Liquor brand Jägermeister has heralded a campaign throughout the pandemic called the Save the Night Initiative, which has been dedicated to helping keep local bars open during the pandemic. And upon hearing the news that only 15 lesbian bars remain in the US (and that the pandemic is seriously threatening their livelihood), Jägermeister has vowed to extend their campaign by including the Lesbian Bar Project to the lineup. The project is dedicated to educating people about the importance of lesbian bars, preserving their history, and fighting to keep the last remaining ones open for future generations. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qW2db4HuqA&feature=emb_logo The campaign released…
Author: Keith Langston
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 world went wild after Bernie Sanders attended President Biden’s inauguration in what many are calling a stunning “grumpy chic” look. But what some don’t realize is that his outfit was also very much a local celebration of his home state. His jacket is Burton, which is based in Burlington, and his mittens are handmade by a LGBTQ woman named Jen Ellis. Ellis lives in Essex Junction, Vermont, and made the mittens as a gift for Sanders back in 2016. On Twitter, Ellis revealed that the mittens are made from repurposed wool sweaters and fleece made from recycled plastic bottles.…
Two gay men were arrested on a beach in Tulum, Quintana Roo, not far from the tourist hotspots of Cozumel and Playa del Carmen in Mexico. Shortly after being handcuffed, a large crowd gathered around the men and the police, voicing their displeasure with the blatant homophobia being perpetrated by the police officers. The police claimed that they received a call that the men were partaking in “immoral acts” and that they were spotted performing oral sex on each other. The nearby beachgoers all denied this, saying that none of them had noticed them having any form of sex. As…
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,…
Fashion retailer, Banana Republic, has launched a new line of Pride-inspired pieces to coincide with June, which is the official month of Pride. Banana Republic’s sister brand, Gap, has also launched a pride collection, but the two are quite different. Gap’s collection uses bright colors, bold patterns, and has an overall youthful glow. Banana Republic’s collection on the other hand has a more mature and refined look. Comfy, muted tones combine with the occasional splash of color to create pieces that are perfect for not just Pride month, but year-round. The collection includes t-shirts, sweaters, hoodies, athletic wear, and even…
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced today that Twitter will be banning all political ads, globally. In true twitter form, the announcement came via tweet. In it, Dorsey stated: https://twitter.com/jack/status/1189634360472829952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1189634360472829952&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2019%2F10%2F30%2Ftechnology%2Ftwitter-political-ads-ban.html For anyone out there wondering why this is, here is a great example. Political ads can come in various forms. Political ads can be harmless, such as this ad by Elizabeth Warren: But political ads can also be extremely divisive, offensive, hurtful, and untrue. Here’s an advertisement that has recently popped up on a popular movie website. Many say that allowing ads like this to be spread around the country, simply…
We’ve all heard the story of those pivotal events that took place at a New York City gay bar in the summer of 1969. What you might not know is the surprising events that took place after the notorious Stonewall Riots. As you can imagine, shortly after the riots the Stonewall was closed. A mafia-owned bar that was home to an uprising against cops wasn’t bound to last long. Flash forward fifty years to the present day. I’m standing in Christopher Park with three members from the National Parks Conservation Association. It’s pouring rain and I’m completely soaked because I…
According to NBC News, this year, 77 commercials will air during the Super Bowl, bringing in a whopping $400 million dollars in profit for FOX. The Super Bowl is the most expensive time-slot of the entire year, with each commercial costing companies millions of dollars. But this year, a new trend is taking place in a very unlikely space…Inclusivity at the Super Bowl. That’s right, this year’s commercials are filled with LGBTQ personalities and famous females. Here are eight #superbowl commercials you’ll must see! SABRA HUMMUS Starring Miz Cracker and Kim Chi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ex5xnVm2po RuPaul’s Drag Race alumni Miz Cracker…
One of the most anticipated films of the holiday season is West Side Story. The Disney-backed, Spielberg-directed powerhouse is already getting massive Oscar buzz. However, in the Arab world, the movie has caused intense backlash and has since been banned in numerous countries. The nations of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, and Kuwait have all banned the new adaptation of West Side Story from screening due to its portrayal of a transgender character. The character in question is Anybodys. In the original film, Anybodys was a tomboy who often hung around the Jets. In more recent years, as…
When Brody Neville came out to his friends, many of them stopped talking to him. The young Calgary resident was left with only two friends, one of whom had a homophobic father who forbids her to see Brody often. With an upcoming birthday, his mother feared that his birthday party would be ruined. According to the CBC, she stated, “I was asking him what he wanted to do for his birthday and he was in tears and said since he came out as gay he lost all his friends, so he didn’t even have people who could come.” She put…
Singer and songwriter Cody Belew shot to fame after making it to the Top 8 of the popular singing competition show, The Voice. Since then, he’s become a seasoned performer and passionate advocate for LGBTQ equality. Belew, who is gay, also just launched a new country Christmas song titled ‘Hang Your Hat On My Christmas Tree’, which is set to be used in Paramount’s new LGBTQ holiday film, Dashing in December. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWeCkrg8VUU The film, which will simulcast on Paramount Network, TV Land, POP, and Logo on Sunday, December 13th, takes the classic holiday chick flick and turns it upside by…
Mike Pence’s trip to Europe hasn’t been going quite as planned. A few days ago, Pence visited Iceland’s capital of Reykjavik and was met with an overflowing sense of diversity and inclusion—two things that Mike Pence hates most. The tech company Advania decided to “celebrate diversity that day,” and flew rainbow flags in front of their office. The headquarters for Efling trade union followed suit, as did many other organizations throughout the city. In fact, flags were even being flown in front of Hofdi House, where Ronald Reagan famously visited in the 80’s. To really top it off, Iceland’s president…
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.…
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…
Suburban Toronto has a new bus taking residents to wherever they need to go… it’s a giant pink bus, with images of famous LGBTQ Canadians on its side. Inside, the bus is filled with facts, information cards, and words of encouragement, all meant to educate people on the LGBTQ community, as well as to inspire LGBTQ riders to feel comfortable being themselves. https://twitter.com/blogTO/status/1145470835018350593 The idea for the bus began with the nonprofit LoveisLoveisLove, after famed Canadian philanthropist Kathryn E. Langley Hope gave the organization a hefty donation to make it happen. The goal was to operate the bus during Pride…
The current season of Jeopardy! has become known as the season of “Super Champions” since four contestants have already gone on to have impressive winning streaks. But it’s also become the season of LGBTQ Jeopardy! champions. First off was Amy Schnieder, who became the highest-earning female contestant in Jeopardy! history. Now, a new champion has entered the race to potentially become the top winner this season: a 23-year-old from Canada named Mattea Roach. Mattea is openly a lesbian and even says so on her Twitter profile. So far she’s won 14 games and has amassed $320,081 in winnings. Jeopardy! contestant…
Social media superstar and winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, Trixie Mattel, is going into the hotelier business by opening up her own cheeky property in the gay mecca of Palm Springs, California. The hotel is named Trixie Motel (a play on her own name) and is set to open later this year. Mattel reportedly purchased the property for around $2.4 million (not including renovation costs). During the renovation process of the motel, Trixie Mattel struck a deal with Discovery+ to create an 8-episode reality series that chronicles the property’s redesign. Joining Trixie for the journey will be a…
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…
On Thursday, the New York City Council claimed to make a tough decision: They decided to put forward legislation that would reverse the city’s ban on gay conversion therapy. What are they thinking? This is a decision based on fear, and the law must not be repealed. So why would NYC want to allow gay conversion therapy? As the New York Times puts it, “The City Council fears that if a federal lawsuit challenging the ban were to reach the Supreme Court, the panel could issue a ruling that protected the practice.” In essence, the City Council is worried about…
At last night’s Oscars celebration, Ariana DeBose made history by becoming the first queer woman of color to win an Academy Award. DeBose won Best Supporting Actress, thanks to her role as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s remake of the famed musical, West Side Story. According to CNN, DeBose took the stage and emotionally stated, “Even in this weird world we live in, dreams do come true. For anyone who has ever questioned their identity, there is indeed a place for us.” DeBose has been widely praised for her role in West Side Story, and her Oscar marks the fourth major…
A group for LGBTQ Fox Corp. staff (which consists of assets like the Fox channel, Fox News, Fox Business, TMZ, and more) has reportedly made internal complaints about the blatant bigotry and homophobia being spewed across Fox News in recent weeks. Being a Republican propaganda network, Fox News has given its full support to Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, and his hatred of the LGBTQ community. In order to support his “Don’t Say Gay” bill, Fox News has resorted to demonizing the LGBTQ community and supporting harmful conspiracy theories that gays are all “grooming” young children to apparently become gay. The…
Out of the Blue, the a capella group of Oxford University, is celebrating the holiday season by doing their own rendition of Elton John’s popular Christmas hit ‘Step Into Christmas’. The group has performed numerous Christmas songs in the past, including Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’, ‘I Wish it Could be Christmas Everyday’ by Wizzard, ‘Last Christmas’ by Wham, and many more. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuDVzqtJmb8 Their new version of ‘Step Into Christmas’ is a charity single that’s raising money for the Helen and Douglas House, a nonprofit that cares for terminally ill children and their families. Out of…
United Airlines made history by becoming the first airline in the US to offer non-binary booking options for its passengers. According to the airline, customers now have the ability to identify themselves as M(male), F(female), U(undisclosed) or X(unspecified), corresponding with what is indicated on their passports or identification. This is huge news because United is the one the world’s largest airlines. United is the 3rd largest by revenue and fleet size, and 4th largest in the number of passengers it carries. What that means is that if United can show that accommodating non-binary passengers proves to help business, it could…
In yet another blow to the LGBTQ community from the Trump administration, according to the New York Times, Washington Post, NBC News, and more, the US State Department will not allow US Embassies around the world to fly the pride flag during June. Multiple embassies requested permission, to which the State Department responded that flags could not be flown “on public-facing flagpoles,” according to the NYT article, but could still be flown in other places, such as inside… Sadly, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. The Trump administration has been avidly hateful of the LGBTQ community. Our current…
Timmery is a writer, designer, and artist based in Nashville. She rose to prominence in the fashion world with her underground Sugar Art and Fashion shows that would pop up in abandoned warehouses throughout Downtown Los Angeles. Now, she lives in Nashville with her husband and beautiful baby daughter. She’s just completed her first children’s book, Nova’s Pink Boots, and continues to create art, jewelry, and more, all of which she sells through her website. Recently, Timmery has also been creating gorgeous works of art featuring her favorite drag queens. I was able to chat with Timmery to ask what…
Queer legend and dance hall staple, k.d. lang, has just released a remix of her 1995 hit song “If I Were You”. The single was released in anticipation of her upcoming album, Makeover, which will feature tons of remastered and remixed hits from k.d. lang’s song library. Included in the album will be songs originally released between 1992-2000, including, “Sexuality,” “Miss Chatelaine,” “Theme from the Valley of the Dolls,” “Summerfling,” “Lifted By Love”, and more. Makeover will release on May 28th in preparation for Pride month and pre-orders are now available. The album’s cover is a never-before-seen image taken of…
The Trevor Project has long been known as a group that’s dedicated to helping LGBTQ youth and young adults. To help raise awareness of acceptance and diversity during September’s Suicide Prevention Month, the organization has created fun outfits in their signature orange color, accented by the rainbow flag design for Animal Crossing players. According to Mashable, The Trevor Project’s lead designer, Jonathan Silberman, stated, “Our research has found that LGBTQ young people who have a space where they feel affirmed in their identity are significantly less likely to attempt suicide. All of these factors contributed to our decision to design…
Today, President Joe Biden made a proclamation honoring Transgender Day of Visibility. He became the first president to do so.Transgender Day of Visibility is a time to celebrate the strides the transgender community has made over the years, while also recognizing the struggles and sacrifices that trans people still face today. In Biden’s official proclamation he stated, “Today, we honor and celebrate the achievements and resiliency of transgender individuals and communities. Transgender Day of Visibility recognizes the generations of struggle, activism, and courage that have brought our country closer to full equality for transgender and gender non-binary people in the…
A new campaign called Well Beings is aiming to help the mental health crisis amongst America’s youth. To launch the project, the organization assembled celebrities and mental health professionals to hold a virtual town hall to address the issue of youth mental health. The event was hosted by numerous celebrities including Billy Porter, Alanis Morissette, Bill Pullman, Jewel, Kid Cudi, and Demi Moore, among many others. One of the main topics was mental health among LGBTQ youth. Trans actor Ian Alexander, star of Netflix’s The OA, spoke about his experience growing up. He said that when he tried to speak…