California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is now saying that his state should consider rolling back its law allowing trans students to participate in school sports as their gender, while he argues that he isnt transphobic because he has signed many pro-trans rights bills and also has a trans godson.I disagree with all the vitriol, but I agree on the issue of fairness in that respect, that it is unfair in these circumstances, and I havent been able to reconcile it, he told KQED this past Friday about the issue of trans student-athletes. Related Gov. Gavin Newsom signs pro-LGBTQ+ bills, but vetos critical trans medication bill Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Californias previous governor, Jerry Brown, signed a law in 2013 that allows trans kids to participate in school sports as their gender. This law barely drew attention from the right for years the current president didnt try to get schools to defy it during his first term, as hes doing now but ever since Republicans made trans kids rights part of their national strategy in 2021, the law has faced criticism.In March of this year, Newsom told late rightwing podcaster Charlie Kirk that its deeply unfair that trans girls get to participate in school sports. In July, he repeated the sentiment on another podcast, saying that he has heard complaints about trans girls participating in school sports from good human beings, not just conservatives. Because you oppose sports does not make you a bigot, doesnt make you homophobic, Newsom said at the time. And my party needs to stop saying that.Theres some nuance here, Newsom said last Friday on KQED when asked about his past statements. I dont roll people under the bus, quite the contrary. But when it comes to sports, thats impacting other peoples rights.He claimed that there are many people who have a similar point of view, but dont say it publicly. He was asked about his states law allowing trans kids to play school sports as their gender, a law that has been key to Californias stance against the administrations attempts to force states to ban trans kids from school sports. He agreed that it should be changed, but didnt say how.I think we have to figure this out, he said. Its a difficult- This is not the issue. And what I hate about the other side, theyre making a- Theyre coloring this in as its a major issue.Newsom also argued that hes not transphobic. Theres not one person youve had on-air who has a better record on trans rights than this person youre talking to, period full stop, he said. I have signed more bills protecting trans folks than anyone youve ever had on this air. I have appointed more people to positions of power and influence as it relates to trans than any other major elected official, from judicial appointments to significant appointments. I just made a decision in terms of our retirement system just a few weeks ago. Its a point of pride that Ive done that.He claimed that, as mayor of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011, he was attacking [major LGBTQ+ rights organization] HRC because they werent including trans rights back in 2004, 5, 6. Its unclear what he was referring to there. HRC famously supported a version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in Congress that didnt include protections for gender identity in 2007, but he didnt explain how or when he criticized them for that. But, he said, sports are different from other trans rights issues. Thats impacting other peoples rights.And I say this with a trans godson, he continued. I have only one godson, whos trans. And so with love and grace in my heart and in that exact exchange with Charlie [Kirk], I said, these people just wanna survive.I disagree with all the vitriol, but I agree on the issue of fairness in that respect, that it is unfair in these circumstances, and I havent been able to reconcile it.The relevant exchange starts at about 18:30. Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Pete Buttigieg zoomed out on Saturday on the controversy surrounding Donald Trumps teardown of the East Wing of the White House, saying hes not as concerned about historic preservation as he is about Americans suffering the effects of historic price hikes for health insurance, all while Trump builds a ballroom to party with his billionaire fans.Whats most wrong about what President Trump is doing to the White House grounds is, it shows that his focus is on building a bigger venue for fancy dinners, when, because of his actual policies, Americans are opening those letters and finding out this week that theyre not going to be able to afford their healthcare next year. Related Can Democrats come up with a Project 2029 to rebuild democracy after Trump? Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today My focus right now isnt about historic preservation, he told CNN. Its about whats going on in peoples lives.The presidents timing couldnt be worse, Buttigieg said. Both the demolition and premium hikes come during an extended government shutdown that Trump and Republicans dont seem anxious to end. Hundreds of thousands of federal workers, including air traffic controllers, TSA agents, and military personnel, are working without pay, while thousands more have been furloughed or fired by the president.Democrats and the GOP are in a standoff over extending Biden-era subsidies to keep Obamacare premiums low.How in the world could you be focused on building a new ballroom a literallygilded ballroom for fancy parties for your rich friends at the exact moment when working Americans, actually disproportionately working Americans, who voted foryou, are getting screwed by your healthcare policy, and you dont seem to be interested in helping them, Buttigieg asserted. Politicians and preservationists alike have denounced Trumps unilateral destruction of the East Wing, and the grandiose and growing plans to replace it with a Roman-style temple rumored to be named after the president himself. Trump called that gossip fake news over the weekend.Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), another possible candidate along with Buttigieg to succeed Trump in 2028, trolled the president on Sunday over plans for the enormous edifice honoring his ego at 90,000 square feet, the neoclassical building is almost double the size of the White House footprint.Asked on NBC News Meet the Press whether his party should tear down the ballroom if they get the chance, the Democrat responded, No. I think to really mess with him, just name it the Barack Obama ballroom, Gallego said. Some past administration officials have said a larger venue for state dinners and similar functions isnt a bad idea on its face, but Trumps execution unilateral and in poor taste has undermined a worthy objective.News of plans for guest suites for Trumps billionaire friends in the new addition has only added to charges of influence-peddling associated with the $300 million building, said to be paid for by those same deep-pocketed Trump supporters and business associates.Buttigiegs take: Most of the people who are getting these letters about their healthcare premiums are never going to be invited to dinner at the White House. Hes not there for them.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Donald Trump attacked Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) as being dumb, challenging them to take an IQ test or to pass the really hard dementia test he took at a hospital in a bizarre rant.They have Jasmine Crockett, a low-IQ person, he told reporters on Air Force One earlier today. Related Lauren Boebert calls Pete Buttigieg a diversity sympathy hire They have- AOC is low IQ. You give her an IQ test. Have her pass the exams that I decided to take when I was at Walter Reed. I took those are really hard. Theyre really aptitude tests, I guess, in a certain way. But, theyre cognitive tests.Let AOC go against Trump. Let Jasmine go against Trump. I dont think Jasmine- The first couple of questions are easy, a tiger, an elephant, a giraffe, you know. When you get up to about five or six, and then when you get up to ten and twenty and twenty-five, they couldnt come close to answering any of those questions. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Trump: AOC is low IQ. If you give her an IQ test, have her pass like the exams that I decided to take when I was at Walter Reed. Those are very hard They're really aptitude tests, in a certain way, but they're cognitive tests. Let AOC go against Trump.The first couple of pic.twitter.com/CQQSjtoDDt Acyn (@Acyn) October 27, 2025During his first term, Trump bragged repeatedly about passing a cognitive test used to measure impairment. It is not an IQ or intelligence test; its purpose is to screen for brain damage and dementia. The test is usually only given if a doctor believes there is a need to screen for cognitive impairment.During his first term, the list of words that Trump cited when referring to the test was Person, woman, man, camera. The fact that the words have changed suggests that the new words were used during his cognitive exam during his physical at Walter Reed earlier this year. There is no reason to believe that either congresswoman is suffering from cognitive impairment, much less dementia. Both Ocasio-Cortez and Crockett have had greater intellectual accomplishments in their lives than a dementia test at a hospital.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

French first lady Brigitte Macrons pursuit of conspiracy theorists who claim that shes transgender entered a criminal court in Paris on Monday in a case against 10 people accused of promoting the unsubstantiated rumor.The trial follows a defamation lawsuit filed in the United States by Macron and her husband, President Emmanuel Macron, at the end of July, in connection with the same claims promoted online that Brigitte Macron was assigned male at birth. Related Frances first lady to provide photographic & scientific evidence in court that shes cisgender Mme. Macron was absent as the trial opened, AFP reports. Eight men and two women, aged 41 to 60, are accused of cyber-harassment targeting the first lady.The French first lady filed a complaint against the defendants in August 2024, leading to an investigation into her cyber-harassment. Arrests followed in December and February. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today If convicted, the accused face up to two years in prison.Conspiracy theories targeting Macron include claims that she is really her brother, Jean-Michel Trogneux, and that he transitioned to become the wife of Macron when the future French president was still a teenage boy.The age difference between the couple Brigitte Macron is 72, while the president is 47 gave rise to charges of pedophilia. The couple met when Emmanuelle Macron was 14, several years before they became romantically involved. Two of the ten accused defendants, Natacha Rey, a self-described journalist, and Amandine Roy, a spiritual medium, have already been found liable in a civil suit brought by Mme. Macron. The women were found guilty of slander in September last year, but an appeals court overturned their convictions based on claims of freedom of expression in July. The first lady is appealing that decision to Frances Supreme Court.Mme. Macrons whack-a-mole crusade against conspiracy theorists obsessed with her gender will cross the Atlantic to the United States when a defamation lawsuit filed by both Macron and her husband against Looney Tunes podcaster Candace Owens goes to trial.The MAGA muckraker produced a years-long series called Becoming Brigitte, claiming Mme. Macron was born a man.The presidential couple plan to offer scientific evidence and photographic proof that the first lady is not transgender, their U.S. lawyer says.Owens has taken particular delight in the salacious rumors, twisting the facts to include accusing the French president of being gay and being raped by his pre-transition pedophile male lover when he was a teen.Brigitte Macron has said that she tried to ignore the outrageous rumors for years, but when they began to affect her parents and family, she made a decision to fight back. The first ladys family is well-known for owning and operating a chain of chocolate stores in northern France.After his own long silence on the issue, President Macron addressed the rumors a year ago in March, in a brief statement to the press outside Place Vendme in Paris, saying the false claims had hurt him and his wife and impacted his family life.Said Owens not long after: I will say this until Im blue in the face. Brigitte Macron is a man.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Love is in the air!Queer people might be under attack from conservatives right now, but that hasnt stopped LGBTQ+ celebrities from showing the world what queer love looks like and why it should be celebrated.While the current political climate might lead you to believe that living covertly and quietly is the safer choice, there are plenty of LGBTQ+ celebrities who are bravely living out loud and proud and showing us every day why queer love is worth fighting for.From WNBA stars finding love on the court to YouTubers confirming longstanding dating rumors to bandmembers falling for each other, these queer celebs all revealed new relationships this year, helping us believe in love again, one hard launch at a time!Paige Bueckers and Azzi FuddSee on InstagramAfter months of fan speculation, WNBA Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers and UConn star Azzi Fudd finally came out and announced they are dating. Fudd broke the news with a cheeky Instagram Story that included a Paige Bueckers girlfriend cellphone case, while Bueckers hard launched their relationship on the orange carpet at the WNBAs All-Star weekend. The news came as no surprise but thrilled fans who were dying to see the two basketball stars together. Dan Howell and Phil LesterSee on InstagramBoth YouTubers Dan Howell and Phil Lester came out as gay in 2019, but it wasnt until 2025 that the two men confirmed the longstanding rumor that theyre in a relationship. In October, the pair released a video admitting that Phan (the ship name fans gave them) is canon after all, and while they looked outwardly like two best friends and roommates making videos together, theyve actually been boyfriends this whole time. Sawyer Hemsley and Antonio BrunoSee on InstagramCrumbl Cookie founder Sawyer Hemsley came out back in August after social media posts about his sexuality went viral. After reclaiming his coming-out story, Hemsley embraced living out loud and proud by announcing his relationship with a man named Antonio Bruno on social media in September.Elliot Page and Julia ShiplettSee on InstagramDuring this years Pride Month, Umbrella Academy star Elliot Page hard launched his new relationship with Overcompensating actress and comic Julia Shiplett by posting a photo of the happy couple on Instagram with the caption, Happy prideee . This marks Pages first public romance since transitioning in 2020.Jade Carey and Aimee SinacolaSee on InstagramOlympic gold medalist Jade Carey took to Instagram back in March to announce she had started dating Aimee Sinacola, director of creative content for the University of Oregon Ducks. This was first time that Carey, who was on the U.S. Womens Gymnastics team alongside Simon Biles, Suni Lee, and Jordan Chiles, had ever spoken publicly about her sexuality. Anna Camp and Jade WhipkeySee on InstagramPitch Perfect star Anna Camp came out as queer and surprised everyone by hard launching an age-gap relationship in a TikTok video where she and girlfriend, Jade Whipkey, were interviewed about dating. Then during Pride Month, the pair made their red carpet debut at the premiere of Camps film Bride Hard.Yared Nuguse and JulianSee on InstagramOlympic runner Yared Nuguse killed two birds with one stone when he came out and hard launched his relationship at the same time by posting a cute carousel of photos with his boyfriend. "Introducing my boyfriend, Julian," Nuguse wrote on Instagram in March. "Cant believe were already one year in my love."Dr. Ranj Singh and James ColebrookSee on InstagramTelevision star and doctor, Dr. Ranj Singh, started off the year right by going Instagram official with his boyfriend on New Years Day. "Starting 2025 the way it was meant to be. Happy new year love, Singh captioned an Instagram post of a photo showing him kissing British actor and influencer James Colebrook.Jonathan Intriago and MarcosSee on InstagramCouple to Throuple star Jonathan Intriago may not have had any success making a throuple work on the spicy reality TV show, but in August he hard launched his relationship with influencer Marcos (@marcosfromthe305 on TikTok). After a series of cryptic TikTok videos where he talked about his boyfriend but never showed his face, Intriago finally revealed his new beau in a Happy Anniversary post.Lauren Sanderson and Brooke Baldwin@bbaldzyeaahhhhhh soooooThis years Pride Month celebrations were full of queer celebs hard launching new relationships. Singer Lauren Sanderson and influencer Brooke Baldwin announced that they had started dating by posting a series of TikTok videos that were slightly cryptic, but ultimately made things crystal clear for their fans. Maddy Westbeld and Olivia MilesSee on InstagramWNBA star Maddy Westbeld hard launched her relationship with TCU Horned Frogs point guard Olivia Miles when Miles posted a series of photos to Instagram in June, showing the happy couple cozied up together. This might have been the first time the pair had made things official, but fans had been speculating that the two were dating for a while. Jewell Loyd andNatalija MarshallSee on InstagramWNBAs Jewell Loyd sent fans into a frenzy in July when she subtly announced her new relationship in an adorable Instagram post featuring her holding hands with former Miami Hurricanes player Natalija Marshall, who was sitting with her legs in Loyds lap. Other photos in the carousel showed what looked like a romantic date, Marshall visiting Loyd courtside for an Aces game, and Marshall standing behind Loyd while kissing her neck.Jenna Jameson andMilagros R. OcampoSee on InstagramFormer adult star Jenna Jameson divorced her wife, and then jumped feet first into a new relationship this past March. Jameson teased her new love for a few weeks before ultimatley revealing her new girlfriend, Milagros R. Ocampo, in a sweet Instagram post that showed a cute photo strip of the two lovebirds.Sasha Colby and Le Carr (@) Sasha Colby hard launched a new relationship this year, but its not her only one! Recently, the Drag Race superstar posted a collage of photos to her Instagram stories featuring her with Seattle gym owner Le Carr, which had fans questioning things because shes also dating Ben Koenigsberg. But once you remember that Colby told PRIDE that shes poly and has "two partners and someone else I'm dating, it all makes perfect sense.Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker (@) Boygenius bandmates Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker made sapphic dreams come true earlier this year when they announced to the world that they were dating. Fans had been hoping for years that the two would eventually get together, but those longstanding rumors finally came true in March with Dacus confirmed their romance in an interview with the New Yorker where she said she wanted to protect what is precious in my life.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, already rumored to be a Democratic contender for president in 2028, has confirmed hes considering a run but said he wont make a decision until after the 2026 midterms. In an interview that aired over the weekend on CBS News Sunday Morning, he was asked if hes giving serious thought to seeking the presidency, and he replied, Yeah, Id be lying otherwise. He is in his second term as governor and cant run for that post again due to term limits. He has lately become known for trolling Donald Trump.Newsom has been mostly an LGBTQ+ ally, but he shocked the community by hosting the late right-wing activist Charlie Kirk on his podcast and agreeing with Kirk that its somehow unfair to let transgender girls and women compete alongside cisgender ones in sports. Heres a detailed look at Newsom's LGBTQ+ rights record.An early marriage equality supporterIn 2004, when Newsom was mayor of San Francisco, he declared marriage equality in the city and county (the two entities are combined). In what was dubbed the Winter of Love, San Francisco issued more than 4,000 marriage licenses to same-sex couples between February 12 and March 11. The marriages were halted by the California Supreme Court and later annulled, but the Winter of Love still sent a strong message. Some Democratic politicians, however, feared it fueled backlash, along with the beginning of marriage equality in Massachusetts, leading to the passage of anti-marriage equality ballot measures in several states in November 2004. Newsom was elected lieutenant governor of California in 2010, with Jerry Brown as governor, then ran successfully for governor in 2018. His first ad in the gubernatorial race highlighted the Winter of Love in San Francisco.Surviving a recall with LGBTQ+ supportNewsom survived a recall attempt in 2021. The recall effort was spurred mostly by housing costs, homelessness, immigration, and the COVID-19 pandemic, but Californians largely approved of his handling of these matters. Those campaigning to keep him in office included President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Assemblyman Evan Low, a gay man who now heads the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund. Those seeking to replace him included far-right talk show host Larry Elder and transgender celebrity Caitlyn Jenner, who is not greatly supportive of other trans people. When the votes were in with a resounding no on his recall, Newsom emphasized what Californians said yes to: We said yes to diversity. We said yes to inclusion. We said yes to pluralism. We said yes to all those things that we hold dear as Californians and, I would argue, as Americans. Economic justice, social justice, racial justice, environmental justice.Likening "don't say gay" to infamous Briggs InitiativeIn 2022, in accepting an award for innovative policies, Newman likened Floridas dont say gay law, which restricted instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools, to a failed 1978 California ballot measure, the Briggs Initiative, which would have prevented queer people from teaching in the Golden States schools. Teachers were under assault because God forbid, teachers were homosexual, Newsom said when accepting 2022 Frank Newman Award for State Innovation from the Education Commission of the States.Making California a refuge for gender-affirming careAs Republican-led states around the nation started banning gender-affirming care for trans youth, Newsom signed a bill into law in 2022 that made California a sanctuary state for those coming in to seek care. Senate Bill 107 prohibited the release of information on a young person's gender-affirming care in response to a criminal or civil action based on another state's law that authorizes such actions. It also barred law enforcement agencies from knowingly arresting or extraditing someone based on another state's law against providing, receiving, or allowing a child to receive gender-affirming care. It further banned the enforcement of a court order "based on another state's law authorizing a child to be removed from their parent or guardian" for allowing the child to receive such care, as the bill stated.Sparring over Harvey MilkIn the summer of 2023, Newsom threatened the Temecula Valley Unified School District in Southern California with a $1.5 million fine if it did not adopt a state-approved social studies curriculum it had rejected because it mentioned groundbreaking gay San Francisco politician Harvey Milk. A Temecula school board member had called Milk a pedophile, which is not true. Milk is not mentioned in the textbook for the curriculum, but he is featured in supplemental materials. Newsom had promised that the state would buy the curricular materials for Temecula students if the district wouldnt. The school board finally agreed to buy them, although members said they would review and perhaps revise the references to Milk. Despite the review, Newsom expressed relief that students will have new textbooks but pointed out that the California Department of Education was still investigating Temecula Valley for possible civil rights violations.Related: Who was Harvey Milk?Signing pro-LGBTQ+ billsIn September 2023, Newsom signed nine pro-LGBTQ+ bills into law and vetoed one. The bills he signed addressed LGBTQ+ cultural competency training for public school teachers and staff, confidentiality for minors court petitions for a change of gender or sex identifier, evaluation of foster care homes to make sure LGBTQ+ young people are not placed in hostile environments, labeling single-user public restrooms all-gender, and more. The one he vetoed would have required courts, when making custody decisions, to consider whether a parent is supportive of a childs gender identity. Newsom had said this measure went too far in dictating court actions and could have led other-minded politicians in California and elsewhere to use this strategy to diminish the civil rights of vulnerable communities.Debating DeSantisIn November 2023, Newsom debated Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was then seeking the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, on the Fox News Channel in what was billed as The Great Red vs. Blue State Debate. DeSantis wants to roll back voting rights, civil rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and womens rights, Newsom said early on. Im here to tell the truth about the Biden-Harris record and also compare and contrast. Ron DeSantis, his record, and the Republican Partys record as a point of contrast, thats as different as daylight and darkness. Newsom denounced Floridas efforts to keep books that focus on LGBTQ+ people or other minority groups out of public schools and told DeSantis, I dont like the way you demean LGBTQ people. He also invoked Republican icon Ronald Reagan, who spoke out against the Briggs Initiative in 1978.Protecting students against forced outingIn July 2024, Newsom signed the Support Academic Futures and Educators for Todays Youth (SAFETY) Act, which prohibits schools from disclosing a students sexual or gender identity or sexuality to their guardians without the students permission. He later signed a bill into law that protects teachers from being fired if they refuse to out trans students to their parents. Often [trans youth] cant confide with someone at home, Newsom said. They confide with a teacher. And a teacher may, in many ways, save their life. And I dont think that teacher should be fired if that teacher doesnt turn in that child.The Charlie Kirk interviewAfter his many LGBTQ-supportive actions, Newsom outraged the community when he featured right-wing firebrand Charlie Kirk on the first episode of his podcast, This Is Gavin Newsom, in March of this year and agreed with Kirk that trans girls and women shouldnt compete in sports alongside cisgender females. I think its an issue of fairness. I completely agree with you on that. It is an issue of fairness, its deeply unfair I revere sports. So the issue of fairness is completely legit. Newsom may have made the comments because trans rights appeared to be a losing issue for Democrats in the 2024 election. Backlash was swift, and Newsoms team tried to do damage control, but many LGBTQ+ people are not inclined to forgive him. He also drew criticism for featuring far-right activist and onetime Trump adviser Steve Bannon and virulently anti-LGBTQ+ commentator Michael Savage on later episodes of the podcast. Newsom later platformed anti-trans talking points on a podcast hosted by right-winger Shawn Ryan.Related: Why transgender people are not feeling Gavin NewsomWithdrawing funds for LGBTQ+ health programsNewsom came under further fire last summer when he withdrew $40 million in funding for LGBTQ+ and other health programs from Californias budget. Lets be clear: Balancing the state budget on the backs of vulnerable queer communities is a moral failure, said Los Angeles LGBT Center CEO Joe Hollendoner. The legislature restored the funds, however, and Newsom agreed to the move.A mixed record on trans student athletesThe issue of trans student athletes came up again in the spring and summer of 2025, and Newsoms record was mixed. After Donald Trump condemned the inclusion of a trans girl in the states track and field championships and threatened the states funding, the California Interscholastic Federation announced a policy under which cisgender girls who narrowly missed qualifying allegedly due to the inclusion of a transgender competitor would be offered a chance to compete. The trans girl in question, AB Hernandez, did compete and won support from her fellow athletes as well as two gold medals and one silver. California sued the Trump administration over its demand that the state change its trans-inclusive sports policy, while the administration is suing California. Then in October, Newsom approved a study to explore the need for the state to improve access to sports for all groups regardless of race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, income, or geographic location.Signing and vetoing pro-LGBTQ+ billsAlso in October, Newsom signed several pro-LGBTQ+ bills into law and vetoed three. Those he signed strengthened confidentiality in health care, including for drugs used in gender-affirming care and abortion; sealed transgender and nonbinary adults gender transition court records, a privacy protection already available to minors; made paid family leave protections more inclusive of LGBTQ+ people; allowed out-of-state queer couples to access in-state channels when adopting California-born children; mandated that universities provide all students with LGBTQ-specific suicide hotline information; and made it easier to change one's legal name and gender on official documents. He vetoed bills requiring insurers to cover up to a years worth of prescribed hormones and to cover HIV prevention drugs without prior authorization. The third bill he vetoed would have required an inclusive view of gender in health education classes. He said the legislation should wait until a state study of health curricula was done.

It's time to make the yuletide gay!Robbie Simpson is one of the ten hunks competing on season two of the popular Hallmark Channel reality competition show Finding Mr. Christmas.The winner of the show gets to star in their own Hallmark movie, which would be a dream come true for all of the handsome contestants.Simpson is the only gay competitor on the upcoming season and he hopes to bring the win home for the queer community."I'm so thrilled to be on Hallmark! The show is such a blast. I take so much pride in being part of the LGBTQ+ community, especially on Hallmark. We haven't seen a lot of that. To be a small part of that means the world to me," Simpson tells PRIDE. See on Instagram LGBTQ+ representation is needed now more than ever, so Simpson hopes his visibility on Hallmark can start important conversations in homes all around the world."Those stories and those themes are exactly the stories that I want to tell, and being able to be myself and be an openly gay man is such a dream," he says. "If little 10-year-old Robbie, who was sitting on the couch with his mom, [could see] me win and become Mr. Christmas, that would have changed everything for me."Simpson hopes queer youth feel seen and can even find the courage to live more authentically by watching his journey on Hallmark."I probably would have said to my mom, 'I feel like he does. He has a partner who he wants to propose to and that's the life I want.' That would be the thing that I would be most excited about."Finding Mr. Christmas premieres tonight on Hallmark Channel. To see the full interview with Robbie Simpson, check out the video at the top of the page.

The Trump administration is blaming Democrats for an upcoming lapse in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, accusing them of refusing to reopen the federal government to fund the program because they are holding out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures.At the same time, the administration is reportedly refusing to use emergency funds to avoid a lapse in benefits. Related Donald Trump ends LGBTQ+ health programs under the cover of the shutdown Over the weekend, a message appeared on the U.S. Department of Agricultures (USDA) website warning that amid the ongoing government shutdown, SNAP benefits, which provide 1 in 8 Americans with monthly food assistance, will not be paid starting November 1.Senate Democrats have now voted 12 times to not fund the food stamp program, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the message reads. We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats. They can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today As the shutdown stretches into its fifth week, Senate Democrats have indeed refused to throw their full weight behind a Republican-backed stopgap bill to reopen the government and fund it at previous levels through November 21. But contrary to the USDA message, Democrats are actually holding out for legislation extending federal subsidies that would prevent the cost of Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance plans from skyrocketing next year. Republicans, meanwhile, refuse to negotiate on those subsidies until Democrats agree to reopen the government.Senate Democrats introduced their own stopgap measure, which would have funded the government through October 31 while extending ACA subsidies and undoing Republican cuts that ban lawfully present immigrants from accessing federal healthcare programs. As NPR reported Monday, an unsigned USDA memo that began circulating on October 24 argues that the approximately $6 billion Congress has set aside in multi-year SNAP contingency funds cannot be used to fund the program during the shutdown.SNAP contingency funds are only available to supplement regular monthly benefits when amounts have been appropriated for, but are insufficient to cover, benefits. The contingency fund is not available to support FY 2026 regular benefits, because the appropriation for regular benefits no longer exists, the memo reads.But as NPR notes, the memo conflicts with the USDAs October 1 shutdown contingency plan. Congressional intent is evident that SNAPs operations should continue during a shutdown, read the plan, which has since been removed from the USDAs website. The multi-year SNAP contingency funds are also available to fund participant benefits in the event that a lapse occurs in the middle of the fiscal year, the plan stated.In a piece responding to the USDAs reference to gender mutilation procedures, journalist Erin Reed warned that the scapegoating of trans healthcare during the government shutdown may increase the likelihood that anti-trans policy riders make it into a government funding package.The ongoing negotiations to reopen the federal government will almost certainly make trans people a bargaining chip again, Reed writes. When Congress debates the full fiscal year 2026 funding bills, dozens of anti-trans provisions are expected to resurface. The USDA message is just the latest posted on the websites of federal agencies to have drawn scrutiny from ethics experts. Earlier this month, Michael Fallings, a partner at employment law firm Tully Rinckey, told NPR that similar communications from government officials blaming Democrats for the shutdown may violate the Hatch Act.The Hatch Act prohibits engaging in political activity while in an official capacity, including communication that contains advocacy in opposition to a political party, Fallings said. Here, while the reference to Democrats alone likely does not constitute a violation, the explicit blaming of the Democratic Party for the shutdown and reference to radical left may constitute a violation.Donald Sherman, executive director and chief counsel at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, meanwhile, told the outlet that while such communications may not technically violate the Hatch Act because they dont explicitly advocate for a specific candidate or weigh in on an election, they violate the spirit of the law.The code of ethics requires that federal employees serve the American public impartially, without regard to their political views, Sherman explained. A shutdown will cause stress for the public regardless of political affiliation. Agency leaderships job in this moment is to provide nonpartisan service to their constituents, not politicize the situation and blame political enemies.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

CNNs chief data analyst mocked Donald Trumps trade feud with Canada, pointing out that hes picking on a country that Americans like a lot better than they like him. Trump ended trade talks with Canada and raised tariffs in response to an ad from the government of Ontario against the presidents tariff policy. Enten told viewers that among Americans, Canada has a net popularity rating of 49 percent, compared to Trumps net popularity rating of minus 10 percent. Related Analyst says Trump is setting records you do not want to set as he hits new lows in the polls When you pick on Canada as the United States president, you are picking on a country that the American people adore When youre going after Canada, you are going against someone who is far more popular than Donald Trump, he said. Pretty much every single time Americans will choose Canada over Donald Trump, and yet Trump has decided to pick yet another fight with somebody or some entity or some country that is more popular than he is. Enten added, No president has come anywhere close to how popular Canada is right now, and Donald Trump certainly is long, long way, he cannot see Canada from his house when it comes to his net popularity.He also made it clear that Canadians hate Trump, too, with his administration having a net popularity of minus 58 points in the country. So Americans love Canada, Enten said, but Canadians no longer love the United States of America.

King Charles III has dedicated a memorial to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender military service members at the United Kingdoms National Memorial Arboretum. The memorial recognizes both current LGBTQ+ members of the armed forces and those who suffered under the militarys LGBTQ+ ban.The memorial, An Opened Letter, combines words taken from evidence that was used in investigations against servicemembers while the ban was still in place. The text closes with a call to embrace our diversity & fight for our country. Related Defense Department settles lawsuit with gay veterans & delivers long-overdue justice The memorials website says it serves as a place of reflection, recognition and remembrance, ensuring that the stories of those who served, and those who suffered, are never forgotten.While homosexuality was decriminalized in the United Kingdom in 1967, the military held a ban against LGBTQ+ personnel until the year 2000. During that time, LGBTQ+ people in the military, or those suspected of being LGBTQ+, were subject to intensive investigations filled with invasive questions about their private lives. The investigations often resulted in people being dismissed without pay or pension, and some even faced prison time. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today While the UKs military service ban was explicitly against homosexuality, it affected all members of the LGBTQ+ community. As noted in the Etherton Review, The view adopted in the enforcement of the Ban was that, if a person was or declared themselves to be transgender or was experiencing gender dysphoria, they were either a gay man or a lesbian. For this reason, although the ban was concerned with homosexuality and therefore with sexual orientation, it also encompassed gender identity.In 2023, then-prime minister Rishi Sunak and several Home Office officials publicly apologized for the ban. Sunak lamented that many endured the most horrific sexual abuse and violence, homophobic bullying and harassment, all while bravely serving this country. He called the ban an appalling failure of the British state. His comments coincided with the publication of the LGBT Veterans Independent Review, commonly called the Etherton Review. In addition to highlighting the horrific conditions that LGBTQ+ service members faced under the ban, the review provided 49 recommendations for repairing some of the damage done, including pardoning veterans for any related criminal convictions, providing LGBTQ+ veteran ribbons that acknowledge their struggles, returning medals and berets, and creating the LGBTQ+ Veterans Memorial.The charity Fighting With Pride has been campaigning for justice for LGBTQ+ veterans for years, and in 2024, the group received 350,000 (approximately $467,000) to create the memorial. After reviewing submissions, they chose one from the Abraxas Academy, a Norfolk-based collective of artists. The artists, Charlotte Howarth and Nina Bilbey, say that the concept for the memorial symbolises the personal letters of endearment collected as evidence to convict, expel and imprison LGBTQ+ personnel during the ban, and the anxiety of living in constant fear of receiving a formal letter accusation.The dedication of the memorial marks King Charless first official support of the community since he became King in September 2022. Like his mother and predecessor, Queen Elizabeth II, Charles has largely avoided discussing LGBTQ+ rights publicly. That has led activists like Peter Tatchell to say that through his silence, he acquiesces with our tormentors. His sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, have both supported the LGBTQ+ community through positive messages and HIV initiatives. While some US states have memorials to LGBTQ+ veterans, there is not currently a national one to recognize the effects of LGBTQ+ bans in the military, including Dont Ask Dont Tell. While plans for a DC memorial were revealed in 2014, the monument was never finished due to a lack of funds.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

A Dallas pediatrician who became the first doctor to be sued under a Texas law banning gender-affirming care for minors has given up her license to practice in the state.According to TownFlex, the Texas Medical Board confirmed that Dr. May Lau voluntarily surrendered her medical license. In a statement, Laus attorney, Craig Smyser, said that she has decided to move her practice to Oregon and sees no reason to maintain her license to practice in Texas. Related Texas sues doctor for providing gender-affirming care in first of its kind lawsuit Last year, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) filed a first-of-its-kind lawsuit against Lau for allegedly providing gender-affirming care to minors in violation of S.B. 14. The state law, which went into effect in September 2023, bans doctors from prescribing hormone replacement therapy and puberty blockers to minors, and from performing gender-affirming surgery on minors. Paxtons suit accused Lau of prescribing hormone replacement therapy to at least 21 minors between October 2023 and August 2024. It further alleged that Lau used false diagnoses and billing codes to mask these unlawful prescriptions. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Notably, Paxtons suit falsely referred to gender-affirming care as dangerous and experimental and a press release from his officeclaimed that there is no scientific evidence to support the benefits of gender-affirming medication. In fact, puberty blockers and hormone replacement drugs have for decades been used safely for the purposes of gender transition in trans minors and to treat other medical issues in cisgender children. Gender-affirming care, which encompasses a range of both surgical and nonsurgical treatments, has been endorsed by every major American medical association and leading world health authority as evidence-based, safe, and in some cases lifesaving for transgender minors. Gender-affirming surgical intervention is rarely performed on minors.In his statement, Smyser said that Lau continues to deny the Texas Attorney Generals politically- and ideologically-driven allegations, according to TownFlex. Paxton, meanwhile, said that Laus surrender of her medical license was a major victory for our state.Doctors who permanently hurt kids by giving them experimental drugs are nothing more than disturbed left-wing activists who have no business being in the medical field. We will not relent in holding anyone who tries to transition kids accountable, he said in a statement, according to TownFlex.As the outlet notes, Paxton has filed similar lawsuits against two other Texas doctors. Last month, the Texas AG withdrew the states suit against Hector Granados after finding no evidence that he violated S.B. 14. However, a lawsuit brought against M. Brett Cooper is ongoing and expected to go to trial in May.Equality Texas noted that the enforcement of S.B. 14 has led many doctors who provide gender-affirming care to leave the state making it harder for trans adults to access care.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Model Haley Bieber has been praised for her response when asked about online trolls who have repeatedly claimed she is secretly a trans woman. When people are trying to be mean, theyre like, She looks trans, and Im like, Why do you think thats a diss?' the skincare brand owner and wife of pop star Justin Bieber said while appearing on the In Your Dreams podcast with Owen Theile. Related First-of-its kind trans immigrant support center opens permanent space after years without one As if being trans is a diss, she continued. Some of the most beautiful women in the world and men in the world are trans, so I just dont take that offensively at all.This is feminism, one person wrote on TikTok in response.The energy we NEED, wrote another. Protect the dolls. Some called the comment iconic, and called Bieber a legend and a secure baddie. Honestly, Im just here wondering if being compared to a queen is the new insult,' another user replied. Bieber is the daughter of actor and conservative Christian activist Stephen Baldwin. She and her husband are devout Christians and once drew criticism for their membership in the anti-LGBTQ+ Hillsong Church, a megachurch known for attracting celebrities. The couple ultimately left the church after its involvement in a series of scandals, joining a different celebrity megachurch called Churchome, which is purportedly more LGBTQ+-inclusive.In 2023, Bieber signed on to a letter from GLAAD asking social media companies to ban anti-LGBTQ+ content and categorize it as hate speech.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) skewered anti-trans activist Riley Gaines in a social media sparring match after Gaines claimed the country is being destroyed from within while sharing a photo of Ocasio-Cortez, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani (D) at a rally. Ocasio-Cortez replied to Gaines by mocking the fact that her entire career as a right-wing activist has been based on the fact that she tied for fifth place with a trans woman in a race at the 2022 NCAA swimming championships. Related Riley Gaines admits shes using sports as the card to make trans rights crumble Maybe if you channeled all this anger into swimming faster you wouldnt have come in fifth, Ocasio-Cortez mocked. Maybe if you channeled all this anger into swimming faster you wouldnt have come in fifth. https://t.co/gkiEyZ8JGX Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) October 27, 2025 Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Gaines then spoke about the retort during an appearance on Fox News, calling Ocasio-Cortez morally bankrupt and politically foolish. She bragged about her swimming success, suggesting the dig did, in fact, get to her, while also making several transphobic comments about Lia Thomas, the woman who tied with her three years ago. Gaines went on to challenge Ocasio-Cortez to a debate. She can defend socialism; I will defend capitalism, Gaines said. She can defend removing God; I will defend embracing a Biblical worldview. She can defend child sacrifice; I will defend the sanctity of life. Any of the radical, insane Democratic policies and platform that they stand for, I will debate the opposite. Im challenging AOC to it here.But Ocasio-Cortez still had the last laugh. The congresswoman shared the clip on social media and wrote, And I would like to challenge this person to get a real job. And I would like to challenge this person to get a real job Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@aoc.bsky.social) 2025-10-28T00:03:29.081ZGaines has viciously campaigned against trans people ever since her 2022 race, claiming she was somehow robbed of a title, even though she would have gotten 5th place whether Thomas had competed or not, and even though four cisgender swimmers beat them both. She has used the incident to build her entire career as a right-wing media darling. Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

If there's one group of people who know how to go all out for Halloween, it's queer celebrities!The LGBTQ+ community loves spooky season, and for a good reason! People from across the LGBTQ+ spectrum go crazy for the holiday, planning all year or even years in advance for a costume that will slay and bring down the house.This year, Halloween is on a Friday, so lots of celebs got in their costumes a weekend early. Check out which of our favorite queer celebs have already shown of their Halloween costumes this year!Jessica Betts and Niecy Nash-Betts as Papoose and Claressa ShieldsSee on InstagramOut100 cover star and All's Fair actor Niecy Nash-Betts and her wife, Jessica Betts, dressed as professional boxer Claressa Shields and her boyfriend, the rapper Papoose. Specifically, the pair recreated a weigh-in where Papoose held some of Shields' championship belts.Benito Skinner and Mary Beth Barone as Nick Wilde and Judy HoppsSee on InstagramBest friends and Overcompensating stars Benito Skinner and Mary Beth Barone dressed as Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde from Disney's Zootopia!Bowen Yang as TingleSee on InstagramSaturday Night Live and Wicked: For Good star Bowen Yang dressed as Tingle, a middle-aged man who wants to be a fairy in The Legend of Zelda games.Janelle Mone as a beach vampireSee on InstagramJanelle Mone is the queen of Halloween and always goes all out! This year, that includes dressing as an original vampire character: Lady Vampira Waves, first Vampiress at the beach.Janelle Mone as another beach vampireSee on InstagramMone also has a male vampire at the beach costume of course.Janelle Mone as BeetlejuiceSee on InstagramMone loves pop culture costumes, so this year, they also dressed up as Michael Keaton in Beetlejuice.Janelle Mone as Rochelle from 'The Craft'See on InstagramAs if three costumes weren't enough, Mone also dressed as Rochelle, played by Rachel True, in The Craft.Keke Palmer as HoneySee on InstagramActor, Emmy-winning host, singer, and podcaster Keke Palmer dressed up as the titular lead character and aspiring choreographer from the movie Honey, starring Jessica Alba.Ben Platt and Noah Galvin as Hugh Hefner and a Playboy bunnySee on InstagramHusbands and Theater Camp costars Ben Platt and Noah Galvin got festive as a throwback Hugh Hefner and a Playboy bunny.KATSEYE as Mariah Carey@katseyeworlddo you ever get tired of serving so hard??? #KATSEYEInternational girl group KATSEYE, which includes with queer members Lara Raj and Megan Skiendiel, went as different versions of Mariah Carey throughout the years.Mars Wright as Fred FlintstoneSee on InstagramArtist and designer Mars Wright dressed as a sexy Fred Flintsone. "Yabba-Dabba-Doo!"Bette Midler and Andy Daly as Bette Midler and Andy CohenSee on InstagramGay icon Bette Midler went as a 1970s version of herself, alongside Andy Cohen as Warhol.Kori King as ShrekSee on InstagramRuPaul's Drag Race standout Kori King has several Halloween looks this year, including this hilarious Shrek costume!Kori King as the red TeletubbySee on InstagramKing also got funky in a cozy costume version of the red Teletubby, Po.Kori King and Lydia B. Kollins as Sally and the Corpse BrideSee on InstagramKing paired up with fellow drag queen Lydia B. Kollins to spread more Halloween spirit and bring to life two beloved Tim Burton characters: Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas and the heroine from Corpse Bride.Ve'ondre Mitchell as a mischievous rabbitSee on InstagramRapper and influencer Ve'ondre Mitchell dressed up as a sexy rabbit with a secret.Mila Jam as a Na'viSee on InstagramMusician, actress, and activist Mila Jam dressed like a Na'vi from James Cameron's Avatar films!

A few weeks ago, political newcomer and U.S. Senate candidate from Maine, Graham Platner, captured the affection of the online left. Former military-turned-boutique oyster farm owner, he has a gruff style, criticizes pro-Israel lobby group AIPAC, and peppers curse words between leftist lingo like oligarchy.To many, he was the answer to the lefts woes. He seemed like a salt-of-the-earth working-class hero, the kind of authentic voice of the people who didnt sound like everything he said was focus-grouped within an inch of its life. Related Trump is right: Everyone at the No Kings protests are antifa and thats a great thing Hes also white, male, married to a woman, and stereotypically masculine.Then, last week, his not-that-old sexist, racist, and homophobic internet comments were discovered. He dropped swear words but also blamed rape victims for getting so f**ked up they wind up having sex with someone they dont mean to and dropped the words fa**ot and gay-as-an-insult a few times. Dive deeper every day Join our newsletter for thought-provoking commentary that goes beyond the surface of LGBTQ+ issues Subscribe to our Newsletter today Then the news broke about his Nazi tattoo. Platner has a tattoo on his chest which everyone learned about by watching a video of him dancing in his underwear at his brothers wedding of a Totenkopf, a symbol worn by the SS. Platner denied knowing what it was and said that he got it when he was drunk. His friends, though, are telling CNN that, as a military history buff, he knew exactly what it was.Some people online made excuses for those: The comments were from a long time ago (2021 is apparently ancient history); working-class guys are just casually homophobic and sexist, his words dont reflect what hell do in office; and people who were in the military have all sorts of tattoos! He even said on a podcast that he is not a secret Nazi. What more could you want from him?Platners supporters last week could be succinctly summarized with this much-shared post on X, where a user sincerely argued that Pete Buttigieg, in a military uniform from his stint in Afghanistan, made him look lab grown, while Platners drunk Nazi tattoo wedding video showed that he is free range.lab grown candidate vs free range pic.twitter.com/gzviVqaiUx Jimmy Trillstein (@JimmyTrillstein) October 21, 2025My first thought when seeing that post was: Why is Pete catching strays here? Hes not running against Platner. Hes not running for anything at the moment. He didnt say anything about Platner. What was the point in bringing Buttigieg into this discussion?Why is Buttigieg, the first gay man to win a states primary contest in a major partys presidential primary, the first out LGBTQ+ Cabinet secretary in history, being brought seemingly randomly into a discussion about a politician he has nothing to do with?This column is not about the Maine Senate primary. Democrats in that state can decide for themselves between the Nazi tattoo guy, their 78-year-old governor, or any of the other half-dozen candidates in that race (or more the filing deadline isnt until March).What interests me more is the role that homophobia and sexism play in politics in determining who possesses seemingly neutral qualities like authenticity. I was only somewhat aware of Platner before his campaign blew up. I had seen clips of his speeches shared on social media for the past couple of months, and frankly, he seemed phony to me, trying too hard to show his rough edges, dropping a few too many f**ks. But, well, that wasnt that important to me in and of itself: Most people in politics are putting on a show, and maybe thats the kind of show that works in Maine.Buttigieg, though, is someone who I have been writing about for years and someone who has constantly been called inauthentic by the online left for no discernible reason. Is it because he went to Harvard University, like so many other political leaders did? Because he worked for McKinsey & Company for a couple of years in the late 2000s, leaving since, as he put it, he just plain didnt care about their work? Which is understandable? Because he hid his sexual orientation for the first part of his political career?Shortly after he announced his presidential campaign in 2019, I remember someone (who was LGBTQ+) on Twitter raising a stink about how Buttigieg didnt start one of his rallies with a land acknowledgment. The other Democrats in that race werent doing land acknowledgments at their rallies either, but that didnt bother this person. It was just Buttigieg who was the fake progressive for not acknowledging that the land his rally was being held on was unjustly taken from a Native American tribe. That person didnt have much influence on the national dialogue, but they did get me to notice how some people just wouldnt like him and would try to invent a reason if they couldnt quite put their finger on it. Which is probably why his detractors keep bringing up his supposed inauthenticity. Its a word with no solid meaning. Whether someone is authentic or not is completely subjective. It cant even be described. It has no form and no rules. There is no statement of the form, Someone is authentic if they do X, because the moment its articulated, someone else could fake it, making X inauthentic.Perceived authenticity is a feeling. Not even a feeling, more a judgment deployed when someone either cant or doesnt want to be more specific. Because, to me, someone like Buttigieg reads as authentic. Im from a similar background a gay man from Indiana, the child of a middle-class immigrant and teacher whose parents valued education over career, roughly the same age so while my life is very different from his, I can see how he got to be the person he is. And my position is also probably why someone like Platner comes across as phony to me I grew up surrounded by straight boys who were trying very hard to perform masculinity, so all the gruffness and carefully chosen slumming it clothes (the grandson of a famous architect and the son of a restaurant owner and a lawyer, Platner comes from a wealth) seem like a big act.Another way to put it is if anyone were to grow a Democratic presidential candidate in a lab, as the X user above suggests, I doubt they would make them a gay man with limited political experience who made exactly zero effort to hide his sexuality or his husband on the campaign trail. The straight, white, male small-business owner seems like a more obvious choice.Because in the 21st century, saying f**k is hardly a risk for a politician. Kissing someone of the same sex still is. People are still sharing a fake picture of Buttigieg breastfeeding and getting mad at it as if its real, because to be a gay man is to inherently not be a man and definitely not masculine, and masculinity is still valued over actual qualifications by many across the political spectrum. Which might be a big part of why the left, in 2025, really wants to believe in Platner, not just as a candidate but as the anti-Buttigieg, the anti-Kamala Harris. Democrats lost the presidential election last year with a woman at the top of the ticket to a man who is known for his hatred of women but who is also lauded for his supposed authenticity. Its inevitable that some left-of-center people would think that a path to victory would pass through that same kind of authenticity, which they think requires male chauvinism to attract back male voters who supported the current president.Misogynist attacks on the corporate management class have become very common, and that class is not only inauthentic but also a symbol of capitalism and,in pop cultures imagination, women. Add to that the ideological far-lefts longstanding distrust of gay men as inherently counterrevolutionary (because homosexuality was seen as part and parcel with the decadence of capitalism), and theres a formula allowing a certain kind of left-populist to long for any politician with a beard and tattoos who can work the phrase military-industrial complex into a sentence while calling someone a fa***t.One issue with both masculinity and authenticity is the same: The least masculine thing a person can do is be seen as trying to be a man, just like the least authentic thing someone can do is to try to be authentic. So it would be best for left-of-center voters to focus on finding candidates who can simply live, sell, and implement the lefts values and leave determining who seems truly authentic to the theater critics.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

The Texas Supreme Court on Friday gave judges in the state a pass if they dont want to marry same-sex couples, unilaterally granting public officials the right to discriminate against queer couples.In an end run around equal protection concerns, the high court amended the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct to read, It is not a violation of these canons for a judge to publicly refrain from performing a wedding ceremony based upon a sincerely held religious belief. Related Texas judge says Supreme Court ruling means she doesnt have to officiate same-sex weddings The change follows years of litigation that inspired a lawsuit by a county judge in Texas asking federal courts to declare that Texas law does not and cannot punish him for his practice of officiating opposite-sex, but not same-sex, marriages in the state.Jack County Judge Brian Umphress, who sued in 2020 because he only wanted to perform weddings for opposite-sex couples, argued that his conduct would run afoul of the Texas State Commission on Judicial Conduct, despite protections he believed he enjoyed consistent with his religious freedom rights under the First and Fourteenth Amendments, Houston Public Media reports. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today In response, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit put the lower federal-court proceedings on hold and asked the Texas Supreme Court to answer the question, Does Canon 4A(1) of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct prohibit judges from publicly refusing, for moral or religious reasons, to perform same-sex weddings while continuing to perform opposite-sex weddings? That part of the code requires judges to refrain from behavior that would cast reasonable doubt on the judges capacity to act impartially as a judge.The high courts answer came with the amended code of conduct, bypassing public argument. Judge Umphress fear of sanction for his discriminatory conduct was based on the case of McLennan County Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley in Waco, who spent years in court arguing she had a right to refuse to marry gay couples.Hensley replied to requests from gay couples with a statement that read, Im sorry, but Judge Hensley has a sincerely held religious belief as a Christian, and will not be able to perform any same-sex weddings.That conduct earned a public warning from the Judicial Conduct Commission, which said Hensley was violating a requirement that justices of the peace be impartial, even in extrajudicial duties like officiating weddings. Her refusal to treat LGBTQ+ people equally cast doubt on her capacity to act impartially to persons appearing before her as a judge due to the persons sexual orientation,the commission wrote.Hensley claimed that no ones rights were denied since a same-sex couple could have found another judge to marry them, despite the fact that she was the only justice of the peace performing marriages in Waco at the time.Hensley filed a lawsuit against the commission with help from the First Liberty Institute, a Texas-based anti-LGBTQ+ legal organization, arguing for protections under the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The commission eventuallydismissedits sanction a few months after the Texas Supreme Court allowed Hensleys case to proceed. That decision from the Texas high court earned Hensley a supportive concurring opinion from the chief justice, who publicly supported the Waco judge before his appointment.Judge Hensley treated them respectfully, Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock wrote of the couples she refused to marry. They got married nearby. They went about their lives. Judge Hensley went back to work, her Christian conscience clean, her knees bent only to her God. Sounds like a win-win.Jason Mazzone, a law professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign whos familiar with both cases, said the Texas Supreme Courts code of conduct workaround still leaves open the possibility for a gay couple with standing to challenge a judges decision not to marry them on constitutional equal protection grounds.One of the claims that I think will be made in response to litigation that is likely is that, Well, there are other people who can perform the wedding ceremony, so you cant insist that a particular judge do it, Mazzone said. But that, of course, is not how equal protection works, and its not how we expect government officials to operate.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Women's sports have long been at the forefront of inclusion, equity, and forward progress for all women. NWSL player Elizabeth Eddy thinks that should no longer be the case.Eddy, who is signed to Angel City Football Club in the National Women's Soccer League, one of the premier sports leagues in the world, published an essay in the New York Post yesterday one day after International Intersex Awareness Day arguing that trans women and intersex women should not be allowed to compete in the league.What did Elizabeth Eddy say about trans women and intersex women in her new essay? A soccer ball on the field.Tony Quinn/Shutterstock"Recent controversies across women's sports from swimming to track and field have highlighted professional soccer lacks clear eligibility policies," Eddy writes."Fairness and inclusion are core American values," she continues. "Reasonable people can disagree about where to draw lines, but avoiding the conversation altogether by shutting out diverse views does not serve us. In fact, we owe it to current and future female athletes to solve this."Eddy then lays out what reads as a timeline of steps/actions to follow: "The NWSL must adopt a clear standard. One option is all players must be born with ovaries, as the FA requires. Another option is an SRY gene test, like those World Athletics and World Boxing implemented."RELATED: What are DSDs? And why is everyone talking about them at the Paris 2024 Olympics?Rather than just saying that trans women aren't women and shouldn't be in the league, Eddy is calling out intersex players and players with DSDs, saying they should be excluded from the count of real women as well.Eddy argues that women's sports exist "not to exclude, but to create a space where female athletes can physically compete on equal footing." She then expands to say that intersex females should be excluded from that equality.How many trans players are in the NWSL now? What is the league's history on featuring trans players?The NWSL currently has zero trans players. In the past, only one player Quinn, who was assigned female at birth has played.There have been a small number of players in the league who, either reportedly or according to rumors, have had higher testosterone levels. All those players are cisgender women.One of them is Orlando Pride star Barbra Banda, who was left off of Zambia's national team in 2018 and 2022. In 2022, the president of Zambia's Football Association said she "did not meet the criteria" for gender verification. However, the Confederation of African Football, which administers the tests, said that Banda never took the tests and was withdrawn by her own team.At the start of the current NWSL season, Banda was subjected to insults and hate speech questioning her womanhood by a fan. That fan was subsequently banned from attending games. See on Instagram One NWSL player who has said that she is intersex is Zambian forward Prisca Chilufya, who in 2017 was a part of a report in the Seattle Globalist about intersex identities in her home country. She identifies as female, was assigned female at birth, and has lived her entire life as a woman.Chilufya signed with Angel City Football Club, Eddy's team, earlier this October.Now, Eddy, who has played in only three games over the last two seasons, has decided it is the perfect time to speak up against intersex athletes like her new teammate."Womens sports showcase the full range of human ability as we reach and exceed whats physically possible. Everybody needs a chance to break records and achieve the previously impossible," Eddy writes. "Thats why we love to celebrate women competing against each other and why we need creative solutions to ensure everybody can compete on a level playing field."Here's why Elizabeth Eddy is wrong about trans women in sports. Two players on the soccer field.Anton Vierietin/ShutterstockIn Eddy's eyes, "women competing against each other" doesn't include all women. She's wrong.The "full range of human ability" that is showcased in women's sports includes all women not just those Eddy decides count. To celebrate women means celebrating women of all kinds, not just those who are feminine enough or have the "right" genes.If the league wants to have the best women athletes in the world, that's going to include some intersex women and possibly, in the future, some trans women.Eddy says she knows from experience that the NWSL is "more than just a sports league.""For many, dreams are coming true in real life dreams that were impossible before my generation," she writes. "I also understand that for many athletes and fans, seeing intersex and transgender athletes compete and dominate on sports biggest stages also realizes a dream. How can we make an open arena reality for small and tragically marginalized minorities with nowhere else that may feel safe and inclusive to compete?"Her answer is to offer players who "fail" gender tests "free counseling" and an "open division within the NWSL" that allows the zero trans athletes and handful of intersex athletes in the league to have their own space where they won't bother cis women.Angel City FC still has "protect trans lives" merch for sale on its official website. Angel City FC Pride Unisex Protect Trans Lives Short Sleeve White T-Shirt for sale on the official Angel City FC website.AngelCity.comThankfully, Eddy's opinion is not the one held by the majority of the league. I am a season ticket holder for ACFC, Eddy's team. At every game, I'm far from the only trans fan in the stands. Games are also filled with signs and banners supporting trans rights, trans flags, and even official team merch that say "Protect trans lives."Angel City's captain, Ali Riley, a soccer legend who is retiring this year, made headlines in 2023 when she painted her fingernails the color of the Progress Pride Flag at the World Cup. Christen Press, another team legend who is retiring this year, has also made her trans allyship well known.NWSL games are a safe haven for trans and intersex fans. They are places where trans and intersex kids can go and dream big just like Eddy says women's sports are meant to be.In May, when England's Football Association announced that trans women are no longer eligible to play professional soccer in the country, the NWSL responded.Fan groups for every team started a campaign saying, "Trans People Belong," selling shirts with the slogan."Efforts to exclude trans athletes are fueled by the same forces of misogyny and bigotry that have long tried to dictate who belongs," the groups said in a statement. "These efforts undermine the spirit of women's sports and harm all athletes by reinforcing narrow, discriminatory ideas about gender."At the time, a spokesperson for the league said, "The NWSL strives to be the most inclusive league in the world and we continue to support our athletes and create an environment where they can thrive."Fans, and ACFC itself, can share a message of support for trans and intersex athletes on the team's final game on Sunday, November 2.I know if ACFC had a home game remaining, there would be a huge show of support for trans athletes and fans in the stands. I suspect there will be one in Chicago, where ACFC plays its final game of the season on Sunday, November 2.Fans, and ACFC or the league itself, can, and should, send the message loud and clear that trans and intersex fans and athletes belong.It's unlikely Eddy will be on the bench or the field for ACFC. She is usually left off the game-day roster, so a protest against her or boos wouldn't accomplish anything. A show of support for trans and intersex athletes, however, would. It would let any fans who have ever had their womanhood or gender policed or questioned know that they are safe and welcome.Maybe the league should listen to Eddy and create an open division for intersex and trans athletes and their allies, and women who police other people's womanhood can have their own division. When 95 percent of the league joins the open division, maybe she will see that she's on the wrong side of history and the wrong side of women's sports.Mey Rude is a staff writer for Out.Voices is dedicated to featuring a wide range of inspiring personal stories and impactful opinions from the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. Visit out.com/submit to learn more about submission guidelines. We welcome your thoughts and feedback on any of our stories. Email us at voices@equalpride.com. Views expressed in Voices stories are those of the guest writers, columnists, and editors, and do not directly represent the views of Out or our parent company, equalpride.

In 2025, the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States stands at a crossroads. While public acceptance of queer and trans people continues to rise, the political landscape tells a different story one marked by unprecedented legislative attacks, deep cultural division, and an increasingly organized effort to roll back decades of progress.Across the country, legislators have introduced more than 850 anti-LGBTQ+ bills this year, the highest number ever recorded. Many of these proposals target transgender youth limiting access to gender-affirming care, restricting participation in sports, or even criminalizing teachers and parents who offer support.The sheer volume of this legislation has stunned advocates. Were witnessing a coordinated movement, not isolated efforts, said one advocacy leader. This isnt just about protection of children or families. Its about erasing LGBTQ+ people from public life.A Legislative Wave and Its ConsequencesThe anti-LGBTQ+ legislative wave began years ago but accelerated rapidly after 2022. By 2025, it has evolved into a sophisticated, nationwide campaign driven by conservative think-tanks, religious advocacy groups, and well-funded political networks.One of the most prominent drivers is Project 2025, a policy blueprint created by the Heritage Foundation and allied organizations. The project lays out a vision for a future presidential administration that would systematically dismantle federal protections for LGBTQ+ individuals from rolling back healthcare guidelines to redefining civil rights laws to exclude gender identity.Critics warn that Project 2025s influence has already seeped into state-level policymaking. Several of its proposals including restrictions on transgender healthcare and new parental rights education laws mirror language lifted directly from the blueprint.The bills were seeing are part of a unified strategy to make life so difficult for queer and trans people that we disappear from public view, said another researcher.The human cost is staggering. According to data from youth-mental-health organizations, LGBTQ+ youth especially transgender and nonbinary youth face elevated risks of self-harm and suicide, with research showing significantly higher rates among youth in states with hostile policies.The Politics of FearProponents of these bills often claim they are defending traditional values or protecting children. But experts say the movement is powered less by moral conviction than by political calculation.Theres a vacuum of policy ideas, and targeting LGBTQ+ rights fills that gap, said legal scholar Jennifer Pizer. Its a strategy built on fear the idea that by painting trans people as dangerous or unnatural, you can mobilize a base that feels left behind.This fear-based rhetoric has permeated school boards, libraries, and even corporate boardrooms. Pride displays have been quietly removed from retail shelves; teachers are being told to avoid discussing gender or sexuality altogether. The chilling effect is palpable.At the same time, the political payoff is shrinking. Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans including many conservatives oppose discriminatory legislation. For instance, a survey found that 72% of U.S. adults support laws protecting LGBTQ+ people from discrimination in jobs, housing, and public spaces.So why does the backlash persist? In part because it energizes a segment of the electorate. This isnt about winning broad support, said political analyst Sherilyn Adams. Its about mobilizing a loud minority that votes in primaries, funds campaigns, and dominates local politics.A Global ContextWhile the U.S. is seeing one of the largest coordinated attacks on LGBTQ+ rights in its history, its not alone. From Hungary to Uganda, governments have enacted laws restricting queer and trans expression. Globally, this movement reflects a deeper struggle over identity, control, and the limits of democracy.In many ways, the U.S. has become both a battleground and a bellwether. When American states pass restrictive laws, other nations often cite them as justification for similar crackdowns. Conversely, when cities or states expand protections, they send a message that equality is not only possible but popular.Voices of ResistanceDespite the hostile climate, activists, parents, and allies are pushing back. Grass-roots organizations in conservative states are helping families relocate or find safe medical care. Legal groups are challenging unconstitutional laws in court.In Oklahoma, a coalition of clergy formed an inter-faith alliance to oppose the states Dont Say Gay expansion. Faith should never be used as a weapon, said one organizer. The Jesus I follow stood with the marginalized not the powerful.Meanwhile, in Tennessee, trans teens have organized peer-led support groups that meet discreetly in libraries and coffee shops. Were not giving up, said 17-year-old Jace (name changed for safety). They can pass all the laws they want well still find each other.The Cost of SilenceThe growing normalization of anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric has real consequences not only for queer people, but for democracy itself. When lawmakers can target one group with impunity, it sets a precedent for targeting others.This is about control, said legal scholar Melissa Murray. The same forces that want to restrict gender-affirming care also want to control reproductive rights, education, and free expression. Its part of a broader authoritarian project.The moral question is simple: how much intolerance will Americans tolerate? The political question is harder: will moderates and allies see this as a line worth drawing?A Turning Point AheadAs the 2026 election cycle approaches, the battle lines are sharpening. Conservative lawmakers are doubling down on their anti-LGBTQ+ messaging, while progressive states are moving in the opposite direction passing safe haven laws to protect trans people fleeing hostile jurisdictions.The result is a patchwork nation, where rights depend heavily on your ZIP-code. For LGBTQ+ Americans, the promise of equality feels both closer and more fragile than ever.Advocates are urging allies not to look away. Every voice matters, said one. Change doesnt just happen at the federal level it happens in classrooms, city halls, and dinner tables. The question is whether were willing to stand up before the damage becomes irreversible.The backlash of 2025 may be fierce, but history suggests progress ultimately bends toward inclusion. For now, the country faces a defining choice: to retreat into fear and division or to reaffirm the simple truth that equality is not up for debate.The post The Backlash: How 2025 Became a Defining Year for LGBTQ+ Rights in America appeared first on LGBTQ and ALL.

A federal judge in Illinois on Wednesday unsealed a federal indictment charging Illinois Democratic congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh with two federal crimes, naming her among six people accused of obstructing law enforcement during a protest outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, near Chicago. She told The Advocate that the Trump Justice Department "picked the wrong person" to try to intimidate.Abughazaleh, 28, faces one count of conspiracy to impede a federal officer and one count of forcibly interfering with a federal officer. The Trump Justice Department indictment, returned by a grand jury in the Northern District of Illinois, also charges five other defendants. Prosecutors allege that the group surrounded an ICE agents vehicle during a September 26 protest, preventing the agent by force, intimidation, and threat from performing official duties.Related: ICE detained San Francisco drag queen after asylum hearingAccording to the indictment, the protesters banged on the cars windows, scratched the exterior, broke a side mirror, and etched the word PIG into the vehicles body. Each defendant faces up to eight years in prison on the obstruction charge and up to five years on the conspiracy charge if convicted. The case, United States v. Rabbitt et al., is assigned to U.S. District Judge April M. Perry, who was appointed to the bench by President Joe Biden.A progressive Democrat running in Illinoiss 9th Congressional District to succeed retiring Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Abughazaleh is a Palestinian American and outspoken LGBTQ+ rights advocate who has emerged as a rising figure on the left. Earlier this month, the bisexual candidate was named to Out magazines 2025 Out100 list of Disruptors, which celebrates changemakers reshaping queer culture. Out is a sibling publication of The Advocate, both owned by equalpride.Related: Trump administration stops abuse protection for transgender detainees in ICE custodyIn her Out profile, Abughazaleh said her campaign was driven by a desire to resist authoritarianism and shamelessly advocate for a better life for the 99 percent. Before entering politics, she gained national attention as a media analyst tracking right-wing extremism and online misinformation.In a video posted to social media on Wednesday afternoon, Abughazaleh denounced the prosecution as a gross attempt to silence dissent and a major push by the Trump administration to criminalize protest. (@) This is a political prosecution, she said. The Trump administration wants you to be afraid of speaking out against it, and its anti-democratic power threats. She accused federal authorities of using the justice system to scare us into silence after months of escalating confrontations between ICE and immigrant-rights activists.Abughazaleh said she and others were targeted for exercising their First Amendment rights. ICE has hit, dragged, thrown, shot with pepper balls, and teargassed hundreds of protesters simply because we had the gall to say that masked men coming into our communities, abducting our neighbors, and terrorizing us cannot be our new normal, she said. Abughazaleh concluded her message by pledging to fight the case and continue her campaign: I have spent my career fighting Americas backslide into fascism. Im not going to stop now, and I hope you wont either.In a phone interview with The Advocate following the videos release, Abughazaleh said she views the indictment as a clear infringement on our First Amendment rights and an attempt by the administration to criminalize protest, to get rid of the idea of free association, and to ensure that anyone who disagrees with the government, who who publicly dissents from anything Trump does, will face penalties.Related: Chicago alderperson describes sanctioned violence after ICE detained her for simply asking questionsThis is government overreach, she said. Ive spent my career fighting Americas backslide into fascism. These are the exact types of cases I expected when Trump took power, but its still a shock when it becomes reality, and its the reality for me now.She described what she called one-sided violence by federal agents in Chicago, alleging that ICE had abducted people and doused their neighbors in tear gas in recent weeks. Weve heard reports of people being zip-tied to a tree for hours while others were rounded up, she told The Advocate, adding that she and others were protesting the crimes ICE is committing and the conditions at the Broadview facility, where witnesses had reported detainees being denied water and carried out on stretchers.Despite facing federal prosecution, Abughazaleh said the charges had only strengthened her resolve. If their goal was to silence me, they picked the wrong person, she said. There are a lot more of us who want the Constitution to exist than there are people who want authoritarian rule.

Are you looking for the hottest lesbians and sapphics on streaming? Look no further!From Netflix to Amazon Prime, these streaming shows have some of the hottest lesbians, queer women, bisexuals, and sapphics. There are fantasy lesbians, sci-fi lesbians, reality lesbians, comedy lesbians, drama lesbians, and horror lesbians on this list, perfect for everyone!Gone are the days when queer women were barely on TV; nowadays, you can find them on every streamer and on dozens of shows. Since there are so many lesbian characters, you might want some help figuring out who the hottest ones are and where you can watch them. Now, we've got this handy list to help you!Moiraine Damodred - 'The Wheel of Time'Lesbians love a fantasy, and in The Wheel of Time, Rosamund Pike plays Moiraine, a channeler and Aes Sedai, in a long-term relationship with Siuan Sanche (Sophie Okonedo), another Aes Sedai. Pike is an Oscar-nominated actress, and looks even more stunning when she's trying to find the prophesied Dragon Reborn.Streaming on Prime VideoRobin - 'Stranger Things'Queer girls everywhere jumped to attention when Robin (Maya Hawke) came out in Stranger Things, and now, with the final season of the show about to come out, they can't wait to see more! Robin is a great friend, looks terrific in a uniform, and knows how to get things done. She makes the perfect girlfriend!Streaming on NetflixMarie Moreau - 'Gen V'Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair) is one of the most powerful supes in the world of The Boys and its college spinoff, Gen V. Marie is sexually fluid, dating Jordan Li, who can shift between boy and girl modes and has different powers as each gender. She could beat you up, but that's hot.Streaming on Prime VideoMimi - 'Overcompensating'Mimi didn't have a ton of screentime in this hilarious send-up of college life, but we can't forget her! We totally understand why [big sister] is so caught up on her! Played by Elliot Page's real-life partner, Julia Shiplett, Mimi is Grace's ex, and we can see why she's so hung up on her! More Mimi in season two, please!Streaming on Prime VideoChrishell Stause - 'Selling Sunset'Our favorite real estate agent on TV is the stunning Chrishell Stause! Not only is she great at her job (and on TV), but she stands strong and proud for what she believes in and loves. Lesbians love a girlboss, and Chrshell is one of the best!Streaming on NetflixRandi - 'Hacks'Ava isn't the only hot queer on Hacks! This year, comedian Robby Hoffman joined the show as Randi, a gay ex-Hasidic Jew who becomes the new secretary for talent agency Schaefer & LuSaque. With her no-nonsense, deadpan delivery, every line makes viewers fall more in love!Streaming on HBO MaxMabel Elmsworth - 'The Buccaneers'Josie Totah is absolutely adorable and gorgeous as Mabel in this Bridgerton-style historical romance based on the book by Edith Wharton. Mabel stuns in corsets, gowns, and other period-appropriate outfits, and always brings her sense of sass to a much-too-serious world. We also love the courage it takes to be proudly herself in a world that centers straightness and heterosexual marriage! Now, that's a turn on!Streaming on Apple TV+Vi - 'Arcane'The lack of butches on TV is one of the biggest problems with lesbian representation, and fans thanked the TV goddesses when they got this animated lesbian brawler! Even though season two of Arcane saw her becoming a cop after the same cops killed her parents, she's still one of the hottest characters on TV. With Haillee Steinfeld voicing her, fans can't get her growl out of their heads.Streaming on NetflixAgatha and Rio - 'Agatha All along'Agatha and Rio are officially our favorite MCU couple! It took the MCU a long time to have main lesbian characters, but when it got them, it made sure to get the casting right! Aubrey Plaza, who plays Rio, later revealed to be Death herself, is a bisexual icon. While Kathryin Hahn (who plays the witchy Agatha) is straight, she's undeniably a lesbian icon.Streaming on Disney+Van and Taissa - 'Yellowjackets'We love hot, toxic lesbians, and it doesn't get much hotter or more toxic than soccer teammates and cannibals Taissa and Van. From their teen relationship lost in the woods (where they are played by out actors Jasmin Savoy Brown and Liv Hewson), to their adult dynamic full of crime (played by Tawny Cypress and Lauren Ambrose), murder, and mystery, these are two hot lesbians fans love to watch.Streaming on Paramount+ With ShowtimeDinah - 'The Last of Us'The second season of HBO's The Last of Us introduced fans to Dina, played by Isabela Merced (Superman). Dina starts out as Ellie's best friend, but the two can't stop flirting, and soon become more. She's charming and free-spirited two things that aren't very common in the post-apocalyptic world of the show. We get why Ellie is willing to risk her life for her!Streaming on HBO MaxSophie and Margot - 'The Hunting Wives'These two scintillating Southern housewives got the lesbian internet's attention in a big way this year when The Hunting Wives premiered on Netflix! Fans couldn't get enough of their twisted, problematic, and deadly relationship. It doesn't hurt that they're played by Brittany Snow (Pitch Perfect) and Malin Akerman (Watchmen), two of the most beautiful women in Hollywood. Margot and Sophie have some of the best chemistry on TV.Streaming on NetflixAva Daniels - 'Hacks'Ava Daniels may be a disaster, but she's a hot disaster! Played by Emmy-winner Hannah Einbinder, Ava is a chaotic bisexual who gets herself entangled with movie stars, finds herself as the third for a couple, and has a big fat gay crush on her boss/mother figure. And fans love her for it!Streaming on HBO MaxLeota Adebayo - 'Peacemaker'Played by the gorgeous Danielle Brooks (The Color Purple), Adebayo is capable, a great friend, has a strong moral compass, and is a total badass! Being Amanda Waller's daughter is a big task, but thanks to her friends Peacemaker (John Cena), Harcourt (Jennifer Holland), Vigilante (Freddie Stroma), and Economos (Steve Agee), she's saving the world and living out her dreams. What more could a lesbian want?Streaming on HBO MaxKristen Kish - 'Top Chef'We will forever love former Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi, but we are so, so thankful that Kish, a former winner of the show, is the current host! Kish is gorgeous, insanely talented, has impeccable fashion sense and tattoos, and has a laugh and appetite that lesbians love!Streaming on Peacock

Some people really have it all!Manu Ros was a breakout star of the steamy hit Netflix show, Elite, for his portrayal of the irresistible Patrick Blanco.Since then, the actor has starred in a slew of successful projects and shown off his incredible life all over social media. Despite his packed schedule, Ros is hitting the gym and working on hi sexy physique.The model posted a steamy new mirror selfie that shows off his impressive guns and social media naturally had a total meltdown. Check out the highlights below! (@) (@) (@) (@) (@) (@) (@) (@) (@) (@)

Hello Out readers.This week, on Intersex Awareness Day, professional women's soccer player Elizabeth Eddy wrote on her social media that she doesn't think trans or intersex women belong in women's sports. The next day, the post was published as an essay in the New York Post.Eddy, who plays for Angel City Football Club, Los Angeles' women's pro team, published the essay just weeks after her team welcomed Zambian player Prisca Chilufya, who has spoken about being intersex before."Womens sports showcase the full range of human ability as we reach and exceed whats physically possible. Everybody needs a chance to break records and achieve the previously impossible," Eddy writes. "Thats why we love to celebrate women competing against each other and why we need creative solutions to ensure everybody can compete on a level playing field.""In Eddy's eyes, 'women competing against each other' doesn't include all women. She's wrong," I wrote for Out.com this week. "The 'full range of human ability' that is showcased in women's sports includes all women not just those Eddy decides count. To celebrate women means celebrating women of all kinds, not just those who are feminine enough or have the 'right' genes.If the league wants to have the best women athletes in the world, that's going to include some intersex women and possibly, in the future, some trans women."I'm a season ticket holder for Angel City, and I know the games are a safe space for trans and intersex fans. Eddy's opinion won't change that. The team, the players, and the league will remain a place where trans and intersex fans and athletes are welcome, no matter what Eddy says.- Mey RudeWoman Crush WednesdayOur Woman Crush Wednesday is Out100 star Miss Keke Palmer! Check out her perfect Honey Halloween costume alongside our other favorite queer costumes this year!Get Out / The Advocate in your physical mailbox, too!Get print issues of Out Magazine / The Advocate in the mail for just $9.95 a year!

Fans of The Rocky Horror Picture Show can rest easy now that they know who is going to be at the helm of its highly anticipated Broadway revival. Luke Evans, the out actor who portrayed Gaston in the live-action remake of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, is set to make his Broadway debut as the lead role, Dr. Frank-N-Furter. The musical, which is directed by the Tony-winning director of Oh, Mary!, Sam Pinkleton, is set to take over Studio 54, with preview performances beginning in March 2026 and an opening night on April 23. "Im giddy to crack this untamable classic open with the razor-sharp Luke Evans at the center. And I hope to do at Studio 54 what The Rocky Horror Show has done for people around the world for decades open a dimension to another possible reality," Pinkleton said in the official press release. "It seriously is the honor of a lifetime to bring the freakiest people Ive ever met into the freakiest theatre Ive ever been in to revisit the freakiest show theres ever been. No pressure, of course."The director continued, "Rocky Horror is, to me, a sublime, ridiculous, giant-hearted act of love a trashy little musical that means so many things to generations of tender weirdos with mascara streaming down their faces. I hope we can make something joyous, unfathomable, straight from outer space and I can't wait to welcome, really WELCOME you into the slimy tentacles of Studio 54."Evans, a 2024 Out cover star, is no stranger to the stage. He appeared in Rent and Miss Saigon on the West End before cementing a career as a Hollywood leading man in The Clash of the Titans, The Hobbit, and Fast and Furious 6.The show, created by Richard O'Brien, first hit the stage back in 1973 at the Royal Court Theatre in London. (The film version, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, which featured an unforgettable Tim Curry as Dr. Frank-N-Furter, came out in 1975.) This production will be the third time the show has landed on Broadway the first was in 1975, followed by a revival in 2000. The show's original creator shared a statement, expressing his excitement about the new production. "It is music to my ears to hear that a cast of very fine actors is on its way to NYC in order to play lets dress-up and make-believe, sing and dance, and uplift the hearts of all those who enjoy the gift of free-thinking and the pleasure of love," he said. "Break out the fishnets and lets have a party."Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. Eastern on Friday, October 31. Learn more at roundabouttheatre.org.

In 2025, the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States stands at a crossroads. While public acceptance of queer and trans people continues to rise, the political landscape tells a different story one marked by unprecedented legislative attacks, deep cultural division, and an increasingly organized effort to roll back decades of progress.Across the country, legislators have introduced more than 850 anti-LGBTQ+ bills this year, the highest number ever recorded. Many of these proposals target transgender youth limiting access to gender-affirming care, restricting participation in sports, or even criminalizing teachers and parents who offer support.The sheer volume of this legislation has stunned advocates. Were witnessing a coordinated movement, not isolated efforts, said one advocacy leader. This isnt just about protection of children or families. Its about erasing LGBTQ+ people from public life.A Legislative Wave and Its ConsequencesThe anti-LGBTQ+ legislative wave began years ago but accelerated rapidly after 2022. By 2025, it has evolved into a sophisticated, nationwide campaign driven by conservative think-tanks, religious advocacy groups, and well-funded political networks.One of the most prominent drivers is Project 2025, a policy blueprint created by the Heritage Foundation and allied organizations. The project lays out a vision for a future presidential administration that would systematically dismantle federal protections for LGBTQ+ individuals from rolling back healthcare guidelines to redefining civil rights laws to exclude gender identity.Critics warn that Project 2025s influence has already seeped into state-level policymaking. Several of its proposals including restrictions on transgender healthcare and new parental rights education laws mirror language lifted directly from the blueprint.The bills were seeing are part of a unified strategy to make life so difficult for queer and trans people that we disappear from public view, said another researcher.The human cost is staggering. According to data from youth-mental-health organizations, LGBTQ+ youth especially transgender and nonbinary youth face elevated risks of self-harm and suicide, with research showing significantly higher rates among youth in states with hostile policies.The Politics of FearProponents of these bills often claim they are defending traditional values or protecting children. But experts say the movement is powered less by moral conviction than by political calculation.Theres a vacuum of policy ideas, and targeting LGBTQ+ rights fills that gap, said legal scholar Jennifer Pizer. Its a strategy built on fear the idea that by painting trans people as dangerous or unnatural, you can mobilize a base that feels left behind.This fear-based rhetoric has permeated school boards, libraries, and even corporate boardrooms. Pride displays have been quietly removed from retail shelves; teachers are being told to avoid discussing gender or sexuality altogether. The chilling effect is palpable.At the same time, the political payoff is shrinking. Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans including many conservatives oppose discriminatory legislation. For instance, a survey found that 72% of U.S. adults support laws protecting LGBTQ+ people from discrimination in jobs, housing, and public spaces.So why does the backlash persist? In part because it energizes a segment of the electorate. This isnt about winning broad support, said political analyst Sherilyn Adams. Its about mobilizing a loud minority that votes in primaries, funds campaigns, and dominates local politics.A Global ContextWhile the U.S. is seeing one of the largest coordinated attacks on LGBTQ+ rights in its history, its not alone. From Hungary to Uganda, governments have enacted laws restricting queer and trans expression. Globally, this movement reflects a deeper struggle over identity, control, and the limits of democracy.In many ways, the U.S. has become both a battleground and a bellwether. When American states pass restrictive laws, other nations often cite them as justification for similar crackdowns. Conversely, when cities or states expand protections, they send a message that equality is not only possible but popular.Voices of ResistanceDespite the hostile climate, activists, parents, and allies are pushing back. Grass-roots organizations in conservative states are helping families relocate or find safe medical care. Legal groups are challenging unconstitutional laws in court.In Oklahoma, a coalition of clergy formed an inter-faith alliance to oppose the states Dont Say Gay expansion. Faith should never be used as a weapon, said one organizer. The Jesus I follow stood with the marginalized not the powerful.Meanwhile, in Tennessee, trans teens have organized peer-led support groups that meet discreetly in libraries and coffee shops. Were not giving up, said 17-year-old Jace (name changed for safety). They can pass all the laws they want well still find each other.The Cost of SilenceThe growing normalization of anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric has real consequences not only for queer people, but for democracy itself. When lawmakers can target one group with impunity, it sets a precedent for targeting others.This is about control, said legal scholar Melissa Murray. The same forces that want to restrict gender-affirming care also want to control reproductive rights, education, and free expression. Its part of a broader authoritarian project.The moral question is simple: how much intolerance will Americans tolerate? The political question is harder: will moderates and allies see this as a line worth drawing?A Turning Point AheadAs the 2026 election cycle approaches, the battle lines are sharpening. Conservative lawmakers are doubling down on their anti-LGBTQ+ messaging, while progressive states are moving in the opposite direction passing safe haven laws to protect trans people fleeing hostile jurisdictions.The result is a patchwork nation, where rights depend heavily on your ZIP-code. For LGBTQ+ Americans, the promise of equality feels both closer and more fragile than ever.Advocates are urging allies not to look away. Every voice matters, said one. Change doesnt just happen at the federal level it happens in classrooms, city halls, and dinner tables. The question is whether were willing to stand up before the damage becomes irreversible.The backlash of 2025 may be fierce, but history suggests progress ultimately bends toward inclusion. For now, the country faces a defining choice: to retreat into fear and division or to reaffirm the simple truth that equality is not up for debate.The post The Backlash: How 2025 Became a Defining Year for LGBTQ+ Rights in America appeared first on LGBTQ and ALL.

A man tried to defend a trans woman who was getting harassed but ended up the victim of the hate crime himself. In the aftermath, he was able to get his surgery covered by strangers who heard his story.It irked me to ask for help, Jarod Adkison, whose jaw was broken so badly that a piece of bone ended up in his ear canal, told the Austin American-Stateman. A lot of people donated. It was overwhelming. Related Mysterious death of gay student-athlete was hate crime, not suicide, family says This past July, Adkison, 33, visited Barton Springs Pool near Austin, Texas, and he talked with a group of women there. As he was leaving, he saw a group of three men go to the women and start harassing one of them. It all stemmed from the men seeing thetrans lady and making a lewd gesture, he said. Earlier reporting says that one of the men pointed at the trans woman and said, I dont agree with that lifestyle, its gross. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Adkison said he tried to tell the guys to move on, and thats when one of them started punching him. I wasnt trying to fight, he later recounted. A man came up to him from behind and hit him on the head, and he fell to the ground. His jaw was broken, he had a concussion, and he had to be rushed to the hospital. He said that he blacked out when he was hit, and he came to in the CT scanner at the hospital.Adkison works in construction, and his employer does not provide health care, but he also earns too much to qualify for Medicaid. Doctors told him that his ear canal had a piece of his jawbone in it and was full of blood and told him to come back for reconstructive surgery, but he didnt know how he was going to pay for it. So his parents set up a GoFundMe. His story got attention in the media nationwide, and a video of the assault was shared on social media, bringing attention to his case. They were able to raise over $74,000, which was still not enough to cover the surgery, but it at least helped to cover the income he missed from having to stay home from work for three weeks. He then met Dr. CJ Langevin, a plastic surgeon who had heard about Adkison through one of his patients. He said he would do the surgery for free if Adkison would pay for the surgical suite time, which was $1,400. Dr. Lagevin wired Adkinsons jaw shut for two weeks so that it could heal properly, and then had his jaw held in place with rubber bands. Ice cream and milkshakes were a big staple, Adkison said about the time his jaw was wired shut.He was an amazing patient, the doctor said. It was pretty minimal work from my side.Adkison believes that he did the right thing by standing up for the women.Honestly, I think I might have done the right thing, he said. I would have felt awful if I had not helped out. Two people have been arrested in the assault, and friends had to convince Adkison to pursue charges. I dont hold any ill will, he said, saying that they were young guys. The two men who were arrested are 28 and 29.Adkison has a 9-year-old son who was with his mom the weekend his dad was assaulted. He said he hasnt told his son all the details about what happened, but he is aware of the attack and says, My dads a hero.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

A wave of vandalism struck LGBTQ+ businesses in Denver over the last week, culminating in an attack early Saturday morning on the Center on Colfax, a community center and one of the largest LGBTQ+ organizations in Colorado.Security cameras captured the Saturday assault, revealing a lone vandal smashing several of the centers front windows with a rock. Related Gay shop owner wont let double arson attack intimidate him: Im not going to be in a closet The Parasol Patrol, an organization that shields young people and their families from anti-LGBTQ+ attacks, shared news of the multiple vandalism incidents on Monday.The businesses targeted include two salons, a queer gym, a boutique, and the Center. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today These attacks do not resemble random vandalism, Pasha Ripley, Parasol Patrols executive director, said in a statement. They are intimidation designed to push LGBTQIA+ people, families, and especially youth-serving organizations back into fear and isolation.Its unclear if the attacks are related. As of Monday, Denver Police were investigating two of the incidents, including the vandalism at the Center.At this point, it does not appear that the two are related, but investigators are still working to gather more information, the Denver Police Department told FOX31.John Taylor, The Centers vice president of development and communication, told Denverite on Monday that a suspect has not been identified, though the investigation is ongoing.The nonprofit has hired temporary security.The building feels secure and thats whats important, Taylor said. The community is coming together. View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Center On Colfax (@centeroncolfax)Not all of the business owners have spoken publicly about the vandalism.Styler Ells, owner of the Joy of Movement Collective, discovered their business had been attacked when they arrived at the queer gym on Friday morning. The buildings garage windows had been smashed out, and glass littered the floor.Ells learned later of the other incidents.Were very loud and proud, Ells said. Were very out in the community. We do a lot of organizing. We do a lot of activism. And a lot of the businesses that did get hit are also the same. LGBTQ+ organizations, including The Center, were prominent in the news lately as Denver campaigned to host the Gay Games in 2030, Denverite reported. The city lost out to Perth, Australia, on Monday.Saturday morning surveillance video from The Center shows a white man in his 30s wearing shorts, a light jacket, and a baseball cap walking up the buildings steps and slamming a rock several times against windows.The attack triggered the buildings alarm system, and the person fled, according to a statement from The Centers CEO, Kim Salvaggio.As a community, we know that these moments are not simply random acts of mischief, Salvaggio wrote. While we may never know the intent behind this vandalism, we understand it within a broader history of attacks and intimidation that our community has faced.Boarded-up windows on the buildings facade shared hopeful messages.You wont break our souls, read one. Another declared, Broken windows never break community. Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has reportedly moved away from providing coverage for breast cancer in male patients. While breast cancer is a rare but serious health problem for cisgender men, the memo in question cites one of Trumps anti-trans executive orders as the reason for the change.Cancer in male veterans should be covered, a VA oncologist, Dr. Anita Aggarwal, toldProPublica. These people have put their lives at risk for us. Related VA bans doctors from referring trans veterans to private gender-affirming care providers According to a memo obtained by ProPublica, male breast cancer will no longer be covered by policies that are part of the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act, which made it easier for veterans to receive necessary care through the VA.In that memo, the Trump administration argues that under Biden, male breasts were falsely classified as reproductive organs, which meant that male breast cancer could be covered under the PACT Acts remit of covering reproductive cancer of any type. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today While this appears to be an attempt to attack the trans community, ignorantly asserting that men dont have breasts, the Biden administrations decision was based on science. They found thatthe marked similarity of male and female breast cancer and the similarities between the epidemiology, treatment, and psychosocial effects of breast cancer in males compared to females justified the coverage.Rosie Torres campaigned for the PACT Act alongside her veteran husband, Captain Le Roy Torres. Speaking to ProPublica, she highlighted the major damage this seemingly anti-trans move would have: If you dont like the reproductive word, do it under another category. Dont remove it. These are peoples lives. People serving in the armed forces have historically been at a higher risk of being exposed to toxins and environments that can cause or exacerbate many health conditions, including cancer. Prior to 2022, veterans would have to prove that their illnesses were caused by exposure to chemicals and toxins during their military service by providing extensive paperwork and evidence. Those requirements were often not feasible for many veterans to meet, especially when dealing with health issues.Under the Biden administration, the PACT Act was passed by Congress and signed into law. The act reduced the burden of proof to showing that an illness was the result of military service, which added a list of presumptive conditions and presumptive-exposure locations. This meant that veterans simply had to provide their military records to show they were in an exposure location to have their care for certain conditions covered under the VA.That list of presumptive conditions no longer includes male breast cancer, as confirmed by the VAs press secretary, Pete Kasperowicz: As of Sept. 30, the department no longer presumes service connection for male breast cancer. While male veterans already being treated for breast cancer can still receive care through the VA, those with new diagnoses will be required to meet that earlier, higher standard for proof of military connection. Studying occurrences of male breast cancer in veterans is particularly difficult due to a combination of the Healthy Soldier Paradox and socialized stigma around the health condition. However, as many as 100 male veterans are diagnosed with breast cancer every year, and women in the military are 40% more likely to develop breast cancer than civilian women. Those incidents of breast cancer have been tied to chemical contamination, including at Camp Lejeune.While breast cancer is less common in men, with about one case for every 100 in women, it often presents at a later stage and has a much higher mortality rate. For trans men, their risk of developing breast cancer sits somewhere between that of cis men and women.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Employees at a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital in Virginia say they were warned earlier this month not to wear or display LGBTQ+ Pride-themed items.According to The Advocate, internal messages between employees at the VAs Hampton Medical Center suggest the directive came in response to the January 20 executive order withdrawing federal recognition of transgender people and banning federal agencies from promoting so-called gender ideology. Related VA bans doctors from referring trans veterans to private gender-affirming care providers The warning reportedly came from local leadership sometime during the week of October 13, but its unclear from The Advocates reporting precisely when or with whom it originated. Several messages appear to suggest that Michael W. Harper, the hospitals interim executive director, told staffers at a recent morning report that they could not promote the LGBTQ+ community comments he reportedly attempted to walk back the following day.Anything rainbow like lanyards can get us fired on the spot, one doctor at Hampton reportedly told a colleague. However, the employee who recounted that exchange also noted that there is nothing in writing that says this. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Mr. Harper said as much in the morning report yesterday, another staffer wrote in one message. This morning, he backtracked all of it and said flyers, lanyards, shirts, [and] banners associated with clinical care of LGBTQ vets are approved by central office.The same staffer later added that Harper had acted like other people said it, but he totally said it. You cant promote that community, according to The Advocate. Another employee reportedly wrote in a separate message that supervisors at Hampton had relayed that per executive order, you cannot have lanyards, rainbow magnets, [or] shirts and Central Office is coming down on our leadership, which is spilling down to us. Similarly, another staffer claimed that Harper had threatened disciplinary action against Hampton employees who did not comply with his alleged directive. The same staffer noted that hospital leadership had instructed staff to comply to avoid facing disciplinary action.According to The Advocate, Harper has not commented on the alleged directive, and the VA has not clarified whether it was approved by headquarters. However, a doctor at another East Coast VA hospital told the outlet that theyd heard about Hamptons ban on Pride-related items.In March, the VA cited the presidents anti-trans Executive Order 14168 in announcing that it had rescinded VHA Directive 1341(4), which required the respectful delivery of health care for transgender and intersex veterans, and that it would phase out treatment for gender dysphoria. And earlier this month, VA doctors were instructed to stop providing referrals to veterans seeking gender-affirming care from private medical providers.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Long before queer visibility became part of pop cultures vocabulary, Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing was living it. In the 1970s and 80s, as Hong Kong moved between British colonial rule and an uncertain Chinese future, Cheung stepped onto the stage and quietly broke every rule about what a man could be. He was the citys brightest pop star, but also its most disarming contradiction elegant, emotional, and impossible to contain.Cheung was born in 1956, the youngest of ten children in a family that made suits for British businessmen. Fabric, gesture, and presentation were part of his upbringing. After a short stint studying in England, he returned home and entered a TV talent contest in 1977. He didnt win, but his voice tender, pure, and edged with melancholy caught the citys ear. By the early 1980s, he was a household name. Related Americas anti-Asian sentiment began with its super-racist immigration laws Cantopop, Hong Kongs signature sound, had found its face. While other male singers built their personas on confidence and swagger, Cheung leaned into vulnerability. He sang about heartbreak as if it were an unguarded confession. Onstage, he moved like a dancer, his performances lit with eyeliner, silk, and a kind of theatrical intimacy rarely seen from men in Chinese pop. He wasnt performing femininity so much as performing freedom.The public didnt know how to categorize him. Tabloids whispered about his sexuality; record labels worried he was too soft for export. But Cheung kept showing up beautiful, gentle, magnetic. To millions of fans, he became Gor Gor, Big Brother, the man who somehow embodied both strength and tenderness. He never declared himself a queer icon. He didnt have to. His art spoke the truth for him. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Hong Kong at the time was a city caught between modern aspiration and moral restraint. Homosexuality remained illegal until 1991, and gender nonconformity was still taboo. Yet Cheungs presence challenged that silence. His concerts were part pop spectacle, part emotional revival. The audience screamed not only for the songs but for the permission he gave them to feel everything.As his fame grew, so did his ambition. He began acting, bringing the same emotional intelligence to film that had defined his music. In Days of Being Wild (1990), directed by Wong Kar-wai, he played a drifter chasing a mother he could never find a portrait of longing and identity that mirrored Hong Kongs own unease. Three years later, in Farewell My Concubine (1993), he delivered a performance that would define his legacy. As Cheng Dieyi, a Peking-opera performer trained to live as a woman, Cheung turned gender itself into poetry. The film won the Palme dOr at Cannes, and his portrayal became one of cinemas most haunting studies of desire and performance.Cheungs art often walked a thin line between truth and exposure. He didnt label himself publicly, but he also refused to hide. By the mid-1990s, he had begun appearing openly with his partner, Daffy Tong. In 1997, at a sold-out Hong Kong Coliseum concert, he dedicated a love song to Tong before thousands of fans. In a society that still treated queerness as rumor, it was a quiet revolution a declaration of affection that needed no speech.His 1996 album Red pushed even further. The record fused lush electronic pop with theatrical visuals that blurred the boundaries of gender and costume. On stage, Cheung wore gowns designed by Jean Paul Gaultier and kissed male dancers under floodlights. For queer fans across Asia, it felt like oxygen. For the conservative press, it was a scandal. Cheung didnt flinch. Art must come from honesty, he once said, and he meant it. Behind the glamour, he struggled with depression. Friends described years of fatigue and isolation the cost of being both adored and misunderstood. On April 1, 2003, he took his own life at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Central Hong Kong. His final note mentioned his illness and thanked those who had loved him. The city grieved as if it had lost a family member. Tens of thousands gathered with candles and flowers. His songs filled the streets.Two decades later, Cheungs influence still hums through Asian pop. Younger artists cite him as proof that queerness and artistry are not contradictions. Museums display his concert costumes as cultural treasures. Every April 1, fans hold memorials not in mourning but in gratitude for the man who made beauty an act of truth.Leslie Cheung lived and created in full view of a world that wasnt ready for him. Yet he never performed invisibility. He turned the stage into sanctuary and made vulnerability a kind of armor. He showed that to be seen is sometimes the most radical form of survival.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Not a drill, nor a stunt! Content creator, photographer, and dancer Nick Lemmer has officially launched a new drag persona a year and a half after winning the RuPauls Drag Race season 16 makeover challenge alongside Plane Jane. In an exclusive Out interview, the RuPauls Drag Race Live! performer and The Loverboy Diaries creator explains why hes pursuing drag breaking down the highs, lows, and latest events in his web series.The finale of The Loverboy Diaries season 1 centers on Lemmers months-in-the-making drag transformation with cameos from Drag Race alumni Plane Jane, Gigi Goode, and Morphine Love Dion and shows his new drag persona, Ashley, making her performance debut with a Slut Pop-era Kim Petras medley. Nick Lemmer performing as Ashley on The Loverboy Diaries season 1 finale.YouTube (@loverboydiaries)Out: This series, The Loverboy Diaries, is named after the idea of romanticizing life as if it were a movie. But what is your definition of a loverboy?Nick Lemmer: I love to romanticize my life as much as possible. Im a sucker for nostalgia, and feel like I get more emotional and sensitive with each year that goes by. But I want to clarify that its not so much that I try to live my life like a movie in a way that isnt based in reality but more so the fact that Ive always connected to the way life is portrayed in the romances, and coming-of-age stories alike, as they feel closer to my actual reality: Full of heart, emotion, rich color, soul You get the gist.And Id like to think that the people who write these movies would agree with me: Theyre written deep from within their own reality. Some may view them as fantasies. But some, like me, feel seen. For me, a loverboy has no gender; it is simply anyone who sees the world like this. Call them artists, old souls, romantics, or loverboys, those words are all describing the same thing to me.One of my favorite things about The Loverboy Diaries is how each episode seems to exist in a different genre. The first episode, structurally, is like an indie. Some episodes feel like rom-coms, others feel like thrillers. In that sense, theres a WandaVision quality to it, as the series goes in and out of genres in a playful way. What did you have in mind when establishing this genre-breaking arc?I am inspired by many different genres of film, art forms, and even different mediums And I want to explore them all. I also easily get bored (creatively speaking) in the sense that I struggle to stick to one style of YouTube episode, one style of filmmaking/storytelling, one style of photography, performing, etc.Ive found that constantly switching things up is what keeps me creatively and artistically fulfilled. I struggled with this for many years thinking I had to eventually choose one art form, and one style to focus on, in order to be a successful artist, or even have a successful YouTube series And I finally realized thats all B.S. I refuse to niche down my art, and I dont have to.I struggle to not ramble when I get to talk about my art and creative process, but yes, I will continue to explore different styles of episodes in future seasons of Loverboy Diaries, as well as have other planned projects coming in the future. The Loverboy Diaries is one piece of a much larger creative vision Im working on, so stay tuned! Nick Lemmer via Instagram.Instagram (@nicklemmer)You turned 28 in the first episode and go on a trip with friends to New York City. It ends with you having the most intense mental breakdown Ive ever had in my entire adult life. We learn in subsequent episodes the reason why that happened. How are you doing, currently, in terms of that memory/experience?I appreciate you asking. Im doing okay. Episode 6 did kind of force me to work through the trauma more, or at least think about it constantly while I was producing the episode for over a month, so Id say Im a little better but still have nightmares about getting shot whenever Im extra stressed out as well as just maintain a constant baseline low level of anxiety each day.Id say Im better than just surviving but definitely not thriving in respect to the trauma. I also havent done the work to seek out therapy and would like to explore that in the future so thats on me. As much as I love the tortured artist trope (see episode 6), I would love to be in a much better place mentally.Episode 2 goes from you thinking that your life is over as a dancer to then showing your return to the Las Vegas residency show and your speech for winning a WOWIE. What was your experience watching back that episode? Do you feel like youve learned something from it?Such an interesting question! Ive had multiple injuries at this point that have taken me out for long periods. As much as Ive learned from experience that yes, I will overcome the injuries to be honest, every time I still really go through it. Performing, exercising, and movement in general is really important to me. When my body holds me back, I start to feel trapped and get incredibly frustrated.I currently dont have the best relationship with my body as I havent had a pain-free day since probably 2019, and I recognize that is a lot of peoples reality as well. Overall, Im grateful every day that Im able to get up and even walk which in itself is a privilege, however I wish I had a more positive answer for you.Ill end with this, as corny as it may sound While I was editing episode 2, the first time I watched the whole thing through, I cried in a very cathartic way. Reliving almost an entire year in the span of 20 minutes was a lot but I finished episode 2 feeling proud of myself for overcoming another major injury. See on Instagram Episode 3 shows you going through an intense breakup, which led you to leave Los Angeles and move to Las Vegas. Why do you think its such a recurring topic for queer people to have a hard time with breakups?I think its difficult and intense for us to move on from relationships because at the end of the day were all human. Yes, some breakups are easier than others, whether its with a partner, friend, or a family member etc. But lets be honest, it would be crazy if we felt nothing.I try to look at it this way: No matter what emotions I feel during a breakup and as frustrating as they may be sometimes, I remind myself how grateful I am to have the capacity to feel the full spectrum of human emotions. They are all necessary and beautiful. Ill preface this next point by saying I am coming from a place of never having been in a toxic or abusive relationship, but I think a lot of people view baggage as a bad thing. I view it as all the past experiences in my life that have gotten me to this point. They have helped shape me and helped me grow as a person for any future relationships that come into my life.With regards to it all feeling more intense in our queer community, maybe it stems from how beautifully complex queer people are as well as a lot of us have very complex childhoods. All I know is that I too feel like everything is more intense for me, the good and the bad, and Ive come to a place where I am grateful for how deeply I can feel.Episode 3 introduces us to your actual first drag persona, Ashley. Its interesting to see that you already had that itch for doing drag even before doing that Drag Race makeover challenge. Where did this desire come from?Ashley was originally born the first Halloween after moving to Vegas. She quickly discovered that a short skirt and a blonde wig unleashed something in her or, well, me. I mean, working at RuPauls Drag Race Live!, I am surrounded by drag queens all day every day Can you blame me for wanting to put on a wig and feel it? Haha.But in all honesty, Ive always lived for the feeling of commanding a stage and an audience, its my favorite part about performing. And as much as I love performing behind these incredible stars in Drag Race Live, I would love to know what it feels like to be the star on stage, the one that everyone comes to see perform, sue me.Ive also always felt this connection to the more feminine style of dancing, it feels fiercer in simplest of terms and after the makeover episode I discovered I love the feeling of dancing in heels. Theres such a power and energy to it. Of course I could go on but those are some of the reasons I felt compelled to do drag. Nick Lemmer via Instagram.Instagram (@nicklemmer) I love your story of meeting Shawn throughout a few episodes of The Loverboy Diaries. Did you learn anything about yourself as a partner from watching that relationship play out on the show?To start I just want to say that Shawn is one of the most beautiful people I have ever met, inside and out. So much of this first season of The Loverboy Diaries would not have been possible without his constant support of my art and dreams.Without giving too much away to anyone who hasnt watched the series yet, no parts of the development of Shawn and Is relationship throughout the series were scripted or planned. The stark differences from episode 1 to episode 6 with regards to us was very much the reality of our relationship changing in real life. It kept developing, changing, it was messy and complex. I wanted to intertwine it into season 1 not for views but for the fact that it felt like a true queer relationship, not black and white, confusing at times, and a relationship I hadnt seen portrayed much online.I guess I would say Ive learned that you dont need to have it all figured out right away as long as you are honest and communicating and thats what we did. I struggle with conflict of any kind and so Ive discovered that what I need in a partner is someone who makes me feel like I can be completely open with them about the good and the bad without any fear of judgement or defensiveness and plot twist, those people do exist! See on Instagram Episode 6 feels like a whimsical catch-up between you and the audience. In the episode, you update fans on things that werent entirely clear before, and then it ends with a teaser that youre coming back to drag. Was this always a chapter that you knew you would get to when you started making The Loverboy Diaries?I actually filmed episode 1 and 2 before I really knew what they would end up becoming. I knew I wanted to start a YouTube channel, but The Loverboy Diaries came to be what it is now from organically just letting the story of my actual life guide the episodes of season 1.I eventually realized I wanted season 1 to sort of be this grand introduction season diving into why I live my life the way I do so that the viewers have a better understanding of me before I dive into other avenues in future seasons. I always knew I wanted to bring Lazi Suzan back at some point, but I wasnt sure how or when or even why. As my pursuit of drag sort of starts a new major chapter in my life, it felt like a perfect way to end season 1.I think everything that happened in season 1 needed to happen in order to get me to this point. One might say, Everything happens for a reason. Sorry, I cant lie, I do kind of live by that motto.Tell me about your experience in the makeover episode of RuPauls Drag Race season 16. What was it like meeting Plane Jane as your makeover partner, bonding with her, and then getting this incredible transformation in drag? And are you and Plane still close to each other?Firstly, I couldnt have asked for a better response from everyone for our makeover episode and I think what made it special for me was getting to do it with a bunch of my RuPauls Drag Race LIVE! family. Secondly, I cant thank Plane enough for all that she has done for me. She let me have my moment during the makeover challenge, even flew to Vegas a few months after we filmed the episode so we could do a photoshoot together, and has continued to support me throughout this new drag chapter of mine.Plane Jane is incredibly smart in what she has done with her career, has clearly paved her own way as a standout queen that isnt going away any time soon and I feel like shes just getting started. I cant wait to see what she does next. See on Instagram What was your experience with the Drag Race fandom once the episode aired? I could see your comments section getting flooded with wild fans and thirsty messages.It was definitely interesting to say the least. [Laughs.] I found out very quickly that I can't post pics of my feet online, and that people have a lot of opinions about my body hair Particularly when I shave mine. I used to get emails from people asking to buy my underwear and shoes, but that has since died down.But I feel very lucky that the response has been very positive and everyone online has been super supportive for the most part! I guess the only real struggle Ive found is that my weird artsy posts on instagram get way less likes than a shirtless picture and sometimes that can get to me, a little bit, if Im honest.I really like Caroline Kingsbury, and I was surprised to see that connection between you and the singer on The Loverboy Diaries. Were you two able to meet? Why does this kind of music resonate with you so much?We have not officially met yet, but are internet friends, and well for sure meet at some point in the future. She reached out to me after seeing episode 4 that features her concert, and she loved the episode.Caroline Kingsbury just has a feeling to her music that I really resonate with. I love the sound of 80s synth music my YouTube series is very inspired by 80s coming-of-age movies and I love lesbians, and she encompasses all of that in her music. Her music is like the 80s coming-of-age soundtrack of my dreams But gay, so even better.The song of hers that I feature in episode 4, Fall in Love, really resonated with me because it felt like the lyrics were written word for word by what I was going through. I had fallen in love but never really wanted to. I would love to work with her creatively some day on some sort of project. And I must say, if you have a chance to see Caroline Kingsbury live, you must! Shes currently on tour, so get those tickets, and you wont regret it. Nick Lemmer in The Loverboy Diaries finale.YouTube (@loverboydiaries) Can you explain why you dropped the Lazi Susan name?Lazi Susan will always have a special place in my heart; she pretty much changed my life. But the main reason I decided to change my name is because there is already a literal Drag Race winner with the same name, and she has worked incredibly hard to build her brand under that name, and I want it to be fully hers.Lazy Susan, winner of Drag Race Down Under season 4, and I have no beef. We are internet friends, and shes actually involved in the season finale episode. I know RuPaul loved the name Lazi Suzan, as well as the fans, and maybe there will be people who disagree with the name change But I think people will adjust after seeing what Ashley brings to the table. Lazi Suzan is Ashley, and Ashley is Lazi Suzan. The monster you saw on stage during the makeover challenge is still the monster you will see performing on stage under the name Ashley.And now that Lazi Susan is officially dead, the question is Who is Ashley?Ashley encompasses everything about my performance alter ego. There is something that shifts in me as soon as I get on stage, whether as Nick in Drag Race Live, or as Ashley. I want to fight for your attention, I want all eyes on me, and I will fight for that. Oh, and the stank face will always be there. Ashley in her debut performance as a drag queen.YouTube (@loverboydiaries) This drag comeback isnt just one performance as a stunt. Youre determined to take drag seriously and build a career as a drag artist. What is it about drag that makes you want to go in this direction?As Ive been fully engulfed in the drag world for the last six years, Ive been able to see front row how much creativity and artistry goes into it, and thats what intrigues me the most. I want drag to be an outlet where I can combine all my creative interests into one persona. I cant wait to explore my makeup more, figure out Ashleys fashion style, and just overall her drag point of view.Ive performed behind the stars my entire professional dance career, and now I want to be the star. I also cant dance professionally forever; my body simply wouldnt survive. I recognize that, and I have accepted it. So Im hoping drag can also be my outlet to be able to continue to perform. There truly is nothing like performing on stage for an audience.Weve been in touch about this for quite a long time now, and I know youve been taking the time to learn and prepare for this new drag career. Can you tell the fans what youve been doing leading up to Ashleys debut?Ive been working behind the scenes for the last few months in preparation for this debut performance. I knew I didnt want to just get put into drag again by Plane and perform. I wanted to learn the entire process and see what it actually takes to be a drag queen.I have so much respect for drag queens. They have to be makeup artists, fashion designers, social media managers, stage performers, and more. Ive been learning drag makeup, how to sew, how to properly put on a wig, all of it. Its been very challenging because I hate not being good at things, and I wasnt naturally good at any of it at first People will see if they watch the finale. [Laughs.]I still have a lot to learn and a lot of skills to work on. I got really stuck on this expectation I put on myself to be this perfectly polished drag queen for my debut so as to not disappoint people who have been waiting for my return to drag. I had to quickly get over that because it was paralyzing me. I am very proud of how much Ive learned so far, but trust me, Im just scratching the surface. Ashley will continue to evolve, and change, and have better makeup skills.What are your goals for Ashley as a drag artist?I have such a passion for performing and for creating art. Im hoping Ashley can allow me to encompass both of these passions into one monster of an alter ego. Just like Nick, Ashley has big goals and big dreams Lets just say that.The Loverboy Diaries episode 7 the season finale! is now streaming on YouTube.

A popular adult film star has resurfaced on social media after three years, explaining that he had a "massive seizure" that nearly took his life.Brent Corrigan, whose real name is Sean Paul Lockhart, addressed his fans in a thread on X, sharing that he suffered a seizure in 2023 that eventually led to him being on life support because they werent able to register any brain activity. (@) In the early 2000s, the actor was one of the most recognizable names in the gay adult film industry and continued to work up until recently. He became so popular that his life was dramatized in the 2016 film, King Cobra, starring Garrett Clayton as Corrigan, as well as James Franco, Molly Ringwald, Christian Slater, and Alicia Silverstone. The film follows the adult creator in the early years of his career after being scouted by a closeted producer named Stephen, who was eventually murdered by rival producers/creators.When the movie was released, Corrigan put out a statement on Facebook, writing: "The internet has been a buzz regarding some recent news that a movie is being filmed right now in New York State chronicling the Bryan Kocis murder and the early days of my adult career." He continued, "I was originally approached to be a part of the film as a consultant and the cast. I was asked to play a small part in the film and declined the role. Ultimately, I chose to move forward with my own plans to finally release my book in place of taking part in someone else's presentation of events that I personally lived as a young adult.The porn star said that his life was saved by some strange miracle and the incredible hospital staff. Shortly after that, he had to re-learn how to do basic things like walking and eating. A few months later, he was discharged to rejoin the living and says that a lot has been different. After taking some time away from social media, hes been able to go back to doing things he enjoys, like riding horses, and wrote if you know where to look, you can still find me having a good time on the weekends, then shared a photo of a recent Halloween costume. (@) Within the last few years, Corrigan has gone on to act in independent films, but he's also been vocal about the exploitation of the adult film industry.

Halloween is unofficially a gay holiday and without a doubt, we've made it our own. As celebrities share their Halloween costumes every year, our eyes are always on the queer celebrities (and Heidi Klum, the canonical queen of camp). Over the years, there have been some jaw-dropping costumes from members of the LGBTQ+ community and gay icons, so we decided to take a look back at the ones that broke the internet when the pictures were released.It's exciting to see how our favorite celebs were able to one-up themselves every year, so let's review some of the most stunning Halloween looks.Janelle Mone as Beetlejuice (@) In recent memory, Janelle Mone solidified herself as someone who fully commits to Halloween costumes, and this year was no different. She shared photos of herself as the titular character in Beetlejuice. Knowing her, there's a good chance this may not be the only costume this year.Heidi Klum as a worm (@) The reigning queen of Halloween undoubtedly surprises everyone with her costume(s) every year as she walks down the red carpet for her annual party. But in this case, she didn't walk she slinked and hopped her way down the step-and-repeat as a worm in 2022. People weren't sure what to expect from the model and Project Runway host, but it definitely wasn't this.Alex Consani as Gru from "Despicable Me"See on InstagramAlex Consani is one of the most in-demand fashion models in the world, but also the most unserious. The chronically online fashion superstar is known for outlandish antics on social media, so it's no surprise she dressed as "Sexy Gru," a play on the character from the animated kids' movie, Despicable Me.Eugene Lee Yang as Vecna from "Stranger Things"See on InstagramEugene Lee Yang is a contender for one to watch during the Halloween season, and he gagged his fans with a complete prosthetic transformation as the Stranger Things antagonist, Vecna, back in 2022 when the show last released a season. The horror Netflix series is a constant source of inspiration for costumes from Eleven holding her Eggo waffles or a Scoops Ahoy employee. We're excited about what this last and final season will bring.Lady Gaga as a "Ghost" (@) Sometimes, simpler is better, even for someone as eccentric as Lady Gaga. In 2014, Mother Monster decided to craft a last-minute costume on her way out of a restaurant in Paris. She acquired a tablecloth and snipped some eye holes for a classic "ghost" look, and it's honestly very chic.Troye Sivan as Addison Rae (@) Addison Rae found a lane for herself amongst the cool girls of the entertainment industry, cozying up to people like Charli Xcx, A.G. Cook, and Caroline Polachek. Not too soon after Troye Sivan and Charli welcomed Rae as a guest at the New York stop of their Sweat Tour to perform her single "Diet Pepsi" for the first time, the Australian pop star dressed up as her from a paparazzi picture where she's seen reading Britney Spears's memoir while walking on the streets.Nicey Nash-Betts and Jessica Betts as A$AP Rocky and RihannaSee on InstagramThe Out100 Icon of the Year cover star, Niecy Nash-Betts, perfectly executed an imitation of A$AP Rocky and Rihanna's 2021 couple debut Met Gala look with her wife, Jessica Betts. The stunning couple wore what seemed like the exact same garments the pop star and the father of her three kids wore when they first walked a red carpet together.Cardi B as Marge SimpsonSee on InstagramCardi B treats Halloween just as seriously as any other queer does, especially celebrities who go the extra mile with a conceptual photo shoot for their costumes. The Bronx rapper fully embodied the iconic television mom, Marge Simpson, with a slightly sexual spin on her usual look. She donned a light green corseted bodysuit, yellow body paint, and red platform heels.Neil Patrick Harris, David Burtka, and their kids as iconic horror charactersSee on InstagramNeil Patrick Harris and his husband, David Burtka, have been dressing up their kids for years, and the kids seem to be enjoying the family tradition. In 2021, instead of dressing as characters from the same movie, they decided to be four iconic horror characters. Harris portrayed Norman Bates from Psycho, Burtka as Jack Torrance from The Shining, Gideon as the evil doll Chucky, and Harper as the possessed Regan from The Exorcist.Megan Thee Stallion as Starfire from "Teen Titans"See on InstagramFans of Megan Thee Stallion will know that she's a huge anime nerd and even has a song about it ("Otaku Hot Girl"). This isn't her first time dressing up as an anime character, but this one definitely stood out for obvious reasons. She put her own spin on the iconic character Starfire, and she looked fire.

Halloween is the one time of year when everyone and anyone can dress up like, well, everyone and anyone with nearly no recourse (costume depending). Historically speaking, when homosexuality and cross-dressing was still very not-legal, Halloween gave the queens and queers alike permission to dress to express corseted, contoured, and blended in with everybody else. And that has never changed.For generations of young queer people, Halloween has been the perfect gateway for taking their first step toward queer identity; countless tales of someones first time in drag or first time going to a gay bar happen on Halloween. You might consider Halloween the queer hall pass of holidays.Its no mistake that the UpStairs Lounge opened its doors on Halloween night of 1970, 55 years ago this Friday. The discrete second-floor gay bar quickly became a safe haven in the French Quarter. It was a second home to its regulars, a place for them to be free in a world rampant with discrimination. It was also the only gay bar in the Quarter to have had a dancing license; it was also never raided by police and happily catered to a mix of patrons who were not just gay, but also straight, trans, and people of color.Unfortunately, less than three years after it opened, on June 24, 1973, someone doused the entrance of the bar in lighter fluid and lit it on fire, causing a blaze that would claim 32 lives. In the hours after the fire, shock spread through the city, but as it became clear the victims were almost entirely queer, the city turned a blind eye. There was no day of mourning, churches refused to hold services for the deceased, and some bodies even went unclaimed by families, for fear and shame of claiming a dead gay son.Thanks to a small, dedicated group of storytellers over the years who have given us a handful of heavily researched books and documentary films, weve been able to get a sense of what kind of a place the UpStairs Lounge was. Because, for decades, this story has all but slipped through the cracks of queer oral storytelling.As Halloween approaches and LGBTQ+ History Month comes to an end, the creators of The Fire UpStairs podcast, Joey Hardy Gray and Ryan Killian Krause, sat down to discuss why they decided to make the show and why two years after its release, theyre more dedicated than ever to amplifying lesser-known queer stories. Joey Hardy Gray and Ryan Killian Krause in front of the UpStairs Lounge site in 2025Ryan Killian KrauseJoey Hardy Gray: When I first learned the story of the UpStairs Lounge and the horrific arson that happened, my first thought was How could I not have known about this? Why hasnt anyone in our community told me before? Why werent more people talking about what happened? Do people even know what happened?Ryan Killian Krause: I mean, I didnt know about this story until you approached me about making this show. And most people Ive told about it since besides the people who have a connection to New Orleans havent known about it. I think thats what drew both of us to this story.JHG: From the first moment I saw the cover of Johnny Townsends book, Let The Faggots Burn, with that hand reaching up, engulfed in flames, I havent been able to shake the compulsion to tell people about it. And since then, weve gotten Clayton Delery Edwardss book The Up Stairs Lounge Arson, [Robert W. Fieselers] book Tinderbox, Robert L. Caminas documentary Upstairs Inferno, and a bunch of other contributions and still, most people I ask have never heard about what happened. RKK: Theres just so much to know and its not like were taught any of it. I still remember the years right after I came out as I started learning more and more about queer history and, frankly, how stupid I felt for how much I didnt know and how much there was to learn. It set me off on a journey of self-education where Ive been trying to learn as much as I can. And here we are 10 years later, and I still feel like theres still so much to learn.JHG: I didnt realize its been 10 years for you I only stumbled onto the UpStairs Lounge story 10 years ago. And then if it hadnt been for the Pulse shooting a year later and the tragic connection between the historic death toll of the two events that recirculated the UpStairs Lounge in the news cycle, Im sure even fewer people would know about it now.RKK: And how fucked up is it that it took another mass murder for us to dig back into our past and start talking about the Upstairs Lounge again? I mean, this is exactly why were both so passionate about telling queer stories. Its so easy for them to be lost as time goes on. The Upstairs Lounge site in 1974The Times-Picayune New OrleansJHG: Its true. I think stories can only be passed down so far without being canonized. Thats why Ive been trying to make my feature film about the UpStairs for the last few years. Its like what Dustin Lance Black was able to do with Milk. Everyone knows the story of Harvey Milk now, if not from the documentary that came before, definitely from having seen his movie.RKK: It makes me think of what Sarah Schulman did with the history of ACT UP. Shes written the definitive history book, of course, but she also sat down and recorded interviews with the pioneers of that fight so that there would be some record of what happened. No one else was doing it and one day everyone who was there would be dead. Its very if you want something done well, do it yourself energy.JHG: Thats exactly what Johnny Townsend was doing when he went around interviewing people about the UpStairs Lounge history. No one asked him to write and self-publish the first book about the fire, but he knew it was important and he took on the responsibility. Im so grateful for the people like them in our community.RKK: Right, thats why I really wanted to make this show with you to contribute to telling our queer stories through our own queer voices. And, you know I hate the phrase now more than ever, its like one of those email blasts from the DNC with the subject line, well, were all going to die unless you give $5, Ryan. But its hard to deny its growing relevance as our world shifts.I think there was a period of time where everyone thought that because we had access to all this information, people would just know what was true and what happened. And thats just not where we are. I mean [the conservative media group] PragerU is approved educational material in multiple states. The truth is out the window. And, on top of that, I just saw a whole discourse on Twitter from younger queers about why they dont need PrEP. Shits bad. Patrons at the Upstairs LoungeCourtesy of Johnny TownsendJHG: Thats why Im not on Twitter! But before social media and online communities, we had to go find real communities and those were in gay bars. And actually the first time I ever went to a gay bar was Halloween. Shout out The Avalon in Boston. RIP.RKK: Bring it back to the Upstairs Lounge, baby! But actually, I do often think about gay bars and all the people inside of them and all the stories they have to be told. Generations of queer people whove lived these really rich, beautiful lives. And I remember realizing years ago how weird it is that so many of our elders are gone and how sad it is that weve lost their stories.JHG: Absolutely. Theres a passage in Jeremy Atherton Lins Gay Bar: Why We Went Out that really stuck with me since I first read it: Theres not just a gap, but a chasm between generations that AIDS created. Their absence is felt by those of us who are old enough to feel it. But the younger ones are never going to know about them unless we tell them [...] We went out to be told. We went out to feel it. We went out to experience how it used to be.That sentiment was one of the main reasons I wanted to make our show. Because in the absence of gay bars, queer spaces, and physically having places to go out to, we all have a responsibility to keep our histories alive by sharing them with one another, and with younger generations.RKK: No one else will tell our stories if we don't tell them for ourselves.JHG: And thats why we have to keep doing what were doing.Stream The Fire UpStairs wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about the show and contribute to future episodes here.

VACAYA, the LGBTQ+ travel company, embarked on a bear-y fun queer cruise to Alaska from July 27 to August 3. In between stops at Juneau and Ketchikan, passengers on the Holland America ship enjoyed northern-themed parties and performances from Alex Newell, John Cameron Mitchell, La Voix, Billy Gilman, and more.Ahead, see some of the highlights from the expedition, and don't miss Out's full review of the cruise. Visit myvacaya.com to explore upcoming voyages to the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Seychelles and more.Arranged for Out.com by Nikki Aye, Digital Photo Editor

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) has made a name for herself this past year with her zealous opposition to transgender rights, but she claimed that she supported equal rights for cis queer people and that her antipathy was directed squarely at trans people.Not anymore. Mace, who is now running for governor of South Carolina, appeared to declare her opposition to rights for cisgender gay, lesbian, and bisexual people on X. Related Margaret Cho calls anti-trans GOP Rep. Nancy Mace a stupid b**tch Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve, she wrote, using a very old anti-gay slogan used to accuse gay people of being unnatural and against the Bible.Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve. Nancy Mace (@NancyMace) October 28, 2025Her about-face is recent. Just last year, a transgender user of X told her that she is going to be against gay rights as soon as it becomes socially advantageous in response to her claiming that gay rights have nothing to do with trans peoples rights.Mace appeared to deny the accusation on November 24, 2024. Votes for gay marriage twice in fact, she responded, referring to her two rollcall votes in support of the Respect for Marriage Act, which required state governments and the federal government to recognize same-sex married couples in the event the Supreme Court overturns Obergefell v. Hodges. Votes for gay marriage twice in fact Nancy Mace (@NancyMace) November 24, 2024Couldnt make it even a year, another X quipped yesterday.Couldnt make it even a year lol pic.twitter.com/GgLlNOavs8 Lionel Hutz, Tesla Attorney General (@Gimply32) October 29, 2025

Former Trump campaign senior advisor, lobbyist, and CNN commentator David Urban attacked former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for trying to sow fear and discontent by saying that the Supreme Court could overturn marriage equality.If you keep telling us the sky is falling, eventually people will stop listening, Urban wrote in a USA Today column this week. Marriage equality isnt in danger. Were that to change, Americans on the left, center, and right would come to its defense. Related The hidden story of how a gay immigrant started the nations first battle over same-sex marriage The country deserves better.Urban, who advised on Trumps 2016 campaign for president, was referring to comments Clinton made in August on the Raging Moderates podcast, where she said that the Supreme Court will do to gay marriage what they did to abortion. They will send it back to the states. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today She then told anybody in a committed relationship out there in the LGBTQ community You ought to consider getting married. Because I dont think theyll undo existing marriages, but I fear that they will undo the national right, and so, fewer than half of the states will recognize gay marriage.Urban took issue with that, citing a survey from Republican pollsters at Centerline America who found that 72% of registered voters this past June said they support marriage equality (that support dropped to 61% when people were allowed to pick undecided as an answer). He said that even a majority of Republicans support marriage equality, citing a poll from The Hill, although a poll from Gallup this year shows that only a minority of Republicans do, and their support has been decreasing since 2022. Urban also discussed the legal case that people are worried the Court will use to overturn Obergefell, Rowan County, Kentucky, Clerk Kim Davis lawsuit. Legal experts have generally said that the case isnt a good vehicle for overturning Obergefell, and Urban cites a conservative legal scholar who said that overturning Obergefell would be unlikely because the Court would be destroying marriages and undoing family relationships. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett made a similar argument earlier this month, and even Clinton said that she didnt believe that the Court would break apart marriages, just stop requiring states to continue to perform marriages for same-sex couples.But Urbans goal with his piece wasnt to assure LGBTQ+ people that marriage equality is safe; it was to attack Democrats for bringing it up in the first place (he cited no major Democrats who have expressed concern for marriage equality other than Clinton, who was asked about it on a podcast): The chicken little warnings arent grounded in reality.So why raise the specter of rights being torn away when the law and the culture are moving in the opposite direction? Because fear works. Fear raises money. Fear keeps Americans angry, divided, and distrustful, the former Trump campaign advisor wrote. He then said that there are important debates ahead over religious liberty, over equal treatment under the law, and they matter. Davis lawsuit is about religious rights, and religious freedom was also the reason cited by Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito in their 2020 dissenting opinion calling for the Court to end marriage equality.The law is being followed, Urban wrote. His piece was published just three days after Texas moved to allow county judges to refuse to marry same-sex couples.Transgender rights are under much heavier attack than marriage equality and have been for the past several years, and LGBTQ+ legal experts dont think that marriage is in any immediate danger. The Supreme Court is set to decide next month whether it will even hear Davis appeal. The Court gets about 10,000 petitions a year asking it to deliberate on various cases the court agrees to hear only 75 to 85 of these cases,according to The Judicial Learning Center. Even Bill Powell, the lawyer representing the same-sex couple in Davis case, thinks the Supreme Court wont hear her case.Not a single judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals showed any interest in Davis rehearing petition, and we are confident the Supreme Court will likewise agree that Davis arguments do not merit further attention, Powell said.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Frankenstein has always been misunderstood. Most people see the creature and call him the monster, but the real horror is not in the stitches of his body. It is in the arrogance of the man who created him.Victor Frankenstein abandoned what he brought to life and, in that act, he became the true monster. It is a lesson we keep returning to. Monsters are not always the ones who look frightening. Often they are the ones who turn away from responsibility, who refuse to love what they have made, who choose power over compassion.That is where the real terror lives.For queer readers, Frankenstein carries an even deeper resonance. Mary Shelley wrote at a time when queerness was unspeakable, when desire outside the boundaries of marriage and reproduction had to be hidden in metaphors and shadows. Her story is drenched in longing that cannot be spoken aloud, in intimacy disguised as monstrosity. The creature is not only abandoned but forbidden, existing outside society's rules and looking in through the glass at lives he will never have.This is why queer writers, scholars, and readers have long read Frankenstein as a coded story of forbidden desire. The creature's yearning for companionship, his demand for a mate, his rage at being denied, all echo the experience of living in a world where love itself is marked as dangerous. Shelley's prose vibrates with suppressed intimacy, turning the monster into a mirror for everyone who has been told their passion makes them inhuman.The brilliance of Frankenstein is that it resists easy answers. Shelley refuses to let us place all the blame on the creature or all the guilt on Victor. Instead, she shows us how cruelty is born from rejection. The monster is violent because he is unloved. He is terrifying because he has been made to live without tenderness. In this, Shelley anticipated a truth that LGBTQ+ people know all too well. It is society's rejection, not identity itself, that produces despair and rage.The novel is also about creation without care, about bringing something into the world and then denying responsibility for it. This makes it not just a story about one man and his creature, but about culture itself. How many times has society created outsiders through laws, religion, and stigma, only to then call them monsters for refusing to disappear? Shelley's work subtly addresses that hypocrisy, and in doing so, she made one of the first great queer coded texts of horror.Today, in an era where LGBTQ+ rights are once again under attack, Frankenstein feels more relevant than ever.The creature's cry, "I am malicious because I am miserable," rings with the ache of every marginalized person forced to live in the shadows. Shelley reminds us that monstrosity is not a condition of being different, but a condition imposed when love and acceptance are denied.This is why Frankenstein continues to speak to queer readers. It is a story of loneliness, of forbidden intimacy, of rage born from rejection. But it is also a story of truth-telling, a reminder that the real monsters are not those who live on the outside but those who lack compassion.In the end, Shelley gave us more than a Gothic tale. She gave us a way to understand ourselves, our history, and our place in the world. And in that sense, Frankenstein is not just a horror story. It is a queer story.Steven LaChance is an author whose work blends horror, memoir, and cultural analysis, often exploring the intersections of trauma, identity, and the supernatural. He writes regularly about literature, history, and the queer resonances of horror.Voices is dedicated to featuring a wide range of inspiring personal stories and impactful opinions from the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. Visit Out.com/submit to learn more about submission guidelines. We welcome your thoughts and feedback on any of our stories. Email us at voices@equalpride.com. Views expressed in Voices stories are those of the guest writers, columnists, and editors, and do not directly represent the views of Out or our parent company, equalpride.

It looks like Supermans Fortress of Solitude, my partner observed as we marveled at the Dawes Glacier, which filled our view from the deck of the Holland America cruise ship.Its one thing to read about a glacier in a news article or textbook. Its quite another experience to witness in person and its a super sight, indeed. The miles-long river of ice glowed with an unearthly shade of blue. Occasionally, a sheet of ice would fall into the sea to join a trail of icebergs, a process called shelving. The vista was nestled in the Endicott Arm, an Alaskan fjord teeming with other breathtaking natural wonders: cascading waterfalls, granite cliffs, gliding eagles, a pod of whales passing by. Daniel Reynolds and Randolph Frazier in the Endicott ArmDaniel ReynoldsThe glacier was the heart of our Alaskan cruise with VACAYA, an LGBTQ+ vacation company that filled the ship with queer folks for a July 27-August 3 summer sailing. We had voyaged with VACAYA before the groups popular Caribbean expedition made us into cruise converts. So in the good company of nearly 2,000 fellow travelers, we decided to venture into the Last Frontier. Summer is also the best time to see northern nature in its bloom though it can still get rainy and chilly, particularly at night, so we made sure to pack a few jackets and sweaters along with the swim trunks.It wasnt just the wild that beckoned us, though. It feels clich to think of travel as an escape, but well, I needed one. Unlike Superman, I didnt need solitude per se. But the stress of the daily news cycle while living in an American city was taking its toll. And what better place to get away than Alaska, where, as the saying goes, youre either running away or running toward something. VACAYA threw daily theme parties like lumberjack.VACAYAThe first stop on our eight-day run (after Seattle, where we departed) was Juneau. The Alaskan capital boasts its own drive-up glacier, the Mendenhall Glacier, and there are a variety of ways to explore it: hikes and canoes, helicopter tours, and salmon bakes. Our cruise allowed us to book these expeditions in advance, even just before docking, through its app or help desk. The Juneau Visitor Center, which also connects tourists to these services, is conveniently located near the dock. Its adjacent to the Goldbelt Tram, which takes you on a six-minute cable car ride up Mount Roberts, where tourists can enjoy dining, retail, and mountain trails at a 1,600-foot elevation. Daniel out on the cruise deckDaniel ReynoldsMy partner and I focused on Downtown Juneau a charming district straight out of the Gold Rush era where we grabbed a beer at the Alaskan Brewing Co. and salmon, rockfish, and halibut tacos at Deckhand Daves Fish Tacos. Before returning to the ship, we ducked into Alaskan Hotel and Bar, the citys oldest operating hotel, whose rainbow-flagged saloon was recommended to us by a queer local.Another Alaskan stop on our cruise was Ketchikan, dubbed the Salmon Capital of the World due to its robust commercial fishing. The city is also rich in Indigenous culture, boasting the worlds largest gathering of standing totem poles. While several folks embarked on wildlife expeditions in the Tongass National Forest, a big Ketchikan draw was the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show, in which handsome lumberjacks, paying homage to the regions history of logging, performed feats of climbing, chainsawing, and comedy. John Cameron Mitchell on Holland Americas World StageVACAYANext door, we feasted at the Alaska Fish House. Dont mind the line of people: The fish-and-chips sampler of Pacific cod, local salmon, and halibut was worth the trip alone. Walking back to the dock through colorful Creek Street was great for gift shops and Instagram shots. And, fun fact, this street was once a bustling red-light district. Visit Dollys House Museum for this history and a tour of the citys most famous brothel.Time at sea also had its pleasures. Id be remiss not to mention VACAYAs own red-light district; the adults-only vacation company roped aside a portion of the deck for late-night connections. But this was only one small diversion on the robust VACAYA itinerary offered to guests of all interests. The Alaskan Hotel and Bar in Juneau had inviting rainbow decor.Daniel ReynoldsAs a musical lover, I was in heaven. Each night, headliners including Alex Newell, John Cameron Mitchell, La Voix, and Billy Gilman brought the house (ship?) down on the World Stage. In addition to singing his classic songs from Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Mitchell hosted a viewing party for Shortbus, where, over wine, he dished on some behind-the-scenes insights of filming his cult classic, infamous for featuring real sex. (One of the openers orgasms is fake; Ill let you guess which one.)VACAYA also has a talent for introducing its audience to fabulous new performers. I gagged on the music of Provincetown-based singing drag trio Qya Cristl, Roxy Pops, and Delta Miles and laughed my ass off at the surreal comedy of Elf Lyons, who electrified the World Stage with an impersonation of a pony with bloodlust and a caricature of a Hitchcock heroine. Also not to be missed was bingo with Sister Helen Holy, who drew one of the weeks biggest crowds, and drag brunch with the VACAYA Vixens. A northern lightsshow with VACAYAVACAYAOf course, there were the nightly parties, which all gave queer twists to northern themes. Over the course of a week, I dressed like a lumberjack, a Frozen character, a Canadian hockey player, and a giraffe. And in my coziest ensemble, I wore a hooded onesie for a late-night light show on the deck. What an experience to be surrounded by queer people and gazing up at the sky together. Were there earthly concerns still? Many! But for a brief, blessed time, we had just ourselves, the sea, and the stars.The writer was invited by VACAYA to cover this cruise. Learn more about upcoming trips to Mexico, the Caribbean, India, and more at myvacaya.com. Cruise ship at port in Juneau, AlaskaShutterstockThis article is part of Out's Nov/Dec 2025 issue, which hits newsstands October 28. Support queer media and subscribe or download the issue now through Apple News, Zinio, Nook, or PressReader.

Hi Alex,I read your article in Them about the use of the word queer. It prompted a question I have, though its not exactly related to it. I am gay and understand coming out. I never came out because I was lucky to live in a home where I was just gay from the moment I started school. I would frequently tell my parents which boys were cute in my class, as far back as Kindergarten. But I get it, some people come out as gay, lesbian, bi, and trans. But why do people come out as "demisexual" or "sapiosexual," for example? How did these labels become part of the queer movement? Do you have to be LGBT to be a demisexual? As a gay man, I honestly only enjoy sex with people with whom I have a connection, but I never thought of myself as demisexual. And, I don't think any human is attracted to every other human that fits their sexual orientation, so isnt everyone sapiosexual? Why is this now an LGBT term? When did the LGBT movement include sapiosexual? Also, I noticed on social media that you ask people to include their pronouns when sending you questions, so that you can address them properly. I don't want to be an ass, but we address people by "you, yours, yourself, etc". If you are talking to someone, you don't say "he, his, him" to that person. I don't believe in giving pronouns because, in my mind, it means permitting someone to talk about you to someone else, because that's the only time you would use third-person pronouns when you are talking about someone, not to someone. But anyway, what's your take on coming out as "demisexual? And how is this similar to coming out as gay or trans? Thanks, AnthonyHey Anthony,Youre not the only gay man who feels confused maybe even a little irritated by all the new labels. Sometimes it seems theres a new one every year. It can feel like identity overload.Lets start with some quick definitions for readers who might not know them. Demisexual describes people who only feel sexual attraction after forming a close emotional bond. Sex and relationship therapist Karen Pollock puts it simply: the term describes feelings, not behaviors. Demisexuals can have sex, relationships, and attraction across genders, like anyone else they just dont experience that initial spark without emotional connection.Sapiosexual, meanwhile, means being attracted to intelligence more than physical appearance drawn to someones mind, not their body. Depending on who you ask, its a valid identity or a pretentious way to say I like smart people. (Im only half joking.)Youre asking something I hear a lot: When did terms like these become part of the LGBTQ+ conversation? Why do people come out as demisexual or sapiosexual the same way others come out as gay or trans?Its a fair question, and it points to a bigger truth about how language evolves. If it feels like new labels are being spun out of thin air, they kind of are but thats how language works. It stretches, splinters, reforms. Sometimes this happens out of necessity: People need words to name experiences they couldnt describe before. Sometimes its just because humans like categories, especially when weve felt unseen. Think about how people feel relief when they finally get a medical diagnosis naming something makes it real, manageable. Complicated things like disease and desire get easier once theyre named.The debate over which identities belong in the LGBTQ+ acronym has become an online sport. Every few years, we cycle through the same tired questions: Do kinksters belong in it? Asexuals? Demisexuals? The debate is endless and, to be honest, mostly pointless.Back in 2018, during one of those add new letters moments, I wrote in The Advocate that including K for kink runs the risk of oversimplifying identities like lesbian and trans to sexual fetishes a claim weve been fighting for decades and assumes all kinky people are queer (theyre not). If I wrote that piece now, Id add: Who cares? The people arguing about it online are rarely the ones fighting real political battles.At its best, queerness is an ethos a way of living differently from what society expects and values and a shared memory of those who were punished for it. If youre demisexual or sapiosexual, great use the words that feel true but that doesnt necessarily make you queer. Queerness, to me, is about risk and alliance. Its not just who you sleep with; its how you live and who you stand with when trans rights are under attack.In that Them essay you mentioned, I quoted sociologist Jason Orne, who describes three overlapping meanings of queer. The first is queer as an umbrella term an all-inclusive shorthand for anyone who isnt straight or cisgender. (This is how many LGBT publications, including this one, use it.) The second is queer as a leftist sociopolitical stance and a rejection of fixed identity categories. I say this usage is leftist because Ive found it associated with a kind of ultra-left political critique of power structures which often appears, as I and others have pointed out, like a profound misreading of Foucault, Orne says in that piece. This is the queer youll see at a queer political event, a queer with an identity politics that often says, paradoxically, that the truth about an issue can only come from someone with the correct combination of marginalized identities to speak on said issue. Its paradoxical because these queer leftists are usually white, and they pepper their events and issues with a kind of diversity by numbers approach. Lately, these are disparagingly called tenderqueers. Orne calls this approach queernormativity, where people invent a right way to be queer and argue everyone else is doing it wrong.The third queer Orne defines is my kind of queer: the irreverent sex radical that finds freedom and joy in what the world says is shameful. These are faggots, rule-breakers, the ones playing in backrooms and building new worlds of pleasure. They might not even use the word queer, but they live it.Each group uses queer differently, which is why the discourse is so messy but that keeps it alive and vibrant. Queerness was never meant to be neat.So when you ask, When did the LGBT movement include sapiosexual? The answer is: It didnt, not officially or in a way that matters. Youll find people who say it did, and others who think kink, furry, and witch belong too. None of this keeps me up at night.The real question is: When push comes to shove when queer and trans people are under threat will all these self-described queers show up? Will gay men? Will bi folks? Because thats what makes someone part of this family, not the label. If they dont stand with us, they can keep their words and fuck off. Im protective of this community of gay men, trans folks, queer women, and everyone still figuring themselves out and I dont have patience for anyone who wants the cultural cachet of queerness without the responsibility of solidarity.You also raised a point about pronouns, which Ill touch on quickly. Youre right that I write to people, not about them. But knowing a readers pronouns tells me something about their gender identityhow they move through the world, what risks they face, and what advice might help. Asking someones pronouns isnt really about grammar; its about respect. The more we ask, the less invisible trans and nonbinary people feel. Thats the point.Anthony, I get where your question is coming from. Many gay men of a certain generation look at the explosion of micro-labels demi-, sapio-, omni-, and so on and feel alienated. I feel it too sometimes. I came up when it was hard enough to say gay or bi out loud. But younger, relentlessly online generations grew up with language as a playground. Theyre exploring their inner worlds online, publicly, and they want precision. They want to name the nuances of desire we used to shrug off or bury. Thats not wrong, just different. For older folks who fought through the plague years and the marriage equality battles, it can feel like watching your hard-won identity get rewritten in a dialect you dont recognize. For younger ones, it can feel like trying to build a new language under the judgmental glare of those who came before. Both sides get something right and something wrong.So yes, I understand the eye-roll when someone comes out as sapiosexual. But behind every label, new or old, is someone trying to be understood. Thats a prehistoric human impulse its what all our myths and fables boil down to: What am I? Every time we try to name what we are, we make a little stab into that mysterious dark called desire and try to draw from it some shape, some clarity. And desire never fits neatly into language its always one step ahead, constantly surprising us but the effort to name and understand it is shared by all. Ive never found a word that perfectly fits me. I say gay because its simple, but sometimes pansexual feels truer. Neither tells the full story. Our words are just tools blunt, imperfect ones to understand ourselves.So whats my take on coming out as demisexual? Do it. If a label helps you understand yourself, it does its job. You dont have to be LGBT to be demi or sapiosexual, and identifying that way doesnt automatically make you queer. But it also doesnt hurt anyone.The alphabet soup is messy and imperfect, but its only real purpose is solidarity. The full, shifting LGBTQ+ acronym is a linguistic effort at unity aimed, however loftily, at unity in the voting booth and on the streets it exists because humans find safety in numbers. Youre allowed to think what you think, Anthony, but you cant police how others name themselves, especially when it costs you nothing to let them exist.In the end, our words gay, bi, trans, demi, sapio, whatever help us feel less alone. We can debate which ones belong, or just let people use their words and go about their lives. Go about your life, Anthony, and dont worry about demisexuals. Theyre not bothering you.Hey there! Im Alexander Cheves. Im a sex writer and former sex workerI worked in the business for over 12 years. You can read my sex-and-culture column Last Call in Out and my book My Love Is a Beast: Confessions, from Unbound Edition Press. But be warned: Kirkus Reviews says the book is "not for squeamish readers.In the past, I directed (ahem) adult videos and sold adult products. I have spoken about subjects like cruising, sexual health, and HIV at the International AIDS Conference, SXSW, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and elsewhere, and appeared on dozens of podcasts.Here, Im offering sex and relationship advice to Outs readers. Send your question to askbeastly@gmail.com it may get answered in a future post.

Is Billie Eilish the Bad Guy? I dont think so, honey!Eilish attended the 2025 WSJ Magazine Innovator Awards on Wednesday, Oct. 29, and was recognized for her contributions in music. During her acceptance speech, the 23-year-old pop star delivered a quite pointed speech calling out billionaires and some of them were even present at the event.Notably, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg attended the event, accompanying his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, who was an honoree just like Eilish. Zuckerberg is the fifth-richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of $228.3 billion, according to Forbes. Were in a time right now where the world is really, really bad and really dark, and people need empathy and help more than, kind of, ever, especially in our country, Eilish said in her speech. Id say if you have money, it would be great to use it for good things, maybe give it to some people that need it.The Oscar and Grammy winner added, Love you all, but theres a few people in here that have a lot more money than me. If youre a billionaire, why are you a billionaire? No hate, but yeah, give your money away, shorties. (@) Did Mark Zuckerberg and Dr. Priscilla Chan react to Billie Eilishs speech?According to People, Zuckerberg did not clap after Eilishs statement at least according to an eyewitness who was present at the event and spoke with the publication.Chan, who was also an honoree at the event for her contributions in philanthropy through the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, also delivered a speech.I cant believe they let science nerds like me into parties like this, Chan said in her acceptance speech. You have to believe that type of progress is possible. In the speech, Chan also compared her work at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative with treating a baby who was born with no immune system, the Wall Street Journal reports.Who were the other honorees at the 2025 Innovators Award? All honorees at the at the WSJ Magazine 2025 Innovator Awards. Billie Eilish at the center; Dr. Priscilla Chan at the end (L-R).Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for WSJ. Magazine Innovators AwardsBeyond Eilish (music) and Chan (philanthropy), honorees included Hermss Nadge Vanhe (fashion), Ben Stiller (entertainment), Spike Lee (film), Hailey Bieber (beauty), Spike Lee (film), as well as George Lucas and Mellody Hobson (design).

A report released this week from a group of political strategists and researchers states that the Democrats have lost their way. The Deciding To Win report from a group of legal organizations called Welcome claims that to win the next election, Democrats need to move towards the center and abandon progressive ideals, such as supporting LGBTQ+ people, fighting climate change, and protecting reproductive rights.Those issues are where Democrats are trusted more, but they tend to be less important to voters, writes Simon Bazelon, a Research Fellow with Welcome. Democrats should shift our stances on some lower-salience issues where our views are unpopular, including some cultural concerns (e.g., affirmative action in college admissions, transgender athletes). Related The 2024 election year may have made LGBTQ+ mental health worse Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today These suggestions are in line with the knee-jerk reaction to throw trans people under the bus that many pundits had in the wake of the presidents victory in 2024. Claims of the necessity to do so have been rebuked time and time again.Welcome started in 2021 as the WelcomePAC, established by Lauren Harper Pope and Liam Kerr. They led big tent campaigns in Ohio races, hoping to help Tim Ryan (D) defeat JD Vance (R) for Senate (which ultimately did not happen). They went on to found the nonprofits The Welcome Party and the Welcome Democracy Institute, the latter of which created Deciding To Win. The report is built on the analysis of election results, polls, academic papers, studies, and surveys conducted over the last year. Researchers blame out-of-touch donors and detached party elites for reshaping the Democratic party platform into one that ignores key economic issues that most Americans are engaged with, while pushing unpopular positions on a number of issues that are important to voters.Bazelon spoke with Voxs Eric Levits about the report this week. Levits quoted Bazelons report at him, pointing to a section where he says that the Democrats should stand against the president and Republicans but be disciplined and strategic in which fights we pick, and how we pick them, by focusing our opposition on issues where public support is most on our side. Levits asks whether that means letting the administrations actions- such as the forceful use of ICE and lack of due process for immigrants or the removal of trans people from the military slide, and only focusing on the economics of it all. There are absolutely trade-offs in politics, in your prioritization, Bazelon responds. Every tweet you send, every speech you give, every ad you run about one topic is a forfeited opportunity to speak about another topic. Every time the Democratic Party engages in political discourse, we are influencing voters perceptions of what we stand for and what we care about. And the reality is, yes, there are trade-offs, and if we want to win elections, then we need to show voters that we feel that issues like health care and the cost of living are the most important issues.Bazelon and his Deciding To Win report make it clear that if abandoning progressive values might provide a chance of winning an election, then those ideals should be discarded.The president campaigned heavily on anti-trans rhetoric, targeting trans athletes as a primary campaign element. After taking office, he was quick to issue executive orders that tried to define trans people out of existence. He has since pressured medical institutions to stop offering gender-affirming care, pushed schools and universities to roll back trans-inclusive policies, and advocated for trans people to be banned from playing sports on teams that align with their genders. If Democrats stray from defending trans rights, they could leave the floodgates open for further attacks on those rights.While Deciding To Win is based on surveys and polls about the perceptions of the Democratic party, those results might be skewed not by the Democrats actions, but by the successful propaganda produced by Republicans and right-wing pundits. Levits points out in his discussion with Bazelon that during the election, One poll suggested that about half of swing voters falsely believed that Kamala Harris supported defunding the police.Similarly, while there were concerns raised during the 2024 campaign that Democrats just wanted to talk about trans people, Republicans repeatedly raised anti-trans talking points, while Harris barely mentioned trans people at all. Deciding To Win claims the Democrats move towards progressive proposals has been happening since 2012, but it does not explain Bidens election win in that context. It also grudgingly acknowledges the success of left-wing progressive candidates: We have much to learn from the relentless focus of Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Zohran Mamdani on lowering the cost of living and expanding opportunity for the middle class. All three of those candidates have spoken in support of the LGBTQ+ community and trans rights. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Human Rights Campaign (@humanrightscampaign)Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

LGBTQ+ animation fans have always joked that Prince Adam, the alter ego of He-Man, was gay. He wore a pink shirt, baked for a hobby, and, as queer artist and designer David Mason Choplecki put it, He gets fabulous secret powers the day he draws out his sword. But in that interview, he adds, I wouldnt be surprised if these guys didnt know what they were doing, if they didnt have an agenda and they were just sort of making it.According to Erika Scheimer, the creatives at Filmation Associatesthe studio behind He-Man: Masters of the Universe and She-Ra: Princess of Powerindeed knew. Prince Adam was always designed as a soft prince, she told Mens Health in 2020, adding, It was a joke in the studio; everybody was saying, Prince Adam is gay. But this wasnt homophobiashe says many of Filmations artists were glad to see themselves on screen. Related Enjoy these 20 LGBTQ+ cartoonists who draw outside of the lines Scheimer is the daughter of Filmation co-founder Lou Scheimer. Since she was a little girl, she provided a number of voices for the studio, eventually becoming voice director for shows like He-Man and She-Ra. Its her voice you hear at the end of nearly every episode of She-Ra delivering the moral. And she is an out lesbian who describes Filmation as a wonderful stomping ground of life, filled with all sorts of characters, some of whom were gay. It was a very homey environment.Filmation was one of the gayest places in town, she said in a 2007 Prism Comics interview. Were talking about a bunch of artists here! Oh, my Godit was a hoot and a half! And in terms of tolerance and in terms of creative freeflow, there was no sense of shame around any of that. It absolutely was really a kind of safe haven. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Scheimer felt so accepted at home and at the studio that she came out very young. By the time I was twelve, I knew that I liked girls, too. I had feelings for girls and boys I grew up in a really wonderful environment that allowed me to feel all my feelings and not feel they were wrong.In 2011, she spoke more about her familys openness and how it translated into the studio. Growing up, my dad always taught me honesty was the best policy. So when it came up, I just thought, Why not? Im not ashamed of it and neither are my parents, she told Gay.net. Plus, there were a lot of talented gay people working at Filmation. Even my dad would probably say he was gay in another life. He loves everybody and hes always kissing on girls and boys alike.Thats what made Filmation shows, particularly He-Man and She-Ra, so popular in queer communities, Scheimer told Gay.net. She called She-Ra a great feminist thats appealing to all of us minorities out there.Women and gay people have to go through a lot, and we know what its like to be labeled and told you cant be one thing or another. I think She-Ra breaks that mold and she speaks to boys every bit as much as she does girls, she said. In the 2011 interview, Schiemer mentions that if She-Ra were made today, and if I had any say in it, we absolutely would introduce a gay character. The interview was long before the 2018 Netflix reboot created by transgender cartoonist ND Stevenson. That show was praised by critics for not just normalizing queer couples in a childrens show, but by building Adora (She-Ras alter-ego) and Catras relationship slowly and naturallya decision made, Stevenson said, that was made for a practical reason.My big fear was that I would show my hand too early and get told very definitively that I was not allowed to do this, he told Gizmodo in 2020. I sort of had a plan and it was like: If I can get them to this place where their relationship and that romance is central to the plot, and it cant be removed, cant be noted-out, or it cant be something thats cut later, then theyll have let me do it.Though Scheimer left the animation industry when Filmation closed in 1989, the mark she and all the others at the studio left is immense. Though they couldnt get away with making explicitly queer characters at the time, creatives like her made it obvious, even if it wasnt canon. And thanks to her and her colleagues, the childrens cartoon landscape is a lot queerer with shows like Steven Universe, Dead End: Paranormal Park, and OK K.O.! Lets Be Heroes.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) angrily shut down a right-wing reporter for spreading misinformation about funding for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. He then set the record straight that, as the shutdown continues, Republicans are refusing to release the available contingency funds that would help feed the millions of Americans who rely on the program. The reporter began asking about the so-called dispute over whether contingency funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) can be used to prevent SNAP benefits from lapsing, but Schumer interrupted to inform her there is no dispute. Related Riley Gaines tried to insult AOC. The congresswoman had the last laugh. Wait a minute. Excuse me. It is not a dispute, he said. It is fact they can use it, and the Republicans say it.He continued to push back against her claims that there isnt enough money available anyway, and declared, Theres enough money to start feeding people right away. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today $6 billion is a lot of money, and theyre using it for other things $20 billion for Argentina, hundreds of millions for Kristi Noems plane who are we kidding here?The bottom line is they can fund it just as in 2019, just as in other shutdowns, for a long period of time. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) then stepped up to the podium to add that if and when the contingency fund ran out, Congress could vote to pass one of two bills that have been proposed in the Senate to keep SNAP funding open as the shutdown continues, both of which she said would no doubt receive the 60 votes needed. Why arent they calling it up? Theyre not calling it up because the House isnt here to pass it. Thats the way it works. The House would have to come here. They probably would have to vote on the Epstein files. But theyre choosing to let kids go hungry instead of having to vote on the Epstein files. Theres no doubt about it. They have been out for six weeks on vacation.Schumer added, Just think if they have all this money for Argentina, and all this money for other things, they have enough money to keep funding SNAP, and they know it. Despite Republicans withholding contingency funds, the administration is blaming Democrats for the impending lapse in SNAP benefits, accusing them of refusing to reopen the federal government to fund the program because they are holding out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures.Over the weekend, a message appeared on the U.S. Department of Agricultures (USDA)websitewarning that amid the ongoing shutdown, SNAP benefits, which provide 1 in 8 Americans with monthly food assistance, will not be paid starting November 1. Senate Democrats have now voted 12 times to not fund the food stamp program, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the message reads. We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats. They can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance.As the shutdown stretches into its fifth week, Senate Democrats have indeed refused to throw their full weight behind a Republican-backed stopgap bill to reopen the government and fund it at previous levels through November 21. But contrary to the USDA message, Democrats are actually holding out for legislation extending federal subsidies that would prevent the cost of Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance plans from skyrocketing next year. Republicans, meanwhile, refuse to negotiate on those subsidies until Democrats agree to reopen the government.AsNPRreported Monday, an unsigned USDAmemothat began circulating on October 24 argues that the approximately $6 billion Congress has set aside in multi-year SNAP contingency funds cannot be used to fund the program during the shutdown. SNAP contingency funds are only available to supplement regular monthly benefits when amounts have been appropriated for, but are insufficient to cover, benefits. The contingency fund is not available to support FY 2026 regular benefits, because the appropriation for regular benefits no longer exists, the memo reads.But as NPR notes, the memo conflicts with the USDAs October 1 shutdown contingency plan.Congressional intent is evident that SNAPs operations should continue during a shutdown, read the plan, which has since been removed from the USDAs website. The multi-year SNAP contingency funds are also available to fund participant benefits in the event that a lapse occurs in the middle of the fiscal year, the plan stated.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Andy Cohen was the latest celebrity to appear on Alex Cooper's Call Her Daddy podcast and wasn't afraid to open up about his relationship with singer John Mayer. The two aren't dating, but over the last few years, they've formed an incredibly close friendship. When Cooper asked what a typical night with the "Gravity" singer looks like, Cohen says that they usually go to dinner, and they sit on the same side of the booth.The Bravo executive producer shared that he's not afraid to get touchy with his straight best friend. "As the night goes on, [I] find myself sinking into him because he'll have his arm around me. ... As a matter of fact, we were at the Sunset Tower [bar in West Hollywood] last week and I was getting so physical with him by the end that he was like, 'Andy,' but I was kind of using his body to tell a story about a guy, but then I was like, I was in my cups a little bit." He added, "We were in a puddle of laughter. It ends and we love each other deeply. We actually do." (@) Cooper then asked Cohen if he felt that he was secretly in love with Mayer, to which he responded, "I'm not secretly in love with him." But the podcast host didn't believe him, nudging him and saying, "You are." But he maintained, "No, we love each other. If I could find a gay guy that was him, it would be magic, but you know what? I am so grateful for the love that we have."Cohen also shared that he's actively dating and is on Grindr, Scruff, Raya, and Hinge. Some of the issues he runs into on these platforms is that either people don't believe that it's really him or just finding the time to do so with working and his kids. "I go on some dates. You know, I have kids, obviously, and so dating has really changed and I meet two kinds of people: people that I want to sleep with and people that I want to date," he said before he was asked by Cooper what he does to impress men on dates. "I wouldn't try to impress someone.... They would want to be with me or not. I don't want to be with some, you know, slurpy twink who's trying to, you know, be impressed."

A marathon city council meeting in Orange County, California, ended in the early hours of Thursday morning last week with a dramatic victory for free speech advocates.Right-wing city council member Mike Munzing, known among his opponents as MAGA Mike, lured a standing-room-only audience to council chambers Wednesday night with his proposal to ban all flags on city property in the town of Aliso Viejo, nestled just east of seaside Laguna Beach, with one exception: the American flag. Related California town wants to fight the state for the right to out trans kids to their parents Munzings main target in the proposed ban: the Pride flag. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today At the proposals introduction, the MAGA loyalist was joined by two other far-right members on the five-person council in support. By the end of the six-hour meeting, MAGA Mikes Pride flag ban was literally in tatters: Munzing himself shredded the document in a fit of red-faced rage.Over several hours of testimony extending well past midnight, 164 people spoke in opposition to the proposal, eviscerating Munzing and his allies as mean, small, ignorant, and pathetic.Just 13 speakers expressed their support.Speakers included Chris Kluwe, the onetime Vikings punter and Orange County resident whos made a name for himself as a fierce warrior for equality and same-sex marriage.This is not what Americas about. We have a president that is proclaiming executive orders trying to erase trans people from existence, and you say that the American flag includes everyone, Kluwe told the council. For over 100 years, the American flag stood for slavery, and we had a war to fix that. For 90 years after that, it stood for segregation, and people took to the streets to get rid of that.I do not want the American flag to stand for hatred and discrimination, and flying the Pride flag shows people that we understand that, Kluwe said in his speech. View on ThreadsAliso Viejo resident Jeff was unsparing in his description of Munzing, who watched alternately bemused, stoic, and blushing from his podium chair.Munzing, he said, doesnt get how mean this is. But the meanness is 100% the point. The meanness is everything to you. You revel in it, you lather in it. And I know how you love this packed room. And I know you love how everyone is here to see this. Its like a carnival for you, he told Munzing.But you look small. Im looking at you, and you look small and ignorant and pathetic.Munzing has turned the American flag into a MAGA infomercial, Jeff said. You know what this is, and you f*ckin love it. View on ThreadsOrange County resident Noelle Carney Campbell applauded Also Viejo Mayor Tiffany Ackley for the freaking amazing moment of this night, when she disassembled Munzings proposal for its sloppy moral and legal arguments. She said they would open the small city to legal challenges like those in neighboring Huntington Beach, which has been overwhelmed with lawsuits challenging the beach citys MAGA-majority town council. @missnoellealways Banning the Pride Flag is WRONG!!! So proud to look MAGA Mike Munzing in the eyes at the Aliso Viejo City Council Meeting and remind him of LGBTQ history and that we are not going anywhere!!! #pride #alisoviejo original sound Noelle Carney Campbell The meeting was halted halfway through so Munzing and the city attorney could clean up the proposals careless language, including a definition of what a flag actually is and clarifying that the ban didnt apply to any flag flown anywhere by anyone in the city.In a summary of the nights events, Campbell said the council members pushing for the flag ban complained that speakers in opposition had hate in their hearts.It was a very white-men-victim-mansplaining-mentality, she said. It was pretty gross.The proposal, Campbell told Munzing in her own statement, makes you look insecure and weak, and like someone who spends an uncomfortable amount of time thinking about gay people.The ultimate victim at the carnival hed assembled was Munzing himself, who finally spoke at 12:45 in the morning. In a fit of rage, MAGA Mike ripped up the revised proposal to cheers and a standing ovation. The flag ban was voted down 5-0.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Adults hive rise! The hit comedy series from FX is coming back for season two. Earlier today, FX and Hulu announced that the Nick Kroll-executive produced series starring Malik Elassal, Out 100 honoree Owen Thiele, Lucy Freyer, Jack Innanen, and Amita Rao, was just renewed for a second season.The critically acclaimed series follows a group of 20-somethings as they navigate adulthood while living under one roof in Queens, New York. After the first season premiered, the program became a hit on social media, with people falling in love with the queer cliffhanger between Thiele and Innanen's characters, prompting a flood of fan cams and calls for season 2. Now, those fans can rest easy knowing a new set of episodes is on the way.Kate Lambert, executive vice president of development at FX Entertainment, made the announcement earlier today and released a statement about the show's future, praising its creators, Ben Kronengold and Rebecca Shaw. "Ben and Rebecca are incredibly talented writers, and they have expertly and hilariously captured the experience of being a young adult in todays world," the exec said. "The entire castMalik, Lucy, Jack, Amita, and Owenis exceptional in bringing it to life in a way that has truly connected with its audience. The cast put together a season 2 announcement video addressing fans demands for another season, which flooded the show's social media posts over the past few months.

This story is brought to you by our partners at MIX NYC.In 1987, when mainstream film festivals ignored queer stories and LGBTQ+ festivals avoided avant garde work, Sarah Schulman and Jim Hubbard created a space for both. Their New York Lesbian and Gay Experimental Film Festival, now known as MIX NYC, was built on the idea that queer art deserves freedom, visibility, and experimentation.Held at the Millennium Film Workshop in the East Village, that first event, A Queer Sort of Film, became a cultural spark. With help from curators Jack Waters, Peter Cramer, and Ela Troyano, the festival gave a stage to artists confronting censorship and the AIDS crisis.Breaking Boundaries from the StartFrom its earliest days, MIX operated like no other festival. Schulman and Hubbard paid all artists equally, welcomed everyone regardless of ability to pay, and presented the first program devoted to films by Black gay men. Early screenings included works by Maria Maggenti and a rough cut of Jennie Livingstons Paris Is Burning.As the AIDS epidemic devastated the community, Hubbard began preserving queer film, ultimately archiving more than 2,000 hours of AIDS-related footage now held by the New York Public Library.Expanding Queer VisionIn the 1990s, Shari Frilot and Karim Anouz moved MIX to The Kitchen and turned screenings into multisensory experiences. Programs like The 1000 Dreams of Desire and Cyberqueer explored sexuality and technology as art forms. The festival expanded globally through MIX Brasil and MIX Mexico.In 1996, its tenth anniversary brought MIX to Harlems Victoria Theater-the first queer film festival ever held there-featuring work by Marlon Riggs, Cheryl Dunye, and Isaac Julien, alongside ballroom events hosted by the House of Latex Project.The Warehouse Years and BeyondBy the 2000s, MIX transformed empty industrial spaces into queer art zones under director Stephen Kent Jusick. The festival fused film, performance, and community gathering.After a short pause, MIX resurfaced following the pandemic. In 2024, Blake Pruitt and Alex Smith revived the festival with the support of former directors Stephen Winter and Jim Hubbard with One Night Stands, a series of experimental screenings, leading up to a full-scale return.Nearly four decades later, MIX NYC remains a living archive of queer imagination, pushing cinema, identity, and performance beyond convention.

If you ask this podcast host and former Elon Musk lackey, Ivy League graduate and employee of multiple presidential administrations Karine Jean-Pierre somehow wasn't qualified for her job as White House press secretary. Katie Miller, wife of White House deputy chief of staff for policy and U.S. homeland security advisor Stephen Miller, has claimed that Jean-Pierre was supposedly a diversity, equity, and inclusion hire. Miller said in a recent appearance on CNN with host Jake Tapper that Jean-Pierre is "quite incompetent to do the job," citing not anything specific related to her performance only her race and sexual orientation."This is what Republicans have been saying for years now, she is just another evidence that DEI doesn't work, whether that's, you know, an air traffic controller, an air pilot, whether that's your doctor," Miller said. "You know, you want to hire the best for the role, not just based on skin color."Related: Karine Jean-Pierre explains why her new memoir, Independent, is a manifesto for a fractured democracyJean-Pierre has a masters degree in public affairs from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. She also previously served as the White Houses political director for the Office of Political Affairs under President Barack Obama, as well as chief of staff for Vice President Kamala Harris.Former Hillary Clinton spokesperson, Karen Finney, shot back at Miller, asking why she considers Jean-Pierre "DEI" but not current White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. Leavitt's previous experience includes serving as assistant press secretary for just one year of Donald Trump's first term, then a failed congressional campaign in New Hampshire."Why are we assuming that [Jean-Pierre], as a Black LGBTQ woman is DEI, but a white woman who is behind the podium right now which DEI initially started as affirmative action, which was about affirmatively hiring women and minorities why is one DEI and the other is not?" Finney asked.Miller responded, "Why is she trained every four sentences to say she is a Black, queer, LGBTQ woman? Because that's how she's been promoted her entire career."Related: What is DEI, what does it mean, and why are companies really getting rid of it? Jean-Pierre, who was the first Black, immigrant, and out LGBTQ+ person to serve as White House press secretary, told The Advocate last year that Its not lost on me what my presence at the podium behind that lectern means ... it is incredibly a heavy weight that I understand is important to carry with respect and understanding,Representation matters and it is important to have that representation, but showing up also matters," Jean-Pierre said. "Showing up for myself, showing up for my colleagues, showing up for little boys and girls, young people who are trying to figure out who they are and looking at me and saying, well, maybe I can do this even if they feel unsafe."I feel like I have to be who I am unapologetically," she added. "I cannot think about what people think about me; it is their problem, not mine if theyre uncomfortable with the space that I occupy."

Kim Kardashian has admitted that she likes to send her All's Fair castmates conspiracy theories, but the latest conspiracy is truly out of this world.In a new episode of The Kardashians on Hulu, Kardashian tries to convince her All's Fair costar Sarah Paulson that the moon landing never happened."I'm sending you a million interviews with Buzz Aldrin and the other one," Kardashian tells Paulson in between shooting the new lawyer show, which also stars Glenn Close, Naomi Watts, Teyana Taylor, and Out100 Icon of the Year Niecy Nash-Betts."This girl asks, 'What was the scariest moment?' and he goes, 'There was no scary moment 'cause it didn't happen. It could have been scary, but it wasn't, 'cause it didn't happen.'"Kardashian explains that in his old age, Aldrin's speech has "slurred" and he's started saying things he shouldn't admit. "So I think it didn't happen," she adds."I'm going to go on a massive deep dive," Paulson assures her."I send her conspiracies all the time," Kardashian says.Later, when the cast is breaking for food, a producer asks Kardashian if she really believes humans have never walked on the moon. "I don't think we did. I think it was fake," she responds.Kardashian goes on to say she's seen "a few videos" featuring astronaut Buzz Aldrin in which he admits the moon landing was faked."Why does Buzz Aldrin say it didn't happen? There's no gravity on the moon. Why is the flag blowing?" She asks."The shoes that they have in the museum that they wore on the moon is a different print in the photos. Why are there no stars?"The producer then asks how she thinks the public will react to this news."They're gonna say I'm crazy no matter what," Kardashian says confidently. "But go to TikTok, see for yourself."The clip Kardashian mentions, where Aldrin says the moon landing "didn't happen," is actually a clip in which Aldrin is asked what the scariest moment was during the mission, and he replies that a scary moment "didn't happen."

One of the first performers ever to read to kids at a Drag Queen Story Hour event has been named San Franciscos new Drag Laureate. As the San Francisco Chronicle notes, performer and educator Per Sia is also the first transgender woman to be appointed to the role.Im visibly trans, Im brown, Im Mexican, Im a product of immigrant parents. Im also an educator who works with kids, and Im a drag performer, Per Sia told the paper ahead of the Wednesday announcement, adding that Everything that is me is on the line in the current political climate. Related San Francisco names DArcy Drollinger the nations first-ever drag laureate Per Sia takes over as the citys second Drag Laureate, following LGBTQ+ nightclub owner and performer DArcy Drollinger. The role was created in 2023 by the office of former Mayor London Breed in conjunction with the citys Human Rights Commission and the San Francisco Public Library, which also oversees the citys poet laureate position.According to the Chronicle, the San Francisco Drag Laureates term was originally intended to last 18 months and came with a $55,000 stipend, funded by the library. Drollingers term ultimately lasted two and a half years. The role will now last three years and comes with a $35,000 stipend. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today As drag laureate, Per Sias duties will include participating in San Franciscos Pride celebrations, acting as a spokesperson for the citys LGBTQ+ community, and promoting the art of drag in the city.As San Franciscos Drag Laureate, Per Sia will lead the way for new representation that uplifts and highlights the storied drag history of our city and the significant contributions of the trans and entire LGBTQ+ community to San Francisco, current mayor Daniel Lurie said, according to the Chronicle. Our city is known all over the world as a place where people are allowed to be who they want to be, love who they want to love, and live the lives they choose without fear of persecution. Drollinger, who was part of the selection committee to find the citys second Drag Laureate, noted the significance of Lurie choosing Per Sia for the role.I think it is a bold message, selecting a trans woman of color who is also a drag performer and works with children, Drollinger told the Chronicle. All those things are scary to the right wing, but it shows that San Francisco is not catering to those people.There is no city like San Francisco, Per Sia said during Wednesdays announcement of her selection at Rooftop School, where she has worked as the head teacher for the first grade at Childrens After School Arts (CASA) for over a decade. Despite the current chaos of the world, I promise you this: I will keep bringing my joy, my brown joy, my queer joy, all the joy! View this post on Instagram A post shared by San Francisco Public Library (@sfpubliclibrary) It felt really important to have the announcement at Rooftop to have my students, friends and supporters there, Per Sia told the Chronicle. Ive been working at CASA since my mid 20s. Theyve seen me from being this young queer person to then transitioning and becoming who I am now.Per Sia said that participating in the first Drag Queen Story Hour at San Franciscos Eureka Valley / Harvey Milk Memorial Branch Library in 2015 was her first experience of merging my nightlife, my drag life, with my classroom life.I felt very exposed and vulnerable, but I remember leaving the Eureka branch library and feeling a sense of relief that I was no longer hiding, that everything I do was in one room. It was kind of like coming out, she told the Chronicle. Per Sia said she intends to use her platform as drag laureate to promote literacy and fight against censorship. I realized during those really heightened times of anti-drag sentiment that I dont know at what age we forget that we like to be read to, she said. Childrens books are so simple, and yet theyre so important because they teach you about self-acceptance, love, and empathy, and thats universal.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.