On Friday, July 30th, New Zealand’s ruling party introduced a bill that would make conversion therapy (the process of trying to change one’s sexual orientation because it’s believed to be “wrong”) illegal. The nation is going a step further and is even aiming to make the practice punishable by up to five years in prison. According to The Washington Post, Kris Faafoi, New Zealand’s justice minister, stated, “Conversion practices have no place in modern New Zealand. They are based on the false belief that any person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression is broken and in need of fixing.”…
Author: Keith Langston
The international Imperial Court System (IICS) is teaming up with the National LGBTQ Task Force to launch a campaign asking the United States Postal Service to collaborate in creating a new stamp collection that will honor LGBTQ heroes like Bayard Rustin, Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and José Julio Sarria. The IICS and National Taskforce previously joined forced back in 2014 to call upon President Obama to commemorate the life and work of Harvey Milk by issuing a commemorative stamp in his honor. The campaign was a success and the White House unveiled the stamp on what would have been…
Today, the onePULSE Foundation, which was created in memory of those who lost their lives in the 2016 shooting, has announced that they have created 49 scholarships – one in honor of each victim – that will be given to students who are looking to pursue higher education. They can be used in universities, in career studies, and technical colleges. Each scholarship is dedicated to the passions and interests of each of the victims. Scholarships are available for a wide range of studies including, nursing, business, cosmetology, journalism, education, and many that are open to any area of study. The…
Palm Spring’s historic INNdulge gay resort is currently for sale. The property has been listed on LoopNet for $10,800,000. The 31-room resort also has a gorgeous courtyard, large pool, manicured grounds, and stunning views of the nearby San Jacinto Mountains. Jon Jackson, the resort’s current owner, has also made it clear that they want the new owners to keep the resort an LGBTQ property. They have also stated that they’ve spent the last decade investing in renovations, creating a balance of modern luxury with retro style. This could be a great opportunity to purchase a resort hotel at a discount.…
On Thursday, January 21st, the FDA approved a new drug treatment to help those who are infected with HIV. Rather than taking a daily pill, the new regimen involves getting 2 shots, once a month. The shots in question are Cabotogravir and Rilpivirine, which together create the treatment called Cabenuva. Cabenuva is expected to greatly help those with HIV. Not only will it make it easier for patients to not miss their doses, but it’s better for their mental health, as they’re not reminded about HIV on a daily basis, nor do they need to go to a pharmacy to…
A political action group made up of artists has decided to cover Cleveland with billboards featuring Trump quotes prior to tonight’s debates. The billboards are part of the Remember What They Did, #VoteThemOut campaign, aimed at getting Americans to remember the atrocities of the Trump administration. https://twitter.com/KaylaEpstein/status/1310961312298676224 Some of the billboards feature Trump’s notorious comments about the COVID-19 pandemic, including “…that’s going to sort of just disappear, I hope.” Others remind residents of his comments during the BLM uprising in June, where he stated, “When the looting starts, the shooting starts.” Another, a projection onto the side of a building,…
Over the weekend, at the New York installation of DragCon, RuPaul had a very special announcement to make at the ribbon-cutting ceremony Saturday morning: Drag Race is becoming a live spectacle and will be housed within the historic and flamboyant Flamingo Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The show will feature a rotating cast of some of Drag Race’s biggest Queens, including, Aquaria, Kim Chi, Kameron Michaels, Asia O’Hara, and more. The performances begin January 2020, and pre-sale tickets go on sale tomorrow, September 10th at Drag Race Live, and a traditional pre-sale begins on Ticketmaster the following day, September,…
AIDS Walk New York, one of the largest fundraisers of the year, won’t be stopping for the pandemic. This year, on June 7th, at 10 am ET, the event will commence online with AIDS Walk From Home! The event will be star-studded with surprise celebrity guests, special performances, and even a live DJ set so you can dance the day away in your PJs. This year, supporting the AIDS Walk and Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC) is more important than ever. GMHC has begun partaking in emergency COVID-19 efforts to help the community, especially those suffering from HIV and AIDS.…
The Grammy-nominated singer, Rufus Wainwright, has had a big year. His new album Unfollow the Rules has garnered the singer yet another Grammy nomination, and he’s appeared on James Corden, Jimmy Kimmel, and Jimmy Fallon. Now, he’s launched an online series called Rufus-Retro-Wainwright-Spective! 2021. It is a multi-show event series with Wainwright performing a virtual live-stream tour through all 9 of his studio albums. Each episode even includes a celebrity audience. Among those joining Wainwright for the performances are Zach Galifianakis, James Corden, and more. When speaking of the events, Wainwright stated, “I was reluctant at first to take a look…
On Sunday night, Pete Buttigieg dropped out of the presidential race. After winning the Iowa Primary, and coming in a close second in New Hampshire, Buttigieg’s numbers quickly dropped when primaries in more diverse states took place. In Nevada, he picked up only 14.3% of the vote, and in South Carolina, he only picked up 8.2% of the vote. His lacking numbers are believed to be the cause of his dropping out, as well as a campaign that was understaffed. With Super Tuesday around the corner, it was becoming more and more apparent to Buttigieg and his campaign that there…
To celebrate Gay Pride Week in the Finnish capital of Helsinki, Burger King has launched a new ad that features The King and Ronald McDonald kissing. A caption of the bottom of the ad reads, “Love Conquers All.” The head of Burger King’s Finnish marketing divison, Kaisa Kasila, stated, “Burger King has always stood for equality, love and everyone’s right to be just the way they are.” The ad was designed to show that The King is even willing to show love to his biggest competitor, Ronald McDonald. https://twitter.com/fer_machado123/status/1304040445866053635 Fer Machado, the Marketing Director for RBI (the company that runs…
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just approved an injectable form of “PrEP.” Currently, PrEP is taken orally and known by brand names Truvada and Descovy, among others. According to The Washington Post, which cited the CDC, oral PrEP is up to 99% effective when taken daily, but its efficacy drops when intake becomes sporadic or patients begin missing doses. The new injectable form of PrEP, which goes by the name of Apretude, seeks to solve this problem by becoming a bi-monthly injection. To start, patients will get two shots, one month apart. After that, patients will…
Released in 2019, the book Gender Queer has become a lightning rod for controversy in America. The illustrated novel by Maia Kobabe talks about their experiences wrestling with and discovering their true self, while questioning gender and not fitting into the binary of gender. Recently, however, the book has gained ample amounts of controversy. The debate began because a few of the book’s illustrations depict teenagers engaging in sexual acts (the book is written for teenagers) and others make references to sexual fantasies. Confusingly, a page discussing the author struggling with their first period also became part of the debate,…
Molly Solomon, the president of NBC Olympics Production, raised a few eyebrow recently when she hinted that NBC would have an obligation to address China’s current human rights violations, especially its treatment of the Uyghur Muslims. According to Deadline, Solomon said: “Our coverage will provide perspective on China’s place in the world and the geopolitical context in which these Games are being held. But the athletes do remain the centerpiece of our coverage.” Naturally, none of this sounds too inflammatory. But it’s important to remember the context in which China views the world. Any slight misstep can be seen as…
OREO has just launched a new campaign in support of the LGBTQ community during LGBTQ History Month. According to Delish, OREO and PFLAG partnered up to create a campaign that would inspire parents to feel proud of their LGBTQ children and loved ones. To launch the campaign, OREO released a new short film, called Proud Parent. Without revealing too much, the film explores the relationship between a daughter and her father. You can watch it below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpfLklSG2dQ On top of the new film, OREO has also created a limited-edition collection of rainbow cookies. However, these cookies will not be sold…
In a new lawsuit, Jamii Erway describes the horrific situation she faced at the Raleigh Durham airport back in 2019 when she was the victim of a ‘false positive’ result at the TSA security checkpoint. At the time, Erway, who is transgender, was just 15 years old. Due to the flagging, TSA told her that in order to enter the terminal, she’d have to undergo a strip search and genital search. According to The News and Observer, “A 2019 ProPublica report examined the TSA’s civil rights complaints over a three-year period and found that 5%, or 298 complaints, involved transgender…
UPDATE (March 4, 2020) This just in from the Wahington Blade! U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Wednesday released from its custody a Washington Blade contributor from Cuba who won asylum in the U.S. The Board of Immigration Appeals, which is overseen by the Department of Justice, on Feb. 28 dismissed an appeal of Judge Timothy Cole’s ruling that granted Yariel Valdés González asylum last September. Thanks to everyone who worked to secure the release of Yariel Valdés González! ——————————————— Background report published in February 2020. The Washington Blade is renowned as one of America’s leading sources for LGBTQ news.…
According to the US Mint, the American Women Quarters Program is, “a four-year program that celebrates the accomplishments and contributions made by women to the development and history of our country.” It will run for four years, celebrating a new group of women each year. 2022 will be the inaugural launch of the campaign, and the original lineup of women selected to be honored are: Maya Angelou – celebrated writer, performer, and social activist Dr. Sally Ride – physicist, astronaut, educator, and the first American woman in space Wilma Mankiller – first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation Nina…
Actor, singer, and queer legend, Alan Cumming is launching a new series of online cabaret shows starting October 14th on the streaming platform, Stellar. His online cabaret venue Club Cumming will be hosting a cavalcade of talented performers, like Sharon Needles, Judy Gold, Catherine Cohen, and more. Performance highlights include: Cabernet Cabaret, with Cat Cohen – a night of comedy and music. Bette, Bathhouse, and Beyond – A hilarious reproduction of Bette Midler’s notorious 1971 concert at the gay Continental Baths on New York City’s Upper West Side. Mask It or Casket – A special Halloween variety show by RuPaul’s…
The Stonewall National Museum and Archives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida is believed to be the largest LGBTQ library in the world. The archive is made up of more than six million pages of LGBTQ history. If all the books were stacked up on top of each other, they would equal the height of two Empire State Buildings. However, the Stonewall National Museum and Archives also understands the critical need to enter the digital age and create an online database that can be accessed by anyone, anywhere. Hence how the new In Plain Sight exhibit was born. https://www.stonewallnma.orgThe digital exhibit can…
At midnight, on April 1st, 2001, The Netherlands wed four gay couples, officially legalizing gay marriage in the country. The Netherlands was the first nation in the world to legalize gay marriage. Since then, 28 other countries have legalized gay marriage, including Belgium in ’03, Norway and Sweden in ’09, the USA in 2015, Australia in 2017, Taiwan in 2019, and Costa Rica in 2020. Now, NBC News reports that Gert Kasteel and Dolf Pasker, one of the couples to get married 20 years ago, are looking back on the monumental moment. And according to the news site, they’re not the…
Club Cumming, the popular East Village lounge founded by the legendary Alan Cumming himself, will be opening “Club Cumming on the Coast” in Kennebunkport, Maine this summer. The seaside village is home to intimate resorts, stunning ocean views, and endless acres of New England charm. This summer though, Club Cumming will be turning the town into a red hot piano bar and cabaret. The Manhattan lounge is famous for its Broadway singers, jazz bands, drag performances, burlesque shows, and more. Now, the troupe will bring all that excitement to the Maine Coast. Anchored at the Kennebunkport Inn, the show will…
Lance Bass, famous for his time in the hit sensation *NSYNC, has really come into his own in recent years. He publicly came out 15 years ago and has since dabbled in many projects spanning film, music, and television. Most recently, Bass guest-hosted the new summer guilty please, Bachelor in Paradise, and he told Variety that he loved it. In an interview with the publication, he stated, “If you want the most dramatic season ever, do an LGBT version. I think maybe it’s the time for ‘The Bachelor’ to do a gay Bachelor. I think that would be so much fun…And I…
The political circus created by Florida Republicans continues to get wilder and more pathetic by the day. Last year, the state banned teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) in schools, despite the fact that it wasn’t actually taught in them. Now, the state is going to the next level by passing a bill that bans the teaching of historical facts if it makes people “uncomfortable.” Even more despicable is that this ban isn’t just for schools, but also applies to the workplace as well, meaning that both children and adults can simply claim to feel “discomfort” when being educated about slavery,…
The United Kingdom has just expanded Turing’s Law, a measure that seeks to pardon LGBTQ people who were convicted of archaic crimes, largely aimed at gay men who were convicted under sodomy laws. According to NBC News, gay sex was legalized in the UK in 1967, but the age of consent was kept higher (at 21 years of age) for gay men than for heterosexuals (which was 16 years of age) all the way until 2001. This means that someone who was 25 or 26 could have been convicted of pedophilia for having sex with someone who was 20 years…
From April 26 to 28, the Lexus Culinary Classic will return to the historic Cavallo Point resort in San Francisco. The weekend is going to be filled with great food, wine, and excursions! Now in its fifth year, the event has an exciting lineup of guest chefs and culinary experts. Throughout the weekend guests will be treated to a schedule of exclusive events with highlights including a welcome dinner and reception, multiple cooking demonstrations, uniquely prepared meals, a class on wine blending, and the grande finale, the Lexus Grand Tasting, where some of America’s finest wineries will come together for a…
Canada’s women’s soccer team will be heading for the final match against Sweden on Friday, August 6th. Not only was this a monumental win because Canada beat the US team (which was favored to win) but also because one of the teammates on Canada’s team is trans. Quinn, who plays midfielder for the Canadian team, came out last year and began using they/them pronouns. Because Canada is moving on to the final game, it means the team is assured at least a Silver medal, and if they win, they’ll be awarded the coveted Gold medal. This means that regardless of…
United Airlines has announced that it’s entering a partnership with CLEAR, the biometrics security company that lets you skip the TSA security line with the swipe of a finger. CLEAR is available at over 60 airports throughout America, including cities like Detroit, Dallas, and Phoenix. To determine how beneficial CLEAR will be to you, look into whether it’s at your home airport, or the airports that you travel to often. If you’re on the fence about buying a yearly subscription to CLEAR, which is $179, then perhaps receiving a discounted price through your airline could help sweeten the deal. Depending…
Airbnb is holding a contest where you can spend the night inside the famous Parisian museum, The Louvre. Yep, you heard that correctly. The Louvre. So, what does this night of magic and wonder entail? You might want to sit down for this one, because it’s nuts… Your night will begin with an aperitif served right in front of the Mona Lisa Drink with the Mona Lisa (Photo ©Julian Abrams courtesy of Airbnb) Following your drinks, you’ll be served a delicious meal in a pop-up dining room with the Venus of Milo. Your dinner will be inspired by Venus herself,…
A new organically-made soda brand, Mixwell, isn’t shying away from showing its values. In their new ad, they blatantly make fun of the MAGA crowd by starting their commercial with a burly man in a truck complaining about needing to make America more manly again. The ad finishes by revealing that the man has a husband, and the two then embrace for a long kiss. The spot concludes with the words “If Real Freedom Offends You, Please Don’t Buy Mixwell.” The ad is quick, witty, fearless, and completely hilarious. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7esCe-LhtSY&t=60s The commercial very clearly mocks Trump-era America, which has…