U.S. District Judge Robert L. Hinkle denied the State of Florida’s request to stay (or stop) a June 11 decision blocking enforcement of Florida’s law banning healthcare for transgender minors and restricting the care for trans adults, according to a joint press release from GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. In Jane Doe et al. v. Joseph A. Lapado et al., Hinkle stated, in part, “The defendants will incur only intangible harm from denial of a stay—from allowing the plaintiffs and class members to make their own medical decisions, in consultation with qualified professionals, while the appeal goes forward. Nobody else will suffer any harm at all.” GLAD Senior Director of Transgender and Queer Rights Jennifer Levi responded, “As the court found, the state of Florida has not been able to provide a single instance of a Florida transgender adolescent or adult receiving inappropriate treatment or experiencing regret over care they have received in the state. We are relieved that transgender people and their families in Florida will continue to be able to make the health care decisions that are right for them.”
The U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee recently passed anti-trans amendments to the annual defense policy bill, Military.com reported. The military would not be able to pay for surgeries for transgender troops under the Senate’s version of the bill and trans military kids could also lose access to hormone therapy, puberty blockers and other medication if the treatment “could result in sterilization.” Inclusion of those amendments—which passed with the support of every committee Republican and independent Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia—in the Senate’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, could increase the odds that restrictions on gender-affirmation care for transgender troops and family members become law after the House filled its version of the bill with similar provisions. “This is a dangerous affront to the rights and freedom of transgender servicemembers with no financial, legal, political, or medical justification,” said American Civil Liberties Union Senior Legislative Advocate Ian S. Thompson in a statement.
Jaymes Black (all pronouns) is the new CEO of The Trevor Project—the national suicide-prevention and crisis-intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ youths., per NBC News. Black was previously the president and CEO of Family Equality, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing equality for LGBTQ families “As bad as my story sounds [dropping out of high school because of bullying], I can’t imagine what our youth are going through today,” Black said. “I didn’t have the internet. I didn’t have text messaging. Many of the things that they have to deal with, on top of already being isolated, rejected, bullied, that is what’s at the top of my mind. How do we ensure that people understand that we must protect our youth? How do people understand that protecting our youth transcends politics?” Black—who started July 15—succeeds Peggy Rajski (she/her), a founder and decades-long board member who stepped in as Interim CEO in 2022, per a press release.
A newly released documentary—Lover of Men: The Untold History of Abraham Lincoln—is exploring the long-held belief that the former president was gay, according to them, citing People. The film features interviews with several historians, including Hugh Ryan, the author of When Brooklyn Was Queer, who appears in the film’s trailer. The 16th president’s queerness has also been the foundation of several fictional portrayals of him, including the novel Courting Mr. Lincoln and the current Broadway smash hit Oh, Mary! There’s even a Wikipedia page devoted to Lincoln’s sexuality.
Members of Pittsburgh’s transgender community are coming together to support family and friends of 14-year-old Pauly Likens, WTAE reported. DaShawn Watkins, 29, was charged with criminal homicide in the death of Likens, whose dismembered body was found at remote locations around Shenango River Lake on June 25. However, District Attorney Peter Acker told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 that state police do not believe Watkins, who is gay, committed a hate crime. Acker added that since Pennsylvania does not have a hate-crime statute, he will look into charging Watkins with ethnic intimidation. Dena Stanley, co-director of the pro-LGBTQ+ organization Proud Haven, said, “They are basically saying that because Pauly was part of the LGBTQ community that it was not a hate crime, and not understanding that Pauly was a trans person [who] was preyed upon.”
Atlanta dancer/CEO Deundray Cottrell’s body was found in a shed two days after he disappeared from his sister’s home in Birmingham, Alabama on July 4—and partner Julian Morris has been named a person of interest, 11 Alive reported. Cottrell was a dancer and the CEO of Skiiboyz Entertainment, a male dance trio based in Atlanta that included Morris and DeEric. Birmingham police confirmed that they have not seen nor heard from Morris since before Cottrell’s body was found; they said they have also not been contacted by his family or his legal counsel, per Fox 5 Atlanta. But Morris’ attorney, Victor Revill, has said, “With everyone pointing fingers at him, there’s no way in this world as his attorney, I was going to advise him to come talk now because he’s already been pointed out as a bad guy, and he’s not,” according to WVTM.
Florida residents’ recent HIV test results, detailed doctors’ notes, and immunization and virus testing records were among thousands of state health department files that hackers released on the dark web, per The Tampa Bay Times. Posted online are more than 20,000 files with some Floridians’ most sensitive information: lab results, signed medical release forms, workers compensation records and COVID-19 diagnoses. One file included a photo of a person’s passport while another contained a woman’s negative mammogram result. Also, many of the records (from 2023-24) include patients’ full names, dates of birth, addresses, Social Security numbers and insurance information. Florida Department of Health officials plan to notify patients whose personal data were illegally released.
California LGBTQ+ archival groups and Bay Area service providers who work with transgender immigrants saw state legislators include funding to address their fiscal needs in the budget in a bill that Gov. Gavin Newsom signed, per The Bay Area Reporter. LGBTQ+ history museums and archives will share in $750,000 added into the fiscal year 2024-25 budget Newsom signed toward the end of Pride Month. The allocations were among the budget priorities that the Legislative LGBTQ Caucus pushed; gay state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) also stated his support of them as chair of his chamber’s budget committee this session.
The NYC City Council has passed multiple pieces of legislation, including a bill to expand the city’s rapid STI testing locations and a separate effort calling for greater transparency on school dress codes, per Gay City News. The latter was passed in light of concerns that existing policies have had a disproportionately negative impact on LGBTQ+ and BIPOC students. The move to improve rapid STI testing infrastructure in New York City would require the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to offer rapid STI services in at least four of the city’s five boroughs.
Elon Musk said that X will move to Texas from California in light of the latter state’s new law that bans public schools from requiring parents to be notified if a child identifies as transgender, per the Austin Monthly. (Musk’s other companies, SpaceX and Tesla, already have connections to the Lone Star State.) The seriousness of Musk’s claim, which he posted online, remains somewhat unclear, as he has previously voiced displeasure with California politics and has floated the idea of relocating his companies. Musk’s own daughter—who legally changed her name to Vivian Jenna Wilson in 2022—came out as trans when she was 16, and Wilson did not tell her now-estranged father about the transition. (Deadline noted that Musk is also planning to move SpaceX to California.)
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. has reportedly become the second Black fraternity to institute a ban on transgender members, The Guardian noted. It is yet unclear how the ban will be enforced, how many active members it applies to and whether it will only apply to new members or current members. National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) President and CEO Dr. David Johns condemned the action, saying, “These proposed policies are not only discriminatory and exclusionary but also an infringement on the basic human rights of those who simply want the freedom to be who they are. … NBJC calls on Alpha Phi Alpha and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternities to reject these discriminatory proposals and instead reaffirm their commitment to inclusion, equality, and justice for all members of the Black community. I also encourage other members of the Divine Nine, including my beloved Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated, to honor enduring commitments to uplift and empower our beautifully diverse community.”
Colorado’s bishops (Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver; Bishop Jorge Rodríguez, auxiliary of Denver; Bishop Stephen Berg of Pueblo; and Bishop James Golka of Colorado Springs) issued a joint letter about state ballot initiatives that may come up for votes in November—and four out of the five mentioned are LGBTQ+-related, per a New Ways Ministry column. Among other things, the bishops ask Catholics to oppose one proposal concerning reproductive rights (that would affirm reproductive autonomy in the state constitution) and one that addresses marriage equality (as it would remove language from the state’s constitution defining marriage in heterosexual terms and will be on the November ballot). Then, the bishops expressed support for Initiative 160, which would exclude transgender people from girl’s sports.
Nashville-based instrument brand Gibson announced that its second annual Gibson Gives Sister Rosetta Tharpe music scholarship-—administered by the Arkansas Art Academy—has been awarded to music student Luis Melchor, per a press release. Among other accomplishments, Tharpe fronted her own band; she was one of the first artists of note to play the iconic ‘61 Les Paul SG Custom electric guitar; and she was a headlining, Black female artist who toured through the segregated Jim Crow South. According to various media outlets, including Ebony, Tharpe (1915-73), called the “godmother of rock ’n roll,” was queer.
U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich issued a preliminary injunction ordering D.C.’s Jackson-Reed High School to officially recognize a student group called the Fellowship of Christian Athletes—which requires its leaders to support the group’s religious belief that homosexuality is immoral, per The Washington Blade. “Plaintiffs’ religious rights are not violated by D.C. Public School’s Anti-Discrimination Policy because it is a generally applicable, religiously neutral policy that applies to every student and student organization at DCPS schools,” the Office of the D.C. Attorney General argued in its response to the organization’s lawsuit. However, Friedrich pointed out, among other things, that D.C. Public Schools has recognized other secular student groups that have restrictions on who can be leaders or members.
In South Carolina, to mark this year’s Pride Month, the SC LGBTQ Oral Histories, Archives, & Outreach project (SC LGBTQ) announced the receipt of a grant that expands its ability to collect and steward archival materials in non-traditional, community-centered ways, per The College Today. Among other things, the $24,000 grant will support an undergraduate research fellowship responsible for creating new avenues for students, faculty and scholars to utilize collection materials; and a public event discussing the challenges and opportunities of archival projects seeking to save and share the stories of marginalized groups.
In California, the city of San Leandro hosted its first Pride celebration, CBS News noted. Victor Aguilar Jr.—the first openly gay member of the San Leandro city council—said he felt the city needed an opportunity to celebrate the LGBTQ+ members of his community, stating, “I had this dream to create our first Pride in San Leandro. Representation matters, advocacy matters, making sure that we’re advocating for policy to protect our LGBTQ community and to advocate for our youth and having this Pride event lets folks know that they are welcome in San Leandro. They are safe and we belong.” The Downtown San Leandro Community Benefit District helped put on the event.
Anti-LGBTQ+ U.S. Sen. and Trump running mate J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) once told his grandmother that he thought that he might be gay, according to his 2016 autobiography Hillbilly Elegy, LGBTQ Nation noted. She convinced him he wasn’t gay by asking him if he wanted to “suck d**ks.” Also, according to the book, Vance replied, “Of course not!” “Then you’re not gay,” she said. “And even if you did want to suck d**ks, that would be okay. God would still love you.” Vance married his wife, Usha Chilukuri, in 2014; they have three children together.
Philadelphia LGBTQ+-friendly gym NovemFit is the subject of a lawsuit that claims its violating permissible noise and vibration limits, per the Philadelphia Gay News. Brian Bissell—who lives next door to the facility—claims excessive noise and vibrations, among other disturbances, render his home uninhabitable. NovemFit owner Joe Ling has said he acted in good faith to accommodate Bissell.
The International LGBTQ+ Travel Association Foundation (IGLTA) announced that Oregon-based travel company First Nature Tours is the recipient of the 2024 Impact Award, per a press release. This award recognizes outstanding LGBTQ+ businesses demonstrating exceptional commitment to responsible tourism across three key areas: environment, community, and diversity and inclusion. “First Nature Tours exemplifies the type of innovation and commitment to responsible tourism that defines the best of our industry. Their work demonstrates the positive impact small businesses can have on the environment, local communities, and LGBTQ+ inclusion,” said IGLTA President/CEO John Tanzella. The official presentation will take place at IGLTA’s upcoming Global Convention in Osaka, Japan, in late October.
Agricultural-supply company John Deere said it would stop lending its name to social events like LGBTQ+ Pride parades, according to NBC News. In a statement on X, the manufacturer said it would “no longer participate in or support external social or cultural awareness parades, festivals, or events,” adding, “the existence of diversity quotas and pronoun identification have never been and are not company policy.” However, the company also said it “fundamentally believes that a diverse workforce enables us to best meet our customers’ needs and because of that we will continue to track and advance the diversity of our organization.” Last month, Tractor Supply announced it had eliminated its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) roles and goals entirely.
The Flannel Bear announced the launch of the Pride 365 candle, with proceeds benefiting the 501(c)(3) organization the Q+ Equality Foundation, per a press release. According to the release, “The Pride 365 candle is a symbol of continuous pride, resilience, and love. Scented with a blend of exotic woods and citrus, this candle is designed to remind every member of the Q+ community to embrace their identity and shine brightly 365 days a year.”
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