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2022 ruling that Houston County, in rural Southern Georgia, discriminated against Anna Lange, an 18-year veteran of the county’s sheriff’s office, when it refused to amend a decades-old exclusion on gender-affirming care in its employee health insurance plan.Under the exclusion, county dollars are prohibited from being used, either directly or indirectly through insurance, to pay for treatments meant to assist someone in transitioning from one gender to another.Following a two-day trial after that ruling, a jury found that Lange had been unfairly discriminated against due to the insurance exclusion, and awarded her $60,000 in damages.Houston County appealed the lower court’s decision to the 11th Circuit, seeking to overturn it. The appeals court subsequently found that the that a health insurance provider can be held liable under Title VII for denying coverage for surgical interventions — which might otherwise be offered to cisgender individuals — due a person’s transgender identity.Additionally, the 11th Circuit found that the lower court did not abuse its discretion when it granted a permanent injunction blocking the county from enforcing the health plan exclusions for gender-affirming care.Referencing Supreme Court precedent finding that anti-LGBTQ discrimination in the workplace is inherently a form of sex-based discrimination, the appeals court found that the insurance exclusion in Houston County’s plan was a form of unlawful discrimination.“The Exclusion is a blanket denial of coverage for gender-affirming surgery,” Circuit Judge Charles Wilson wrote for the 11th Circuit.

Moxy from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.“The afterparty is a really big deal,” says Hunt, who is overseeing the party. “We have to actually have the fun outside of the learning. The party provides a place for people to feel safe and secure, and to shake it loose after a long day of education.

DC Black Pride‘s Opening Reception at the Westin Hotel on Friday, May 24. The reception, which runs from 5 to 10 p.m., will be hosted by comedian Anthony Oakes, with performances and appearances by Keith Angelo, Bang Garçon, Black Assets, Marcy Smiles, and Sherri Amoure.The legendary DJ Sedrick will spin at the event, which will be headlined by comedienne Paris Sashay.Held annually over Memorial Day Weekend, DC Black Pride features four days of educational workshops, a resource fair, and parties at various D.C.-area clubs and recreational areas, including Fort Dupont Park in Southeast D.C.This year’s theme is “Black Pride Forever,” and promises a four-day weekend full of social and educational events starting Friday, May 24 and ending on Monday, May 27.DC Black Pride’s Opening Reception will be on Friday, May 24, from 5 to 10 p.m. at the Westin Washington, D.C. Downtown, 999 9th St. NW.For a full schedule of events, visit www.dcblackpride.org.

Associated Press in an emailed statement.“Most importantly, we want to create a welcoming and supportive environment for our LGBTQIA+ team members, which reflects our culture of care for the over 400,000 people who work at Target.”Human Rights Campaign president Kelley Robinson blasted Target for caving to right-wing influencers and anti-LGBTQ groups.“Pride merchandise means something. LGBTQ+ people are in every zip code in this country, and we aren’t going anywhere,” Robinson said in a statement.“With LGBTQ+ people making up 30% of Gen Z, companies need to understand that community members and allies want businesses that express full-hearted support for the community.

Wilmington Massacre, a bloody revolt that saw dozens of Black people killed.Members of the state’s congressional delegation urged replacing the avowed segregationist Aycock with a statue of North Carolina-based Baptist minister Graham instead.Over the course of his career, Graham, who died in 2018 at the age of 99, served as a spiritual adviser to foreign leaders and various politicians, including 12 sitting presidents.Like his anti-LGBTQ son, Franklin, the elder Graham was known for his staunch religiously conservative beliefs. While he was less vitriolic than his evangelical contemporaries, he still perpetually advocated that homosexuality was a horrible sin that only could be “cured” by re-dedicating oneself to following Christ.In 1993, he appallingly suggested that AIDS was a punishment from God for homosexuality.

Stereophonic and the revival of Merrily We Roll Along. Oh, Mary!, Cole Escola’s riotous comedy about Mary Todd Lincoln, garnered the most Off-Broadway nods, followed by Teeth and Stephen Sondheim’s final musical, Here We Are.LGBTQ Theater Artist of the Season nominations went to Escola, composer Michael R.

METAMORPHOSESPsalmayene 24 directs an exciting new production of visionary Mary Zimmerman’s Tony-winning play which places the tales of Ovid into a modern-day setting, in this case the African diaspora.Folger Theatre’s production features a powerful all-Black cast that includes Edwin Brown III, Renea S. Brown, DeJeanette Horne, Yesenia Iglesias, Billie Kirshawn, Manu Kumasi, Miss Kitty, Jon Hudson Odom, Kalen Robinson, Gerrad Taylor, and Renee Elizabeth Wilson.Through June 16 at the Folger, 201 East Capitol St.

The Associated Press in an interview ahead of the announcement.The name change will officially take effect on February 8, 2025, to coincide with the organization’s 115th anniversary.For years, Boy Scouts only admitted boys ages 11 to 17. It emphasized service to one’s community, leadership, the teaching of moral values, and life skills that would prepare any scout for adulthood.

Before forming queer synth-rock band The FMs, friends Matte Namer and Frankie Maddox Rex grew up in different parts of New York City — the former in Greenwich Village, the latter fifteen miles away in College Point, Queens.Their lives were separated by more than mere distance. “We had very different upbringings,” Namer recalls.

Hell’s Kitchen. Reviews were fairly solid, and plenty of buzz was generated when the jukebox tuner premiered at the end of last year at New York’s Public Theater.It didn’t even complete its run in January before Keys, along with producers, announced a transfer to Broadway, where it opened in April.New Yorkers — and specifically those who live in the midtown neighborhood the show is named for (now a predominantly gay mecca) — will appreciate that the locality is having a moment in the spotlight.

declared “extremist” by the the country’s Supreme Court last year.He was sentenced to 15 days in jail.The 22-year-old was also fined 50,000 rubles — about $548 — for “discrediting the Russian army” in posts criticizing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on his Telegram channel, which has since been deleted.Since the Supreme Court ruling, Russian authorities have cracked down on displays or media depictions of LGBTQ identity, conflating support for LGBTQ rights as contrary to existing social mores and traditional or religious viewpoints.They have also cast pro-LGBTQ movements as potential breeding grounds for liberal Western values, including representation for sexual and gender minorities, as well as opposition to Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine.Examples of these crackdowns have included raids on bars and nightclubs frequented by members of the LGBTQ community, the disruption of a “My Little Pony” convention for allegedly promoting homosexuality, and fines or prosecutions of individuals or Western media companies accused of displaying LGBTQ symbols or advocating on behalf of LGBTQ rights.In February, a woman was arrested and charged with spreading “LGBT propaganda” for wearing rainbow-colored earrings, while another was prosecuted for displaying a rainbow Pride flag on her Instagram account.That same month, a third woman was fined for displaying a Pride flag in the window of her house.In March, a man was arrested and charged for using “extremist symbols” when he sent a rainbow flag emoji in a private chat.According to France 24, Russian authorities have begun removing books with LGBTQ content from brick-and-mortar stores and from online libraries or catalogs.A new council set up by the Russian Book Union, a nominally

letter reads. “I have notified all of my girlfriends who in turn have decided to boycott your store.“It is not that we despise the flag…it is just we do not want to be associated with crazy left wingers who hate America. We have decided to take our business elsewhere and have blasted your organization all over social media.”“I was saddened to receive such a hateful note in the mail today,” Amanda Girardi, the store’s owner, wrote on Facebook.

refuses to recognize transgender identity as valid and restricts access to single-sex spaces based on a person’s assigned sex at birth.The Little Rock-based InTRANSitive has seen repeated acts of vandalism against its community center since opening in December 2021. The vandalism appears to have increased as the organization has become more visible, with its members and staffers speaking out against proposed laws targeting transgender people.Beginning last year, someone damaged the pipes outside of the building at least four times, according to Rumba Yambú, founder and executive director of InTRANSitive.Solar-powered security cameras have disappeared, and plants in the yard have been damaged.

The Associated Press that the company was pleased to resolve the case and “committed to providing quality care to all individuals regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.”Goidel, who became pregnant with her second child after six cycles of artificial insemination, and one unsuccessful attempt at in vitro fertilization, told AP she was “thrilled” that Aetna would be amending its policy, and expects to be reimbursed under the settlement.“You never know when you start trying to conceive and you have to do it at the doctor, how long it’s going to take and how much it’s going to cost,” she said of the price tag associated with the treatments.

similar laws denying recognition of transgender identity that have passed in other states.It is inspired by Independent Women’s Voice’s “Women’s Bill of Rights,” a template that the right-wing organization has shopped around to encourage lawmakers to preserve single-sex spaces based on biological anatomy, and prevent individuals assigned male at birth from being legally recognized as female.A similar measure was introduced in Congress two years ago.Last month, the Biden administration issued new rules explicitly stating that LGBTQ students, and in particular transgender students, are protected from discrimination or harassment under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination. Biden’s rules, which take effect August 1, prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in federally funded educational programs.The explicit protections were added in order to align the rules with the principles undergirding a landmark 2020 Supreme Court decision finding that the Civil Rights Act protects LGBTQ workers from workplace discrimination, and that instances of anti-LGBTQ discrimination are inherently a form of sex-based discrimination.Since then, several states, including Oklahoma and Texas, have forbade local school districts from attempting to comply with the new rules.At least 14 states have filed or joined lawsuits challenging the Biden administration’s interpretation of Title IX, arguing that the law’s references to “sex” should only apply to biological sex.“Title IX was created to protect women,” Sanders, flanked by anti-transgender advocate Riley Gaines, said at the news conference.

Miami Herald, Glazer upped the charge against Gilbert from second-degree murder to first-degree murder based on actions that appeared to show intent.“It looks like he defiled the body by doing other things to the victim,” Glazer said.Glazer said a judge would likely also address a current probation violation against Gilbert, who has a history of convictions for various violent and non-violent crimes. According to a police arrest report, Dos Passos arrived at the Miami City Ballet around midnight on April 21 and lay down on the steps to sleep.Surveillance video near the ballet hall reportedly captured Gilbert arriving and surveying the area.

found Ritter guilty on hate crime charges, a firearms charge, and obstruction of justice in relation to Doe’s murder, marking the first-ever conviction under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act for violence directed at a transgender person.At Ritter’s trial, prosecutors argued that he had been involved in a sexual relationship with Doe, and became upset after rumors of their affair began to circulate around their hometown of Allendale, South Carolina.While Doe’s transgender identity was publicly known to many, Ritter sought to keep their relationship covert, demanding that she delete text messages they had exchanged from her phone.After Ritter’s main girlfriend learned of the ongoing relationship between him and Doe, Ritter allegedly became more anxious and desperate to conceal the affair from others.

Cabaret is back on Broadway with unbridled decadence and immersive glory. Certain musicals are constructed so well that, even if they are cast with mediocre performances or if the production value is low, they still hold.Cabaret stands as one of the indestructible.This might explain why the original sixties production has been revived and reinvented so many times on both sides of the Atlantic.

Hamilton, oldest sister Angelica sings, “I’m a girl in which, my only job is to marry rich.” None of them would live long enough to experience the painstaking efforts assumed by their female successors for a woman’s right to vote.Fortunately, their descendants and current audiences are hearing a completely different song just a few blocks away in New York’s theater district, thanks largely to Shaina Taub.An Obie Award-winning singer/songwriter, Taub has written the book, a winning score, and lyrics for the completely original, historically based Suffs, which tracks the decades-long struggle for fair and equal treatment of women to be treated as equally as men. The show educates, inspires, and persuades — all while being incredibly entertaining.Taub also stars in the show as Alice Paul, an activist considered one of the major architects of the twentieth-century suffragist movement.

proposed a plan to disaffiliate from the larger church and form a separate, more “traditionalist” Global Methodist Church taking a harder line on social issues, including same-sex marriage and LGBTQ clergy.In total, 7,600 congregations — constituting one-quarter of all U.S.-based congregations — have severed ties with the church.As a result, the overall church has moved toward embracing more progressive positions on various issues, including LGBTQ inclusion.

Videos on TikTok from the Atrisco Heritage Academy High School prom, held at a local convention center on April 20, showed the drag performer, Mythica Sahreen, dancing around while wearing boots, stockings, and a body suit as students watched.The TikTok videos were later shared and broadcast by local NBC affiliate KOB, sparking outrage among parents. Students who attended the prom told KOB they weren’t offended, but were surprised and a little uncomfortable about the performance, with several telling the news station they thought a drag performance at prom wasn’t age-appropriate for minors.“[They] could have kept it more on the side of like it being more PG,” one student said.

Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) was named to Politico‘s list of “The 10 Thirstiest Members of Congress.”The “Thirsty Awards,” now in their second year, pay tribute to the “most shamelessly media-seeking members of Congress.”“This is Washington, after all, and it’s Washington in the Donald Trump and social media age,” Politico writes in its current issue. “Building seniority, developing relationships and forging cross-aisle consensus for incremental gains is out.

study published in the Social Science Research Network found that job applicants who use “they/them” pronouns are less likely to be hired.The study’s author, University of Toronto Ph.D. candidate Taryn Eames, claims the study is “the first large-scale correspondence study focused on evaluating hiring discrimination based on pronoun disclosure.”Eames sent out 7,970 pairs of fake resumes — one with “they/them” pronouns and another without — for a fictitious applicant to large corporations and small businesses in six U.S.

veto by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.Had the bill passed, it would have banned all gender-affirming surgical and hormonal interventions for minors suffering from gender dysphoria, with penalties, including the loss of their license to practice.The proposed law also would have allowed former patients, or the parents of former patients, to sue any doctor who prescribed gender-affirming treatments.Critics of the bill say it also would have effectively barred social transitioning — which involves no medical interventions — by prohibiting any person or entity who receives state funds from advocating for social or medical transitions for minors with gender dysphoria.

April 27, 2024The U.S. State Department criticized the law, which it said in a statement “threatens constitutionally protected human rights and fundamental freedoms.”It also expressed concerns that the law would be abused or manipulated to “hamper free speech and expression and inhibit the operations of [non-governmental organizations] across Iraq.”“The legislation also weakens Iraq’s ability to diversify its economy and attract foreign investment,” the statement continued.

filed a lawsuit against West Virginia officials on behalf of a Medicaid participant, Christopher Fain, who was denied coverage for gender confirmation surgery. That same lawsuit also previously challenged a similar exclusion contained in West Virginia’s state employee health insurance plan on behalf of two state employees who could not obtain coverage for gender-affirming treatments, either for themselves or their dependents.Lambda Legal subsequently added additional transgender plaintiffs to the case, including Shauntae Anderson.The state employee plaintiffs’ claims were eventually resolved by a 2022 settlement with The Health Plan of West Virginia, Inc., which removed its exclusion on gender-affirming care.The lawsuit subsequently resumed, challenging only the Medicaid exclusion.In August 2022, a federal judge ruled that West Virginia’s Medicaid program could no longer discriminate against transgender recipients by failing to cover the cost of surgical care deemed medically necessary for treating a person’s gender dysphoria.

Maulik Pancholy, who is gay.The Cumberland Valley School District school board voted 5 to 4 to allow the assembly at Mountain View Middle School in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, to proceed as originally scheduled.Students whose parents object to the presentation’s content will be allowed to opt out of the assembly.Pancholy, nationally known for his role as Jonathan on NBC’s hit TV show 30 Rock, is the author of two award-winning novels for young adults.The Best at It is the story of a gay Indian-American boy and his experience dealing with bullying in a small Midwestern town. Nikhil Out Loud is about a group of eighth-grade theater kids rising up against homophobia in their community.The board canceled the assembly on April 15, citing concerns about Pancholy, who describes himself as an “activist” on his website.

Kyle Griffin’s first foray into the world of news was serving as the anchor for his high school’s morning announcements program. But the then-teenager quickly realized that being an on-air personality was not for him.“I saw at my local NBC affiliate that while the anchors and reporters were great, they were reading someone else’s words, and I wanted to be the person who wrote those words,” says Griffin.

Tennis isn’t a contact sport but it can be brutal on the body, mind, emotions, and ego, especially at the elite pro level depicted so sharply in the ripping sports drama Challengers.A tennis movie with much more on its menu, the film, directed by Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name), credibly captures the fiercely combative pro tour, where, for those at the top, the payoff in riches and fame can be massive.For rising or journeyman players toiling on the sport’s minor league Challengers circuit, however, the struggle to train, travel, stay healthy and fit, and just pay bills bears few rewards greater than simply winning. And if you’re not winning, then what are you doing here?That’s the ice-cold attitude espoused by tennis diva Tashi Duncan, portrayed with impervious brashness by Zendaya.

Consistent with Rorschach Theatre’s adventurously immersive productions, the company’s latest, The Human Museum by Miyoko Conley, engages audiences in playful conversation with its themes well before the show even begins.Audiences enter through the titular museum, a hallowed institution operated by robots of Earth in a future where humans are extinct. Created inside the same two-story Connecticut Avenue former retail space where, last fall, Rorschach unleashed Night of the Living Dead Live, the Human Museum passes patrons through galleries filled with artifacts of human existence.Considering this is the work of artificially intelligent bots with only a secondhand concept of what humans were like, the exhibit items have been well chosen.

challenge the law in court last month, were likely to suffer “immediate” harm, in the form of reduced access to health care providers willing to treat their gender dysphoria, if the law — which imposes penalties on doctors who prescribe gender-affirming treatments — were to take effect.Holbrook found that, because the plaintiffs were likely to succeed in their lawsuit, it was best to issue a temporary restraining order “maintaining the status quo while the Court can more thoroughly review the evidence and argument following a full hearing.”Holbrook also noted that the whole law had to be blocked because lawmakers combined the bill banning gender-affirming care with a separate bill banning transgender athletes from women’s sports to gain the necessary votes to pass the Republican-controlled state legislature.In December, Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed the bill from taking effect, expressing qualms about infringing on parents’ rights to make medical decisions for their own children.

announced at a vacant storefront at Connecticut Avenue and L Street NW, which will soon be transformed into a pop-up as part of Capital Fringe, an annual arts festival scheduled to take place from July 9 to 21.Japer Bowles, director of the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, hailed the program as a potential boon not only for the city as a whole, but for the LGBTQ community, especially in advance of D.C.’s hosting of WorldPride in 2025.“This is going to be great for WorldPride, because LGBTQIA+ businesses and business owners — whether in D.C. or in the region, or nationally or internationally, can come to D.C.

The Little Mermaid.The famously anti-LGBTQ Libs of TikTok claimed Tjachyadi was a crossdresser and drag queen with a “fetish for wearing women’s clothing to work.”Tjachyadi was placed on administrative leave in February while an investigation examined his attire during school “dress-up days,” in which students and teachers are permitted to wear costumes or other attire that match a specific theme.Even though the internal investigation found that he had broken no policies, Tjachyadi decided to resign, stating that the negative press the school had received — and hateful comments posted to social media — had become a “distraction” for students.Abbott had previously weighed in on Tjachyadi’s attire, seeking to marshal conservative outrage over gender-nonconformity into support for his plan for school vouchers, writing on social media,”No parent should be forced by the state to send their child to this school.”No parent should be forced by the state to send their child to this school.I'm fighting for the right of parents to send their children elsewhere.Parents deserve school choice in Texas. The candidates I am backing will deliver that school choice.

Shucked, the Broadway musical she co-wrote with longtime collaborator Shane McNally.“[It] was really, honestly incredible to be nominated across three genres, with country, Americana, and musical theater,” she says.These days, Clark feels pretty well embraced by the country music industry. She’s part of an unprecedented wave of LGBTQ performing artists in Nashville, a lineup that includes TJ Osborne of Brothers Osborne, Orville Peck, Lily Rose, Brooke Eden, Allison Russell, and, of course, Carlile.Clark had established herself as a top-notch songwriter for hire in Nashville long before she launched a recording career.“When Kenny Rogers recorded a song of mine called ‘She’ll Believe You,’ that was a massive pinch-me moment,” Clark says.

Unknown Soldier, by Daniel Goldstein and the late Michael Friedman, so poignantly depicts.A gripping mystery sparked by an ages-old news photograph, the show marks its D.C. premiere at Arena Stage in a new production staged with dexterity by Trip Cullman.The photograph in question — of an unidentified U.S.

#OpTransRights2 breach is here!We've breached Real America's Voice, a news platform spreading LGBTQ+ misinformation! time for a bit of lulz~User data leaked, AWS S3 buckets deleted, and user data wiped :3 https://t.co/dOLrkHkOrG pic.twitter.com/4yrP5SjEI7— SiegedSec (@SiegedSecurity) April 15, 2024SiegedSec also bragged about its actions on its X account, saying the hack was the second iteration of #OpTransRights, “a broader offensive against transphobia and the organizations that perpetrate it.”According to The Daily Dot, the data reportedly wiped from the Amazon server included personal user information related to the network’s top shows, including those hosted by right-wing mouthpieces, including Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, former advisor to President Trump Steve Bannon, and musician Ted Nugent.It’s unclear whether the hack caused any permanent damage.The #OpTransRights campaign started last year after the group targeted government websites in five states over their policies limiting access to gender-affirming care.The campaign was revived on April 1 when SiegedSec hacked the website of the River Valley Church in Burnsville, Minnesota, over anti-transgender remarks made by its pastor, Rob Ketterling.The hack of the River Valley Church website resulted in the leak of about 15,000 user accounts from the ministry’s website, as well as private prayer requests.The group followed that action by doxing Ketterling, making his email and personal phone number public, and encouraging pro-transgender advocates to send him texts criticizing his anti-trans rhetoric.SiegedSec addressed criticism of the group that the online attacks reflect negatively on the LGBTQ community as a whole.“Throughout our attacks on