases, years. The lengthy investigations sometimes were a source of criticism. The agency didnt share details of the investigations until they were completed, and the agreements often involved federal oversight going forward.Investigations being publicized now have largely bypassed the agencys civil rights attorneys, according to Education Department employees. McMahon and OCR head Craig Trainor created what amounts to a shadow division. The Trump administration has ordered more than a dozen investigations in the past three months on its own, not initiated by an outside complainant. These directed investigations are typically rare; there were none during President Joseph Bidens administration.The investigations have targeted schools with transgender athletes, gender-neutral bathrooms and initiatives that the administration views as discriminatory to white students. OCR attorneys told ProPublica theyve been given prewritten letters, which theyve reluctantly signed, to send to targets of these investigations. Some letters describe transgender girls as biological males, which is ideologically pointed language that OCR attorneys say theyve never used before.Theyre blowing through past precedents, past practices, best practices, said Catherine Lhamon, who led OCR under former Presidents Barack Obama and Biden and departed the office in January. And theyre not even attempting to appear like neutral arbiters of the law.In a first, McMahon and Trainor created ways to divert complaints and investigations away from the OCRs legal experts entirely. The administration made an End DEI portal that bypasses the traditional online complaint system and seeks only grievances about diversity, equity and inclusion in schools. Unlike the regular complaint system, the diversity portal submissions are not routed to OCR staff.We have no idea where that portal goes, who it goes to, how they review the cases. No idea, said the attorney who said he struggles with being unable to help families. That avoids us interfering with the games theyre trying to play, if they silo off the real civil rights lawyers.McMahon then announced a Title IX Special Investigations Team last month to work with the Department of Justice and appointed Trainor to it. It launches its own investigations into schools that include transgender girls in athletics. In an internal memo to the new team that was obtained by ProPublica, Trainor defined the special teams purpose: To effectively and efficiently address the increasing volume of Title IX single-sex sports/spaces cases, expedite those investigations and resolutions, and collaborate seamlessly with DOJ to conclude investigations that go to DOJ for enforcement.Theres no indication that more complaints related to transgender students are coming from the public, according to internal case data. Last month, in what appears to be the first case assigned to the Title IX team, the group notified the University of Maryland and Wagner College that it would investigate each school. The investigation began after Fox News and other media reported about a fencing tournament at the University of Maryland in which a transgender player from Wagner competed. Trainor signed the notification letters himself, a departure from Lhamons practice.A Wagner College spokesperson declined to comment. A University of Maryland spokesperson declined to comment about the investigation but said the tournament, while on the universitys campus, was run by USA Fencing.The public used to be able to see what the OCR was investigating. But an online database that is supposed to list all investigations underway hasnt been updated since Trump took office. At that time, about 12,000 pending investigations were listed. Among them were two related to a familys complaints that their California school district discriminated against students with disabilities, including by barricading them inside what it called a reset room. But then the OCR closed its California office and fired its employees.All work came to a halt. They stopped responding. Nothing was being done to stop the practice and protect kids, Genevieve Goldstone, the parent of the Del Mar Union School District student who filed the disability discrimination complaint, said in an interview. My federal complaints were meant to protect more kids and stop the abuses in the district.The district said it could not comment on the pending investigation but said it participated in more than a dozen interviews with an OCR attorney. It also said it conducted its own review of the allegations and determined that they were unsubstantiated.OCR attorneys say they have been repeatedly blindsided by public announcements about policy changes and investigations. To find out what Trainor and McMahon have launched on their behalf, they check the Education Departments website daily for press releases.Those statements sometimes quote Trainor preemptively saying a school appears to violate civil rights law. The attorneys worry they will have no choice, despite what their investigations uncover, but to find against schools that have already been excoriated by the department publicly. For example, in a press release announcing an investigation into a transgender athlete participating in girls track and field in Portland Public Schools in Oregon, Trainor said, We will not allow the Portland Public Schools District or any other educational entity that receives federal funds to trample on the antidiscrimination protections that women and girls are guaranteed under law.A third current OCR attorney, who asked not to be named for fear of losing her job, said the administration is misinterpreting civil rights law. Its subverting our office, or weaponizing it in these ways, without following our process, she said. Conservative groups with complaints about diversity or transgender students have been able to file complaints directly with Trainor and get quick results another norm-breaking way to operate outside of the OCRs protocol.America First Legal, a group founded by Trump deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller that considers itself the answer to the ACLU, emailed Trainor a few days after Trumps Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling executive order. The order directs schools to stop teaching about or supporting diversity, equity and gender identity.AFL respectfully requests that the Department of Education open investigations into the following public-school districts in Northern Virginia for continuing violations of Title IX, the letter read, listing five districts that have policies welcoming to transgender students. Senior leadership in Washington opened the cases the following week. America First issued a press release headlined VICTORY. The group declined to comment further. First image: A letter from Craig Trainor, the Education Departments acting assistant secretary for civil rights, claims that American educational institutions have discriminated against white and Asian students. Second image: A letter addressed to the superintendent of the Denver Public Schools announces a Title IX investigation into a gender-neutral bathroom. (Obtained and highlighted by ProPublica) Backtracking on Civil RightsRemaking the OCR isnt just about increasing caseloads and reordering political priorities. The Trump administration now is taking steps to roll back OCRs previous civil rights work.Last month, Trump issued an executive order that directs all federal agencies, including the Education Department, to stop enforcing cases involving policies that disproportionately affect certain groups for example, when Black students are disciplined more harshly than white students for the same infractions or when students with disabilities are suspended more than any other group even though they represent a small percentage of student enrollment.Trumps order requires the agencies to assess all pending investigations, lawsuits, and consent judgements that consider disproportionate discipline and take appropriate action. Complaints made to the OCR that students were unfairly disciplined could be thrown out; existing enforcement actions or monitoring of schools that had disciplined students disproportionately could be revoked.The OCR under Trainor did this in Rapid City, South Dakota even before the executive order. About a year ago, the office had signed an agreement with Rapid City Area Schools after an investigation found that the districts Native American students were disciplined far more harshly than white ones. They also were kept from enrolling in advanced courses.The OCR said that when speaking with an investigator, the superintendent of schools at the time said that Native American students in her district had higher truancy rates because they operated on what she termed Indian Time. She said, too, that they dont value education, according to the investigations findings. The former superintendent, Nicole Swigart, denied saying any of that. I recognize those comments are horrendous, Swigart said in an interview with ProPublica. She noted that the OCR investigation was opened in 2010 and that she first spoke to an investigator in 2022. Im not lying when I say I didnt say it. I didnt say it, and I dont know where it came from.In the agreement with the OCR, the district promised to examine its practices and make things right; the OCR would monitor its progress. The district also brought in a new superintendent.But last month, the OCR abruptly terminated that agreement, based on its differing interpretation of civil rights law. The OCRs new view is that equity and diversity efforts discriminate against white students. It was, in the view of agency attorneys, the most severe breach of the OCRs mission and methods to date. There was no public announcement.Native students in Rapid City just lost a layer of protection, the Lakota Peoples Law Project announced on Facebook. Native students are still being pushed out of classrooms and denied opportunities. Darren Thompson, who is Ojibwe, said the OCRs decision to abandon the agreement was another cycle of the federal government failing to uphold its promises.And this time, they are partisan, political, said Thompson, who works for the nonprofit Sacred Defense Fund affiliated with the Lakota group in Rapid City.In response to questions from ProPublica, the school district said it has completed much of the work including broader access to educational opportunities and an improved behavior tracking process and plans to continue it even without federal oversight. But it also said this week that under the OCRs new directives, we must shift our approach. The district did not elaborate on what will change.Its unclear whether the OCR has ended agreements with other districts or colleges. Education Department spokespeople did not respond to questions from ProPublica. Pushing BackSome subjects of the OCRs new directives and investigations have capitulated. A school district in Tumwater, Washington, that Trainor targeted for allowing a transgender basketball player from an opposing team to compete responded by voting to support the state athletic association excluding trans players altogether.But some are pushing back.Denver Public Schools was the first target of one of Trainors directed investigations in late January over the existence of one all-gender, multistall bathroom on one floor of a Denver high school. According to communication obtained by ProPublica through public records requests, the district called out the OCR for continuing to take a different approach with this case without explanation, a case with no complainant who is awaiting any form of relief or remedy.Kristin Bailey, a Denver Public Schools attorney, wrote to an OCR supervisor that the way the investigation is being handled appears to be retaliatory.Since February, at least half a dozen lawsuits have been filed to try to stop the dismantling of the Education Department and its civil rights functions among them, suits by Democratic state attorneys general and from the National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers. A recent suit by the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates on behalf of children and their parents all of whom have pending complaints alleging discrimination claims theyre suffering from the OCRs abandonment of its core mission. The NAACP also sued the department, McMahon and Trainor, citing the End DEI portal and seeking a halt to such anti-diversity efforts. And the Victim Rights Law Center, representing students and parents, sued to try to restore what has been cut from the OCR so the agency can fulfill its mandate. It noted that under McMahon and Trainor, cherry-picked investigations appear to be the only matters the Department is currently pursuing. Those lawsuits are pending. The government has argued in the NAACP lawsuit that the group lacks standing, and in the other it has not filed a response.Several OCR attorneys told ProPublica that they hope these groups and school districts continue to push back. In the meantime, they said, they will continue to try to work on behalf of the public to uphold the nations civil rights laws.I have to keep putting one foot in front of the other, helping the people I can help, and keep my eye on the long game, said a fourth OCR attorney. Hopefully were still here and can help rebuild in the future.

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by Asia Fields, Ashley Clarke, Jodi S. Cohen and Jennifer Smith Richards Since President Donald Trump took office, his administration laid off nearly half of the Department of Education division that handles civil rights investigations and shifted its focus. The administration halted work on thousands of pending discrimination cases while ordering investigations aligned with its priorities. Some people have spoken out about their cases being in limbo or about not receiving updates. We know there are thousands of other people who are affected. We need your help to see the full picture of how the dismantling of the Office for Civil Rights is affecting students, parents, school employees and their wider communities. If you submitted a complaint or had a case closed this year, or if you have a currently pending case, we want to hear about your experience. Were also interested in connecting to people with other insights about the Department of Education. If you work or worked for the Department of Education, please do not fill out the form. Instead, use Signal to contact reporter Jennifer Smith Richards at jsmithrichards.93 or reporter Jodi Cohen at jodireporter.88. We take your privacy seriously and will contact you if we wish to publish any part of your story. Were gathering these stories for our reporting, which can take several weeks or months. We may not be able to follow up with everyone, but we will read everything you submit and it will help guide our reporting. As journalists, our role is to write about issues. We cannot provide legal advice or other support. However, there are resources available. We know these cases can stem from painful experiences, and mental health support is available if you need it: The National Sexual Assault Hotline is available online or by calling 800-656-4673. The National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available online or by calling or texting 988. The Trevor Project provides support to LGBTQ+ youth. You can connect online, by calling 866-488-7386 or by texting 678678. You can share your experience using our form.If you would prefer to connect using the encrypted messaging app Signal, our number is 917-512-0201. You can also contact ocr@propublica.org with any questions. If you would like to connect with ProPublica reporters about other topics, you can reach out to a reporter or send a tip to our newsroom.

If fans think Bruno Alcantara has done it all, then think again.The RuPaul's Drag Race hunk has already invited celebrities into his bed on In Bed With Bruno, but he's now taking things up a notch by offering sensual massages in his upcoming show Happy Endings with Bruno.While attending the grand opening of The Tryst Puerto Vallarta, the handsome star gave a steamy tease as to what shenanigans are in store."A massage with a message! I'm so excited. The show is really about wellness and finding joy. We all go through complicated moments and challenges. Through the massage and the conversation, we explore all that," Alcantara tells PRIDE. See on Instagram Many people may just typically thirst over Alcantara's gorgeous looks, but the charming model loves to get deep with people and learn fascinating stories through the art of conversation."I'm so happy with my guests and I'm so happy how vulnerable they're able to be. It's about how you find balance and whether you feel the tension in your body. It's nice! I'm happy."It's also no surprise that his shows have a bit of a naughty connotation as the titles clearly reference some steamy sexual innuendos."What does that say about me? That's what I do! It's In Bed With Bruno, now Happy Endings with Bruno. I don't know where I'm going, but let's go with me." Happy Endings with Bruno premieres this summer on WOW Presents Plus. To see the full interview with Bruno Alcantara at the grand opening for The Tryst Puerto Vallarta, check out the video at the top of the page.

Just weeks after the UK Supreme Court ruled that a woman is defined by biological sex, the Football Association has barred transgender women from playing womens soccer in England.The Football Association, the professional and amateur soccer governing body known as the F.A., announced in a statement on Thursday that, effective June 1, "transgender women will no longer be able to play in womens football in England" as a result of the Supreme Court ruling last month.We understand that this will be difficult for people who simply want to play the game they love in the gender by which they identify, and we are contacting the registered transgender women currently playing to explain the changes and how they can continue to stay involved in the game, the statement reads.The transgender sports ban will impact all levels of womens soccer, including professional games and at the regional and amateur level, and is being implemented because in the wake of the UK Supreme Court ruling all public and private groups in Britain have to adjust their policies to have different spaces and services for different sexes.Pride Sports, a UK organization working to improve LGBTQ+ inclusion in sports, told the New York Times that there are currently fewer than 30 trans women playing womens soccer in England and Scotland without incident, all of whom will be affected by the ban.Just days prior to the April 16 unanimous UK Supreme Court ruling, which is expected to impact bathroom, hospital wards, and sports clubs, the F.A. updated its policy on trans women soccer players to allow tans women with testosterone levels below 5.0 nanomoles per liter of blood for a full year before a match to continue to play, CNN reported. But the F.A. updated their policy again on May 1 in accordance with expert legal advice.This is a complex subject, and our position has always been that if there was a material change in law, science, or the operation of the policy in grassroots football, then we would review it and change it if necessary, the F.A. statement said. LGBTQ+ activist group Stonewall told CNN that the F.A. jumped the gun and made a policy change before the implications of the Supreme Court ruling are fully understood.Trans women young and old who love football will be deeply distressed that they are no longer able to take part in games, at all levels. Trans people remain protected under the law and need to be treated with dignity and respect and this announcement lacks any detail on how those obligations will be honored, a Stonewall spokesperson said.

When outlining the references and anecdotes that inspired her new song, "What Was That," and her upcoming fourth album, Virgin, Lorde has been pointedly nodding to the current assessment of her own femininity as it relates to the "broadening" of gender, the published works of queer writers, and even "coming into [her] masculinity" as of late.Lorde was 16 when "Royals" conquered the world and led to her debut album, 2013's Pure Heroine. She was 21 when "Green Light" made way to the Melodrama era of 2017. She was 25 in the release of 2021's Solar Power and its lead single. Like clockwork, the singer dropped "What Was That" in April and announced her fourth studio album, Virgin, for June 2025.The through line, here, has been that each new body of work from Lorde has existed within a four-year era that showcased her evolving artistry and career. On the other hand, this has always felt like an unusually rigid, fixed schedule for a pop star who's so famous for piercing and brutally honest lyrics, a specific voice that is both haunting and comforting, and the evolving examination of her womanhood in both earnest and satirical manners."What Was That," the lead single of Virgin, sparked knee-jerk reactions from critics and chronically online stans who quickly declared that "Lorde is back" to a mode that sounds similar to her first two albums But is it, really? As a writer, it's hard to ignore the more interesting provocations that the singer, on the precipice of turning 30, is actually making in this lead-up to the new album.What if these aren't just four-year eras of world-building, or four-year cycles to promote an album, but are instead four-year terms in which Lorde takes stock of how she's been able to govern her own identity or had her identity governed by other powers that be over the last 14 years?This impetus, as it relates to Virgin, first came in the form of a message that Lorde herself sent directly to fans when she announced this new album. Besides the standard press release from her record label, Lorde sent her fans a less detailed but more personal email labeled as, "From the desk of Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor," which read:"The color of the album is clear. Like bathwater, windows, ice, spit. Full transparency. The language is plain and unsentimental. The sounds are the same wherever possible. I was trying to see myself, all the way through. I was trying to make a document that reflected my femininity: raw, primal, innocent, elegant, openhearted, spiritual, masc.I'm proud and scared of this album. There's nowhere to hide. I believe that putting the deepest parts of ourselves to music is what sets us free."Some ears immediately perked up at Lorde ending the description of her femininity with "masc." However, there's a lot more to unpack. The Virgin cover art being an X-ray, for instance, echoes the way Lorde described working with fellow New Zealand superstar Marlon Williams in a song titled "Khore He Manu E" for his latest album."Over the course of several years I watched Marlon pull at the threads that became Te Whare Twekaweka," Lorde said about the collaboration, as reported by Billboard. She then praised how Williams crafted songs "that speak to the past while also braiding in his characteristic humor and X-ray vision."The concepts of having X-ray vision, being transparent, and unleashing one's truth after realizing that the only way out is to dig in even deeper, are also present in Lorde's response to Charli XCX's "Girl, so confusing" that brought to life one of the most popular Brat remixes of all."Well, honestly, I was speechless / When I woke up to your voice note / You told me how you'd been feeling / Let's work it out on the remix," Lorde sang in the lyrics, adding that she was "so lost in my head" in the thick of being "at war with my body."In the end, Lorde acknowledged that behaving in "self-defense" can easily turn into "building a weapon" and that people can ultimately "believe my projection," even if that was never meant to be the truth.On Thursday, May 1, a new interview with Lorde was published by Document Journal in which the singer spoke with multihyphenate artist Martine Syms about the ideas and concepts of identity."The four years between Solar Power and Lorde's newly announced album Virgin (out June 27) have been a journey back to herself," Maraya Fisher wrote for Document Journal, noting that the new album had the singer going "through the dissolution of a seven-year relationship, a reexamination of her gender expression, and the reclamation of her body."Throughout Lorde's conversation with Syms, the pop star recalled seeing a flyer from a band that was seeking a new member. "Do you have the stones?" the flyer read, which Lorde eventually understood as another way of asking, "Do you have the balls?"Lorde liked the way that was phrased, and the mysticism within it, particularly "seeing that as I was also coming into my masculinity a bit more as well," she explained.Later, Lorde talked about reading Animal Joy by Nuar Alsadir, sharing an anecdote about the author asking her young daughter, "What does beautiful mean to you?" The young daughter replied that being beautiful meant being your "most self.""That's been my mission," Lorde said, as her takeaway from that story. "But it came out of many years of putting something on and being like, 'What am I doing wearing this? Like, who am I? What set have I stepped onto right now?'"See on InstagramThe conversation also touched on Lorde feeling inspired by what she's reading at any given time."I start by reading, and I don't really know why I'm reading what I'm reading. This time, I read a lot about the body in different ways," the singer said, as reported by Document Journal. "I read a lot of queer writers. I just read all of Annie Ernaux. [I was] in London surrounded by books at random Airbnbs and in the spare rooms of my friends."See on InstagramApproaching the topic of new music, Lorde described "What Was That" as a song that was born out of a "period of great turbulence in my personal life.""Becoming single, but also really facing my body stuff head-on, and starting to feel my gender broadening a little bit," Lorde remarked. "Just being back in my house and feeling this big wave of grief. I just kept thinking, 'What was all of that?' Whether it was my seven-year relationship, or a pandemic, or sacrificing my body to my career since I was 16 or 17."She concluded, "This feeling of, 'Oh, my god, so much has moved through me, and there's so much mystery and pain.' I just held the mic and sort of walked around the room and said it all. I didn't write anything down, which was cool."Lorde's new album, Virgin, is scheduled for a release on June 27. The singer's fourth studio album is now available for pre-saves on all music streaming platforms, as well as preorders of physical and digital copies.

Bisexual musician Jill Sobule, the singer-songwriter behind the 1995 sapphic anthem I Kissed a Girl, died Thursday in a house fire at age 66.Firefighters were called about 5:30 a.m. to a home in Woodbury, Minnesota, a suburb of the Twin Cities, The New York Times reports. They found Sobule dead inside the house.She was staying with friends while rehearsing for a performance of songs from her autobiographical one-woman show, Fuck 7th Grade, which was to take place Friday at the Swallow Hill Music Festival in Denver, Sobules hometown, her publicist said.Sobules I Kissed a Girl came out 13 years before Katy Perrys different song of the same name. Sobules tune, off a self-titled album, was the first song with blatantly queer themes to break the Billboard Top 20, GLAAD notes. A video of the song was popular on MTV. - YouTube www.youtube.com Sobules sexuality became the subject of speculation after the songs release, and her record label initially told The Advocate she was straight. However, she then contacted the magazine to talk about her identity.I guess if I had to pinpoint my sexual orientation which I hate to do then bisexuality would come the closest, she said in an interview published in the January 23, 1996, issue of The Advocate. She found bisexuals stigmatized by both gay and straight people, and she said she had to get over some assumptions herself. I used to think that when people said they were bisexual, they were just copping out because they didnt want to admit they were full-fledged queers, she told the magazine. Now I think thats so closed-minded. I believe theres a whole spectrum of sexuality.She said she wanted to be a positive role model, and she went on the be outspoken about LGBTQ+ issues, the death penalty, reproductive rights, eating disorders, the MAGA movement, and more. She addressed many of these topics in her songs as well.Jill Sobule wasnt just a trailblazer in music she was a beacon for queer artists, and I was incredibly lucky to call her a dear friend, said a statement from GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. Long before it was safe or common, Jill was writing and singing about sexuality and identity with raw honesty and wit. At a time when doing so could have cost her everything, she chose truth. That courage helped pave the way for todays artists like Brandi Carlile, Tegan and Sara, Lil Nas X, Sam Smith, Adam Lambert, and so many others who now stand proud and open in their music.Sobule released 12 albums, most of them genreless and creative, the Times notes, and was a pioneer in using crowdfunding to produce them. She had another hit with Supermodel from the 1995 film Clueless. She also wrote the theme song for the Nickelodeon series Unfabulous, which starred Emma Roberts and ran from 2004 to 2007. Her one-woman show became an off-Broadway hit in 2022 and had three more productions after its original staging. It was a New York Times critics pick and was nominated for a Drama Desk Award. An original cast recording of the show will come out June 6, plus a reissue of her self-titled album, which includes I Kissed a Girl and Supermodel. - YouTube www.youtube.com Seventh grade was her worst year in school, she recalled to Playbill in 2023. All of a sudden, peers become more important than your parents, she said. In 6th grade, I was this tomboy, I was a badass, I was the electric guitar player. Suddenly, 7th grade happened, and my friends started wearing makeup and I didnt feel like I fit in. I knew early on that there was something different about me; that I had crushes on my friends, and that wasnt the right thing. 7th grade is when it all fell apart.In Fuck 7th Grade, she described being called a homophobic slur, feeling out of place among the other girls and having an unrequited crush on a girl, the Times reports. She once joked that growing up, her only queer role models had been Miss Jane Hathaway from The Beverly Hillbillies and her gym teacher, who looked like Pete Rose, the famous baseball player, according to the paper.In 2009, she told The Advocate she had no bad feelings about Perrys song. I still think its great to have a song, if I was a little girl, and I heard Katy Perrys Kissed a Girl and I had those kind of feelings, which I did, I would still feel like, thats great, thats wonderful, she said. But I will say that maybe mine was a little more, just a touch more queer than Girls Gone Wild. Maybe.In addition to Ellis, others who recalled Sobule fondly included her manager, John Porter, who released this statement to the media: Jill Sobule was a force of nature and human rights advocate whose music is woven into our culture. I was having so much fun working with her. I lost a client and a friend today. I hope her music, memory, & legacy continue to live on and inspire others. Her lawyer, Ken Hertz, added, Jill wasnt just a client. She was family to us. She showed up for every birth, every birthday, and every holiday. She performed at our daughters wedding, and I was her tech when she performed by Zoom from our living room (while living with us) during the pandemic. The Swallow Hill Music Festival will host a free gathering in Sobules honor from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Friday. Its open to all. A more formal memorial event will be held this summer.Survivors include her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule, and her nephews, Ian Matthew and Robert, and Roberts wife, Irina.

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The moment Robert Rene hits the stage, you know its going to be a good show. Whether hes alongside his amazing dancers or taking the stage for a moment on his own, his audience is captivated. We recently saw him take center stage at this years Riverside County Fair headlining for Out at the Fair. []The post Robert Rene is Writing Music in His Sleep appeared first on GEDmagazine.

Have you ever been sitting around a dinner table with friends or enjoying happy hour cocktails at your favorite gay bar when a familiar, fast-paced trill suddenly fills the air?Of course, you have we all have! Ears prick up, eyebrows raise, and everyone breaks out in laughter. That one-second-long notification sound has become as recognizable []The post Safety First, Sexy Second appeared first on GEDmagazine.

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Brandon Rogers is a man of many faces and voices. Going from creating plaintiff videos for a personal injury law firm to releasing his own content, he has single-handedly made a highly successful career as a YouTuber with a subscriber list of over seven million and video views that are three digits into the millions. []The post Brandon Rogers is on a Wild and Crazy Comedic Journey appeared first on GEDmagazine.

Its a word that immediately perks up our ears and quickens our pulse. It starts with P and oh, get your minds out of the gutter. The word is PLAY. As kids, it was our reason for living. Play time promised thrilling discoveries, the chance to make new friends, and brain development that we didnt []The post On Your Marks, Get Set, Play (Lounge)! appeared first on GEDmagazine.

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You cant change the past, but you can build upon it. Every empire teeters on a flimsy foundation of dirt and despair. Kinda like adolescence! Seriously, conjure up an image of your pubescent self. Is it cool or cringe? Your answer may have a profound impact on how you experience David Dean Bottrells one-man opus, []The post David Dean Bottrell is Telling Awkward Stories appeared first on GEDmagazine.

HAMLET Los Angeles: Most of us know the name Hamlet as Shakespears Prince of Norway who is responsible for many deaths, but I, for one, have never actually seen it in live performance. Los Angeless Mark Taper Forum is going to change that for me this month and Im genuinely excited. First of all, []The post This Navy Psychiatrist is on an Epic Quest to Save Humanity appeared first on GEDmagazine.

This weekend, Eugene Daniels steps into television history. As co-anchor of MSNBCs brand-new morning news program The Weekend, airing Saturdays and Sundays from 710 a.m. ET, Daniels becomes one of the first openly gay Black men to host a cable news showjoining fellow anchor Jonathan Capehart and journalist Jackie Alemany. View this post on [...]The post MSNBCs The Weekend Anchors a New Era: Eugene Daniels Talks Representation, Reporting, and Resilience first appeared on GLAAD.

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The Outlook is our weekly roundup of political issues that affect the LGBTQ+ community.On May 1, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a 400-page report titledTreatment for Pediatric Gender Dysphoria.LGBTQ+ organizations including the Human Rights Campaign, Trevor Project and LPAC criticized the report as misleading and harmful to trans youth.Lambda Legal has filed a second federal lawsuit challenging the Trump-Vance administrations passport policy, which prohibits the issuance of passports with X gender markers. For the fifth time, Democrats have reintroduced the Equality Act, a sweeping LGBTQ+ rights bill. Florida Republicans have introduced several bills that will affect LGBTQ+ youth in the state, including a bill that would require parental consent for STI treatment and another that would make it easier to ban books with LGBTQ+ content. A new bill in Arizona would require age verification to access adult websites, part of a broader push tied to Project 2025. Critics warn it could be used to censor LGBTQ+ content.The post The OutLook: LGBTQ+ politics & policy: May 2, 2025 appeared first on News Is Out.

(As seen at daphealth.org) On March 12, 2025 at the final 2iS learning collaborative held at the Hilton Washington, D.C. Rockville Hotel & Executive Meeting Center DAP Health was recognized with the Golden Shield Awards prestigious Innovative Architects Award for its groundbreaking leadership, innovation, and unwavering commitment to ending the HIV epidemic in []The post DAP Health Honored in Washington, D.C. for HIV Innovation and Equity appeared first on GEDmagazine.

Every week, The GLAAD Wrap brings you LGBTQ-related entertainment news highlights, fresh stuff to watch out for, and fun diversions to help you kick off the weekend. 1.) Meet the man behind the infamous character Pee-wee Herman in the trailer for HBOs posthumous documentary Pee-wee as Himself. The two-part special explores the legacy of Paul [...]The post The GLAAD Wrap: Trailers for Pee-wee as Himself and Fear Street: Prom Queen, Peabody Award Winners Announcement, New Music by Burry, chlothegod, and More! first appeared on GLAAD.

Love, loss, and longing take center stage in The History of Sound, a sweeping queer period drama starring Paul Mescal and Josh OConnor thats already generating major buzz ahead of its world premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. Directed by Oliver Hermanus (Mary & George), the film tells a story of connection between two men at a time when being seenlet alone lovedwas a risk in itself.Source

Pop visionary Lorde is ready to reveal her rawest self yet. In April, the New Zealand singer-songwriter dropped What Was That, the lead single from her upcoming fourth album, Virgin, out June 27. As fans scrambled to decipher the meaning behind the haunting, introspective track, Lorde sent out a clear message: This new era is about shedding illusionsand maybe even shedding skin.Source

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View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sarah Kate Ellis (@sarahkateellis) On Friday, May 2nd, GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellisappeared on ABCsThe View.The segment started withJoy Behar sharing thatThe Viewwas proud to accept the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Variety or Talk Show Episode at the 36th Annual GLAAD [...]The post GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis Appears on The View to Discuss the State of LGBTQ Acceptance and Her Meetings with Pope Francis: Stories have power. first appeared on GLAAD.

These thirst traps are out of this world.Venus snatched the crown on season four of Canada's Drag Race and has enjoyed every second of flaunting her gorgeous looks in and out of drag online.While attending the grand opening of The Tryst Puerto Vallarta, the star revealed where the confidence to show so much skin on social media comes from. "As a good Christian woman, I was blessed! When you are blessed, you must bestow that sermon upon other people. We're in a generation and a time of just being very comfortable in our bodies. Anyone out there that is struggling with that, you deserve to feel comfortable in your body no matter what," Venus tells PRIDE. See on Instagram Although Venus is off Twitter at the moment, the queen has shared her entire pole on the platform in the past and she's seemingly teasing more erotic photos to come this summer."Maybe more will come in June! Let's say June. Let's kick it off. A little more banana and if you're allergic, we can do eggplant, we can do cucumber, we can do whatever you want."To see the full interview with Venus at the grand opening for The Tryst Puerto Vallarta, check out the video at the top of the page.

Janice Goldberg still remembers the first moment she laid eyes on her partner Sue.It was over 45 years ago in the small beach town of Ocean City, Maryland. Janice had gotten a job waiting tables at an upscale restaurant after spending the first part of her summer in Europe. She wasnt quite sure what the future had in store for her then there she was.Sue, who lived in Florida at the time, had travelled up the coast to spend the summer in Ocean City with her then-boyfriend. The two decided one day to treat themselves to a meal at a fancier restaurant, and happened to walk into the one where Janice worked. The rest is, as they say, history.Janice started as Sues waiter, but it wasnt long before she became her lover. Today, shes her caregiver.Sue began showing signs of Alzheimers disease about ten years ago. Since then, Janice has had to balance her work as both a theater director and a tour guide with caring for the love of her life. She recently agreed to take part in the upcoming PBS documentary Mind Over Matter: My Alzheimers to shed a light on her experience and hopefully help end the stigma surrounding it.I want people to recognize that it's a journey. I want people to recognize the difficulty of it, and I want to take away some of the fear that's involved, Janice tells The Advocate. I also think that it's important for people to see how caregivers and their loved ones can deal with it and what they do to make things manageable for themselves.The documentary is the third in a series from award-winning co-directors Anna Moot-Levin and Laura Green that focuses on neurodegenerative diseases. The film follows Janice and Sues journey alongside two other pairs of parent and child as they all navigate life with the conditions.One of the films central themes is how people living with Alzheimer's and dementia continue to lead meaningful lives where they're connected to others and connected to activities and things that they enjoy and love, Moot-Levin says. This doesnt just mean patients, as there's an impact on the immediate family, there's an impact on the person's community, and there's a real loss in the experience of the people who are surrounding the person with that illness.Each of them have such a deeply loving relationship and they find a way to maintain that relationship even as one person changes with dementia, Green adds. I think that people are very dismissive of the sort of personhood of people with Alzheimer's and dementia, and they dont always see and interact with them. Theres a lot more recognizing the humanity of people living with Alzheimer's that we need to do.Including Janice and Sues relationship also showcases what an LGBTQ relationship is like in aging, Green says, which there unfortunately arent many examples of in media. The filmmakers wanted to examine the differences that arise in later stages of life for queer people, to which Janice asserts, Were older. Thats the difference.The directors initially connected with Janice and Sue over two years ago through SAGE, an advocacy organization for LGBTQ+ elders that offers support groups for people with neurodegenerative diseases. While Janice greatly appreciates having a group of queer people she can relate to, she says that she never pictured herself ending up in such a group. I thought I'd get through my whole life without therapy, Janice says. Turns out you don't.While Janice notes that the battle is the same for everybody, and it's vastly different for everybody all at the same time, all the caregivers she knows have experienced a similar feeling of loss. This isnt just from the changes in their loved ones, but the changes in themselves that Moot-Levin has dubbed a transformation of identity.For this particular disease, it's hard as hell on the caregiver because the person who has the disease oftentimes does not know they have the disease. They think they're fine, so they can live a peaceful, happy life, Janice says. I don't know any caregiver who lives a peaceful, happy life.While Janice knew that the film was an important project, she says she mainly wanted to participate because it seemed fun and it was something good to do with Sue since she needs some engagement.Sue was a gracious host even when she didnt remember that a documentary team was in her home, as Green says that she would frequently offer the crew snacks and refreshments. She would sometimes forget that we were there and then be surprised that we were there, but still be a consummate hostess with the revelation that there was a camera crew in her apartment, Green recalls.What was remarkable for Janice about the process was being able to watch the documentary once it was finished and see Sues progression. When filming began, Sue was still verbal. Now, Janice says "words are difficult for her," and that she mostly speaks in gibberish.To have to watch that, I found very moving and sad, but I was grateful that I saw it so there's a documentation of that, Janice says. Through the film, Janice hopes to draw attention to what people caring for loved ones with neurodegenerative diseases go through. The process is draining on families, she says, especially if you're under a certain income or if people have to quit jobs to care for people and then there's no income.The filmmakers also hope to erase some of the stigma surrounding such conditions, as Moot-Levin emphasizes we need to support people through that sense of loss.People often want to hide themselves as they begin to get dementia. People feel shame and embarrassment, Green says. Being more accepting so that we can have a society that people are more fully integrated in and less lonely and less isolated really would be wonderful.Matter of Mind: My Alzheimer's will debut as part of the Independent Lens series on PBS May 5.

Kamala Harris made a high-profile return to the national spotlight Wednesday night, delivering a pointed political speechand creating a few meme-worthy momentsat the Emerge Gala in San Francisco. Held to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Emerge, a group that recruits and trains Democratic women to run for office, the event saw Harris call out the current presidential administration and doubleSource

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Welcome to our weekly dose of Queer Joybecause PRIDE isnt just for June! This is the first in a series celebrating the voices, moments, and people that make us smile. Queer joy is a radical act, so join us each week for more stories that uplift, resist, and shine.Marlon Wayans should be winning a Father of the Year award after opening up about his complete acceptance of his trans son Kai.This week, the White Chicks star appeared on the IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson podcast alongside his brother Damon Wayans. Toward the end of the April 30 episode, Wayans talked about his sons transition and the way it changed his thinking. "Their transition taught me what real, unconditional love was. When they went through the transition, I actually went through the transition, the 52-year-old comedian said, per Buzzfeed. I went from denial to complete acceptance, and it took me a week to get there.Wayans said that judging your child for who they are is a poor reflection on you and isnt your place."What I've learned as a parent is that for you to stop loving your child because of their choice and their life, that's a poor reflection on you. When there's people that go, 'I'm not going to associate with you because you do that,' or 'This is against God,' it's like, listen, I'm not here to judge. I'm not God. Only God can judge, he explained. But if God were to judge his son, Wayans said hed just sneak Kai in the back. If thats a mistake and we get to heaven and God dont let my child in, Im going to shave a beard and sneak them in through the back.See on InstagramWayans is also unbothered by anyone who stops being a fan of his after learning about his trans son."I'm going to love my baby," Marlon continued. "I'm a father. I'm always going to defend them. I'm always going to protect them. I'm always going to protect them. There's nothing anybody could ever tell me. I could lose fans...good. I lost people who are small-minded, small-hearted, and self-loathing, so goodbye. For every one I lose, I gain 150 more.Wayans first opened up about Kais transition back in 2023, and since then, he has proven himself to be an LGBTQ+ ally and fierce defender of his trans son.He has spoken openly about his love for his son on The Breakfast Club, on social media, and in a comedy special where he talked about Kai coming out as trans. Earlier this year, he also got into a heated fight on X (formerly Twitter) with Soulja Boy, where he epically shut down the rapper after he made a series of homophobic and transphobic comments.The father of three admitted that right after Kai came out as trans, he struggled to get their pronouns correct (Kai goes by they/them) and use their new name, but working to get it right is about respect."That's what they want and that's their wishes, respect their wishes, he said. I know that the same child is in there. They're brilliant. And that's all that I really care about they're kindhearted, they're really funny, they have a great sense of humor, and extremely intelligent...those are the things I'm proud of.For Wayans, the most important thing is whether or not his kids are good people. "Are you a good person? I don't care about your sexuality, and all of these other things, your gender, your associations, I care that you are a good-hearted person, he explained.

Oscar-winning actor Robert De Niro has expressed his full support for his daughter Airyn after she publicly came out as a transgender woman this week. The 29-year-old shared her story in an interview published Tuesday, April 29, marking the first time she has spoken publicly about her journey. De Niro, known for his iconic roles in Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Killers of the Flower MoonSource

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Ive recently decided linen clothing is not for me and not because I dont like the lightweight, relaxed look or feel of linen fabric. I just find that the easy, breezy fabric gets so wrinkled, which bothers me, and Im not about to break out my Steamery steamer multiple times a day to fix it.So I was a little hesitant to try linen bedding, despite how much other people seem to love it.READ MORE...

MSNBC is ushering in a historic new era for cable news with the announcement of a groundbreaking weekend lineup. Beginning this spring, the network will launch a revamped edition of its weekend morning show, The Weekend, hosted by a dynamic new trio: Pulitzer Prizewinning journalist Jonathan Capehart, senior Washington correspondent Eugene Daniels, and newly appointed Washington correspondentSource

Josh OConnor and Paul Mescal are stepping into a moving queer love story in The History of Sound, and new stills from the film are already sending fans into a frenzy. Released exclusively by Vanity Fair, the newly revealed images show the two acclaimed actors fully immersed in their roles. One shot captures Mescal floating peacefully in a pool while OConnor lounges nearby, cigarette in hand.Source

by Mary Hudetz ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up for Dispatches, a newsletter that spotlights wrongdoing around the country, to receive our stories in your inbox every week. The director of Arizonas embattled Medicaid agency resigned this week, just as she was expected to face questions from lawmakers about her handling of a massive fraud scheme that largely targeted Native Americans.Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, announced Wednesday that she had accepted the resignation of Carmen Heredia, director of the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System. The governor lauded Heredias leadership of the agency while blaming Republican lawmakers for politicizing the confirmation process, saying it had become clear they would not confirm Heredias nomination.Sen. Jake Hoffman, a Republican and chair of the Senates Committee on Director Nominations, said in a statement that in responding to the fraud scheme, Heredia had poorly executed the suspensions of hundreds of behavioral health providers. Heredia had served as the head of AHCCCS without Senate confirmation since early 2023, several years after officials say the fraud likely began during the Republican administration of former Gov. Doug Ducey. In the year before Heredia became director, records show that officials were warned that the fraud was harming patients, but they struggled to respond and failed to alert the public, which Heredia did along with other state leaders in May 2023. (Earlier this year, a spokesperson for Ducey did not comment on missed opportunities to stop the fraud but said that the former governor went to great lengths to assist in Hobbs transition.)Under Heredias leadership, AHCCCS withheld payment to more than 300 businesses as the agency investigated allegations that they were fraudulently billing Medicaid for treatment services. Often, the services had not been provided, and business owners were accused of allowing patients to continue the substance use they had hoped to overcome through treatment.In a statement, Heredia said she submitted her resignation with a heavy heart and expressed concern that a partisan agenda had resulted in professionals being dragged through career damaging hearings. Two years ago, Senate Republicans derailed the nomination of one of Hobbs previous picks to lead the health department.Last September, more than a year after the crackdown began, the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting and ProPublica reported that the suspensions had rendered patients homeless. Victims of the scheme, some from other states, were also left without access to the drug and alcohol treatment they were seeking. Over several years, businesses across much of Arizona, but mostly in Phoenix, reaped huge Medicaid reimbursements by enrolling Native Americans in their programs and billing the states American Indian Health Program at exorbitant rates for services, like counseling sessions. (The AIHP is a Medicaid insurance option that, until the fraud was discovered, had no set limit on the amount of money providers could bill for services.) At a news conference Thursday, Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, said there had been more than 100 indictments and 25 convictions so far related to the scheme. She also said she expected more indictments to come.AHCCCS said over the past two years that officials top priority was patient safety, and in May 2023, the agency set up a hotline for victims. It provided brief hotel stays for people displaced from shuttered facilities. However, AHCCCS said last year that it had no record of what happened to a majority of the hotlines then 11,400 callers, largely because after six months it had stopped tracking outcomes for people who did not stay in a hotel. According to available data, more than 575 people ended up without housing as of last September. AZCIR and ProPublica also found that at least 40 Indigenous residents of sober living homes and treatment facilities in the Phoenix area died as the state fumbled its response.A handful of the suspended providers, out of hundreds investigated, were allowed to resume billing Medicaid after clearing allegations with the state. But they said the suspensions still pushed them to the brink financially and upended their patients care, AZCIR and ProPublica found. As a result, Heredias swift and aggressive response to the crisis which authorities said was needed to root out fraud and save lives caused concerns that behavioral health care, especially for Native Americans, was increasingly difficult to access. Under Katie Hobbs leadership, Heredias response has been incredibly disturbing, to say the least, Hoffman said. We are left with a broken system due to Heredias mismanagement, and our vulnerable populations are caught up in this collapse.A spokesperson for Senate Republicans declined a request for an interview with Hoffman.While Hoffmans statement mostly focused on the fraud scheme that authorities say cost the state $2 billion, he said he also took issue with other matters within AHCCCS involving long-term care.In addition to Heredias resignation, Jennifer Cunico, the director of the Arizona Department of Health Services, also stepped down this week. Like Heredia, Cunico was set to appear before lawmakers for a confirmation hearing. Cunico said she was proud of her work at the department but made the difficult decision to withdraw her nomination after it became clear she wouldnt be confirmed either. Her resignation comes two years after Hobbs previous pick to lead the health department withdrew her nomination following a heated confirmation hearing. Hoffman said Cunico had defended public health officials pandemic response during meetings with lawmakers but did not provide details. Hoffman previously sponsored legislation that prohibited state and local agencies from enacting vaccine mandates.The governor defended Heredias response to the fraud crisis and said both Heredia and Cunico had worked on a range of initiatives, including improving access to maternal health care. Carmen Heredia helped root out a multi-billion dollar wave of Medicaid fraud and the related humanitarian fallout which the previous administration ignored, Hobbs said in a statement. Her work to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in our healthcare system is a model for the nation, and she always ensured people who needed help continued to get it. She added, The Senates unprecedented politicization of the director confirmation process has ended the directorship of two healthcare professionals who have made our state government run more efficiently and more effectively. Christopher Lomahquahu, an investigative reporter and Roy W. Howard fellow for AZCIR, contributed reporting.

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Once again, Grindr is the gift that keeps on giving.The popular dating app just launched season two of their hit series Daddy Lessons, which is dedicated to queer history, and the first episode is all about the sexy jockstrap.Since the '50s and '60s, gay men have worn the seductive undergarment to emphasize their butts and the jockstrap has become more mainstream as the years have gone on.Besides jockstraps, Grindr's Daddy Lessons if offering additional cheeky content in upcoming episodes. Viewers will learn more about everything from "Gaybraham Lincoln" to bodybuilding through the queer lens.With every episode under two minutes, a rotating roster of sexy daddies will host the weekly lessons as they're posted across Grindr's social channels. Check out the first episode below! See on Instagram

South Koreas first ever lesbian dating show is hitting pause after backlash against one of its cast members and fans are not happy about it.ToGetHer premiered on Wavve last week, with international audiences immediately scrambling to find ways to watch it themselves. But it wasnt long before accusations came out that one of the cast members, Kim Ri Won, had previously created adult content and dated men. There was immediately backlash, with some people insisting she shouldnt be participating in the series with her past, as well as theorizing that she was secretly straight. Riwon took to social media to apologize to those who felt betrayed by the things that came to light. She also acknowledged having dated a man while trying to deny her sexuality, but says she has since accepted that she only loves women. (@) The production company, ThisPlay, issued a series of statements denying that they knew about adult content. They vaguely referenced something that was initially investigated during the casting process and disproven, but said that whatever subsequently surfaced was something else of which they had been uninformed.Things got even messier when a fellow cast member, Hangyeol, posted a statement accusing Riwon of making an "inappropriate proposal." Specifically, it seems as if Riwon made a comment about traveling together and Hangyeol later interpreted it to be something more nefarious something Riwon has outright denied. (@) "hangyeol saying that riwon was trying to call her to the sex industry js bc she asked her out a date, bro wdym" (@) (@) The controversies ultimately led to the decision to temporarily put the show which has already been filmed on pause as ThisPlay considers how to edit future episodes with everything thats happened in mind.Despite the backlash Riwon has been receiving on Korean sites, sapphic fans across the world have largely pointed the finger at homophobes and misogynists for driving the drama, and have rallied to show their support. (@) "With korean incels on her ass and the person she trusted with also attacking her i hope that riwon knows she has an army of people who still behind her. Please be safe :( " (@) "i cannot support a show that claims to be for queer women but prioritises male opinions, so i will stop watchingshame on you. riwon and the queer women of south korea deserve better." (@) "The rumor of riwon faking her sexuality to join #ToGetHer for cloutwas started by the MAN who assaulted and threatened her and some yll believing him before even she spoke?!!!" (@) "i only care about riwons wellness right now, hope she is okay and have people that are with her in this situation. its such a shame this is happening to her" (@) "if they edit riwon out im not watching" (@) "BRO NO ONE IS PUSHING YOU TO GET TOGETHER WITH RIWON, THIS CHILD IS PISSING ME OFF. IF U DONT LIKE GETTING ASKED OUT FOR DINENR DECLINE HER IN UR DMS NOT AIR OUT UR BUSINESS AHhhhhHhHhHhhHh" (@) "i feel so bad about riwon and the all #ToGetHer casts. they've been harrased by korean cishet hannams constantly and riwon got accused being camgirl then suddenly questioning her sexuality...? damn being women specifically LESBIAN are so hard in korea FREE MY WOMEN" (@) "This was supposed to be our cute little lesbian dating show but of course men ruined it for us all my heart breaks for Riwon and all the Korean women who have to live in such a misogynistic and homophobic society" (@) "what is the point of her story like its very immature to throw riwon under the bus like that, thats why they shouldnt cast people born after camp rock in dating shows" (@) "As a lesbian woman, it just hurts to see SK first Lesbian reality show be bought down by negative people and homophobic. Riwon deserves better, she's just a woman trying to start fresh and be a woman who loves women. I hate men and homophobic women."ToGetHer is expected to resume airing next week, but details beyond that remain up in the air.

While fans of drag have celebrated the popularity of the art form, they have also long lamented the lack of drag king representation on TV. This week, Drag Race season 17 star Lana Lana JaRae tweeted, I really want to see a king on drag race. The Boulet Brothers have not only featured kings on Dragula, but have given us a king winner in Landon Cider (but well get back to him shortly) and runner-up in Throb Zombie. But heres the thing: kings deserve their own space and spotlight! They deserve the opportunity to highlight how king drag has its own identity and is a unique art form in its own right. Thats where King of Drag comes in. And baby, it looks to be worth the wait. The Revry original series is set to premiere on the streaming service June 22. Today, we got our first teaser trailer, which introduces the incredible panel of judges and all-star guest judges. Taking on the role of the host is the iconic Murray Hill and joining him as regular judges are drag king extraordinaires Tenderoni and Wang Newton, Drag Race icons Sasha Velour and Gottmik, as well as Revry co-founder Damian Pelliccione. And that esteemed panel of judges will be welcoming an A-list cast of celebrity guest judges including Cole Escola, Landon Cider, Vico Ortiz, Liv Hewson, Kathleen Hanna, Cameron Esposito, Paul Feig, Lisa Rinna, Bridget Everett, and more. This deep bench of whos whos will be assisting in deciding which of the kings will rise to the top and take the title of King of Drag long may they reign.'King of Drag'premieres June 22 on Revry. Watch the teaser below.

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