Popular Netflix series Bridgerton has finally given its characters queer awakenings this season. Warning: season three spoilers ahead. The Bridgerton family are known for their looks and charm, and throughout the first and second seasons, viewers were teased with the idea that outcast older brother, Benedict Bridgerton, may be gay as he encounters alluring male characters who entrance him with art and intrigue. But soon after, the writers kept Benedict busy with a string of casual heterosexual flings. This season Benedict pursues a relationship with progressive Tilley Arnold (Hannah New), and is eventually led to a threesome with Tilley’s friend…
Author: Lauren Mulvey
A new poll from Gallup has found that more than six in ten adults say they oppose bans on gender-affirming care for minors. However, 51% of Americans still believe changing one’s gender to be morally wrong, and 44% say it is morally acceptable. Despite the fact that most Americans oppose bans on gender-affirming care, around 25 states have enacted laws or policies to restrict access to this care, according to Gallup. Throughout the country, these bans block minors from receiving psychological counseling, being prescribed puberty blockers or hormone treatments and undergoing gender-affirming surgeries. Gallup polled Americans on their thoughts on…
Though much light is often shed on how LGBTQ+ freedoms are restricted through censorship and limited freedom of expression in public life, one practice that still lurks in the shadows is conversion therapy. By definition, conversion therapy is a medical or mental intervention meant to alter an LGBTQ+ person’s sexuality by means of “therapies” that are often traumatizing physically and emotionally. Those who have undergone conversion therapy experience lifelong effects on their relationships, self-esteem, mental and physical health. In December of 2023, a report from The Trevor Project found that the prevalence of conversion therapy across the U.S. is still…
Recently, an official LGBTQ+ safe zone called the Pride House was inaugurated for the Paris Olympics on a barge along the Seine River between the Grand Palais and Place de la Concorde in Paris’ city center. During the Olympics and Paralympics the barge will act as a space for LGBTQ+ athletes and visitors following the opening ceremony on July 26. According to the official Olympic statement, the goal of the space is to “celebrate LGBTI+ athletes and ensure their visibility with a programme of celebratory, cultural, and educational activities throughout the Games period.” According to AP News, this initiative “is part of…
Duolingo has deleted LGBTQ+ content for Russian users after the country officially deemed all content, practices, associations and mentions of LGBTQ+ identities “extremism.” Duolingo, the globally popular language learning app, began to remove content after warnings from Russia’s communication regulator on featuring “non-traditional sexual relations and LGBT propaganda.” A spokesperson for Duolingo told Reuters that despite their mission to normalize LGBTQ+ representation in their content “Unfortunately, local laws prohibit us from including certain content in Russia. Duolingo’s mission is to expand access to quality education around the world and we’re committed to maintaining access to our product everywhere that is…
As states across the U.S. continue to pass and propose transphobic legislation, on the other side of the world in Sydney, Australia the first ever affordable housing for trans women is being planned. The housing mission is a partnership between transfeminine All Nations housing co-operative and the Sydney city council. Common Equity New South Wales will purchase seven properties and outfit them for women who are considered “highly at risk.” Housing will be specifically used for women whose income ranges from very low to moderate. In an exclusive with Pink News, Common Equity NSW chief executive Nick Sabel said the…
Attempts by Ron DeSantis to prevent rainbow Pride displays on state bridges this month have been countered by an out and proud LGBTQ+ community in Florida. The veiled attempt to limit the flying of the Pride colors was announced by Florida Transportation Secretary James Perdue. Instead, the state will display patriotic colors on bridges as part of Florida’s new “Freedom Summer,” between May 27 and September 2. According to The Washington Post, the phrase “Freedom Summer” originates from a civil rights effort to register black voters in Mississippi, DeSantis has completely removed any civil rights notion from the phrase with…
In a huge win for the trans community, a U.S. District Court has permanently blocked Florida from enforcing bans on gender-affirming care for transgender minors as well as some adults. According to LGBTQ Nation, a ruling made on Tuesday from Judge Robert Hinkle of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida called the bans “unconstitutional.” These bans throughout the state blocked gender-affirming care in the form of puberty blockers and hormone therapies, and threatened to penalize healthcare providers who offered this care to their patients. The ruling found the bans to be unconstitutional on the basis of curtailing…
Leading LGBTQ+ media advocacy group, GLAAD has announced a summer blood donation campaign called “Summer of Giving,” running now until September 4, 2024. GLAAD is partnering with America’s Blood Centers, a national organization of community-based, independent blood centers for the campaign which “focuses on advocacy and education and implementation of new [Food and Drug Administration] guidance that expands blood donor eligibility to more LGBTQ people, especially for gay and bisexual men who, in the past, have faced discrimination around blood donor eligibility,” according to GLAAD’s official statement. The initiative celebrates a more inclusive approach to evaluating blood donors ahead of…
SafeHome, the expert research source on home security and safety, has released their third annual LGBTQ+ state safety report cards, rating states based on how they protect their queer communities. The new report, published on May 29, rendered results that may not surprise you. SafeHome reported that at the end of 2023, 75 of 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced across the country became laws. In 2022, hate crimes against LGBTQ+ Americans reached a five-year high. SafeHome’s new scoring system takes into account legislative analysis and hate crime data sourced from the FBI. Apart from this information, the ranking is also based…
As Pride month kicks into full gear with celebrations around the country and world, President Joe Biden has released a proclamation declaring June to be LGBTQI+ Pride Month. “During Pride Month, we celebrate the extraordinary courage and contributions of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex (LGBTQI+) community,” the statement reads. During his presidency, Biden signed into law the Respect for Marriage Act which protects same-sex and interracial marriages. He also ended the ban on transgender Americans serving in the military, and signed Executive Orders which strengthened civil rights protections in housing, employment, health care, education, and the justice…
Popular kids video game company Nintendo has revealed that the newest version of their 2004 game “Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door,” will feature a transgender character. The character, named Vivian, discusses her gender identity with Mario during the game, explaining that she realized she was a girl and not a boy, after which her evil siblings began bullying her. These “evil siblings” are the games’ villains. The game has undergone some changes from the original Japanese version, in which Vivian was derogatorily referred to with male pronouns and called a “man” on various occasions. The English version which was released…
In the midst of an epidemic of anti-LGBTQ censorship laws around the country, Minnesota turns the page by passing a law prohibiting libraries from banning books. Recently, Gov. Tim Walz signed a bill into law banning K-12 schools, colleges and public libraries from complying with removal requests “based solely on the viewpoint, content, message, idea or opinion conveyed,” according to Them. Walz spoke of his decision to sign the bill in a post on X: “Censorship has no place in our libraries. As a former teacher, I’m clear: We need to remember our history, not erase it.” Versions of the…
Nine EU Countries refused to sign a new LGBTQ+ rights bill at a conference held in Brussels on May 17. These include popular travel destinations like Italy, Croatia, and Hungary. Other countries that refused to sign the declaration are Bulgaria, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Italy backed its decision to decline signature by citing a similar bill proposed by Italian Democratic Party MP and gay activist Alessandro Zan, which would increase penalties for anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination. It was speculated that Italy refused to sign the EU declaration, for the same reason it declined Zan’s bill. Despite this, Italy did…
Following an extreme alt-right backlash in 2023, Target has announced it is limiting Pride month merchandise, which will now only appear in select stores. In a recent press release, the mass retailer announced it would be limiting the number of stores where customers can purchase Pride merchandise this year. In addition, stores who are including LGBTQ+ merchandise will not have Pride apparel for children this year. Despite citing “historical sales performance” as their primary reason for discontinuing the sale of Pride merch, it seems uncanny that these actions follow a boycott of Pride products in 2023, when alt right groups…
Gay Wine Weekend, hosted by Out in the Vineyard, returns in July, 2024 for another year in California’s sunny Sonoma County. This exclusive event invites the LGBTQ+ community around the country to celebrate three days of fun in wine country. Last year, Gay Wine Weekend officially relocated to the Russian River Valley/Healdsburg Region of Sonoma County to take advantage of a wealth of new venues, restaurants, and wineries. “It was a huge success and so much fun to introduce guests of Gay Wine Weekend to this part of Sonoma Wine Country,” said Out in the Vineyard owner Gary Saperstein. The…
As the newest season of the hit Netflix series “Bridgerton” hits screens across the country, heartthrob of last season, Jonathan Bailey, raised over £30,000 after running the Hackney Half Marathon. According to Pink News, over 20,000 runners participated in the half marathon which stepped off from the Hackney Marshes and passed through the Regent’s Canal and London Fields. Bailey ran hoping to raise 25,000 for charity Just Like Us, which provides queer youth the tools to raise awareness for LGBTQ+ issues in schools, and helps prevent bullying through an ambassador program. A day before the race Jonathan posted to his…
In a landmark win for the queer community, Aetna has agreed to provide equal fertility coverage to LGBTQ+ people after reaching a settlement with a group of plaintiffs in a case over medical discrimination. The insurance company will now be required to payout $2 million to members of the lawsuit. They will also be required to update their fertility coverage for LGBTQ+ couples. Fertility medical discrimination is often a hidden struggle for LGBTQ+ couples trying to conceive. The winning case, Goidel et al. v. Aetna was filed in September 2021 according to LGBTQ Nation. It was pioneered by Emma Goidel and…
The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) has released their official 2024 Social Media Safety Index. The index, one of the leading reports on anti-LGBTQ online hate and discrimination, is intended to increase safety for LGBTQ+ people according to the report’s official release. “As we have seen over and over again, there is a direct line from dangerous online rhetoric and targeting to violent offline behavior against the LGBTQ community,” according to GLAAD. The report analyzes various popular social media platforms based on user safety, and rates them accordingly. These Platform Scorecard ratings provide an overview of “the current…
Conservative Texas just elected its first LGBTQ+ person, Molly Cook, to the state Senate. Cook will take the place of Democrat John Whitmire who was just sworn in as the mayor of Houston in January. She will finish his term until January, and is also running for the next full term in a Democratic primary runoff on May 28. Prior to running for office, Cook served as an emergency room nurse and community organizer. Cook identifies as bisexual and has openly supported gun control and reproductive rights throughout her campaign. According to LGBTQ Nation, in the special election for the…
The United Methodist Church has reversed a ban that prohibited LGBTQ people from being ordained and practicing as clergy. The church, which has more than 12 million members globally, removed the 40-year-old declaration which declared “the practice of homosexuality…incompatible with Christian teaching,” according to AP News. The United Methodist church is a Christian denomination that practices Protestant tradition. The vote to reverse the ban along with other discussions on the revision of the language around marriage and LGBTQ+ people took place at the General Conference of the United Methodist Church which occurred over 11-days in Charlotte, N.C. The ban was…
A collection of billboards across major cities in the UK are celebrating Trans+ History Week through Sunday as part of a QueerAF initiative. This week in Britain, Trans+ History Week honors trans and gender fluid representations throughout history. Piloted by QueerAF, the first ever event of its kind explores how transgender people have appeared throughout history. QueerAF is a platform supporting LGBTQIA+ creatives to build a career in media, and their most recent project celebrates the history of trans, non-binary, intersex and gender-diverse people. The colorful Billboards were displayed in cities including Manchester, Liverpool, London, and Newcastle and feature the…
Nemo, a singer from Switzerland, is the first non-binary artist to win the Eurovision song contest. Thirty seven countries in Europe are invited each year to debut a new song at Eurovision to compete for first prize. This year, the 68th annual competition came to Malmö, Sweden and invited some of Europe’s most popular musical artists. Nemo Mettler who is just 24 years old won the competition with their song “The Code.” Nemo told interviewers, their song is the first they have written about queer joy and feeling comfortable in their own skin. “To stand here at the end and…
In a battle between transphobes, Elon Musk has called on J.K. Rowling to tone down her transphobia online. Ironically, Musk has railed against transgender people for years. Billionaire Musk, who bought the social media platform Twitter (now called X) told J.K. Rowling to write something more “interesting and positive” last weekend after she published a 709-work essay on her transphobic views on X. Interestingly, Musk has utilized the platform to make his own transphobic views known over the years, according to LGBTQ Nation. In her essay published on April 6, Rowling took to X to explain her narrow view of…
A new report from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law has revealed the challenges LGBTQ+ faculty are facing in higher education as many of them consider leaving their posts. LGBTQ+ faculty at colleges and universities nationwide are growing tired of the lack of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) laws protecting them from discrimination at work, especially in states like Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and more that have tried to dismantle DEI laws. The crack down on DEI laws across the United States has included limiting funding for DEI initiatives, preventing mandatory DEI training for faculty, and banning…
The National Health Service (NHS) of England has banned the prescription of puberty blockers for individuals under the age of 18. Puberty blockers are hormonal treatments most often prescribed to transgender or gender questioning individuals to halt the process of adolescent development. The ban, which ensures no child will have access to puberty blockers even with the permission of their parent or guardian, has been met with ample backlash from the transgender community in the U.K. and around the world. This is just one effect of the NHS’s recent call for an independent review of gender identity treatments, which commissioned Dr.…
Popular gay men’s dating app Grindr has introduced a new travel feature that might help you meet other people when traveling. Grindr’s official travel mode, titled “Roam,” allows users to change their location settings to talk and text with people in other destinations before they travel there. While in Roam travel mode, Grindr users can pick a new location and swipe for up to an hour. This is meant to provide an opportunity to meet new people and get an idea of the best places to eat, drink, stay, and explore. It also give users the opportunity to arrange a…
A new study from the American Cancer Society (ACS) has found that “minority stress” experienced by LGBTQ+ people can lead to cancer. ACS’s 2024 Cancer Facts and Figures report published in January, produced data on the rates of cancer in all people According to Pink News, minority stress is the physical stress response that is triggered by experiences of discrimination and prejudice. ACS’s report finds that enduring these hardships can affect people on a “cellular level.” “Psychological stress influences biochemical changes such as increased cortisol levels, which can lead to chronic inflammation that increases the risk of cancer and other…
Iraq has officially criminalized same-sex relationships with new legislation backed by Shia Muslim political parties, the largest coalition in the country’s parliament. The new law penalizes same-sex marriage with a 15-year maximum prison sentence. Supporters claim it will uphold religious values, despite being condemned by civil rights advocates in Iraq, according to reports from Al Jazeera. A copy of the law acquired by Reuters says it aims to “protect Iraqi society from moral depravity and the calls for homosexuality [that] have overtaken the world.” Officially known by the title “The Law on Combating Prostitution and Homosexuality,” it bans same-sex relationships…
Though the list of LGBTQ+ authors is constantly expanding, and new iconic and groundbreaking literary works are being published every year, here are five classic writers every LGBTQ+ person and ally should be aware of. Virginia Wolfe Not only was Woolfe an incredible literary talent, penning bestsellers that included Mrs. Dalloway, To The Lighthouse, and Orlando, she also was an advocate for women’s rights and mental health visibility. She published many works that are still studied today, and in 1922, Woolfe met and began a romantic relationship with Vita Sackville-West. Both Woolfe and Sackville-West were married to men while their…