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The New York Post, taken by a neighbor whose residence faces the park on Grove Street, shows the three men casually strolling down the block, snatching the flags off the fence one by one before strolling eastward on Waverly Place. The NYPD has since released its own separate surveillance footage and is asking for the public’s help identifying the culprits. Two of the men are wearing white button-down shirts and light-colored pants, and another is wearing a black T-shirt and jeans.Based on the surveillance footage, one of the men wearing white appears to have a short mustache and wavy, short-cropped brown hair, while the other, with dark brown hair, has a full beard.

The U.S. State Department has issued an advisory warning Americans about traveling to Uganda following the passage of a sweeping anti-LGBTQ law. The State Department is advising Americans to reconsider traveling to the East African country due to crime, terrorism threats, and the country’s recently passed Anti-Homosexuality Act. “The May 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Act raises the risk that LGBTQI+ persons, and those perceived to be LGBTQI+, could be prosecuted and subjected to life imprisonment or death based on provisions in the law, and may be subject to mandatory reporting to the police if they are suspected of committing or intending to commit acts in violation of the law, and could face harassment or attacks by vigilantes,” the advisory reads.“Supporters of the dignity and human rights of LGBTQI+ persons (including those of youth under the age of 18) could be prosecuted and imprisoned for multi-year sentences,” the advisory warns.

Lover. With its infectious uptempo beats, the song had the potential to change the world and become another massive hit for Swift.

Despite widespread anti-transgender violence in 2022, the news media spent less than an hour covering it.The only exception was the Club Q massacre, which gained news primarily because it was a mass shooting that claimed five lives, rather than Club Q’s connection to the LGBTQ community.According to a new analysis by Media Matters for America, a liberal-leaning media watchdog group, major cable and broadcast networks spent just over 6 hours reporting on anti-transgender violence, which claimed 38 lives in the United States in 2022.However, the overwhelming majority of that coverage — 91%,  or 5 hours and 12 minutes — was focused on the Club Q massacre, in which two of the victims were transgender.Additionally, due to the timing of the attack, which happened near the end of the calendar year, in November 2022, for more than 10 months, coverage of anti-transgender violence on major TV networks was, at best, scant, if not absent altogether.The remaining 48 minutes of coverage aired on one network, MSNBC, and were split into eight segments, despite the higher number of victims — 36 in total.Additionally, unlike the two Club Q transgender victims, who were white, the majority of transgender or gender-nonconforming individuals were Black or Latinx women, highlighting the disparities that can exist in media coverage of violence based on the identities of victims. “Media networks have a track record of fixating on individual tragedies that provide opportunities for sensationalized coverage rather than drawing earnest attention to the stark reality of violence against marginalized people in America,” Media Matters wrote in its report. “This can give the impression that violence against trans people is isolated rather than an

“As much as we’ve seen a progression and needed change, in which more schools have an accepting and affirming climate, where people are able to go to a dance and dance with whomever they choose and dress how they want to, for students who are not out, prom can still be an intimidating experience,” says Amy Cannava.Cannava, a school psychologist who serves as program manager for social activities and social support at Safe Space NOVA, is discussing the motivation behind the LGBTQ youth organization’s annual “Pride Prom.”“We’ve also had situations where young people just don’t feel psychologically — if not physically — safe at their own prom because it’s in a smaller school or a school where there are fewer out LGBTQ youth,” she adds. “And so knowing that you’re going into an environment where everyone is either an ally or queer or trans is instantly supportive and disarming, because people don’t feel the need to hide who they are or worry about people questioning them.”Held annually, the Pride Prom is an event that serves as an LGBTQ alternative to a traditional prom for high school-aged students, from rising ninth graders to recent graduates.

A sitting U.S. senator has been censured by his own party for supporting a pro-marriage equality bill.Delegates of the North Carolina Republican Party voted overwhelmingly, by a 799-361 margin, to reprimand U.S.

veto of Democratic Gov.

The Hill.“Whether you’re organizing a Pride parade, running a small business, or just trying to focus at school, you should have — you shouldn’t have to deal with bomb threats, harassment, and violent attacks,” Biden said of the administration’s new initiatives.He also touted past progress on LGBTQ rights, including reversing the ban on transgender service members in the U.S. Armed Forces; executive orders signed by Biden ensuring protections for housing, employment, health care, and education; efforts to combat conversion therapy; national efforts to address public health crises, including the HIV epidemic and the outbreak of monkeypox; the FDA’s relaxing of restrictions on gay and bisexual male blood donors; and the signing of the Respect for Marriage Act, which would ensure same-sex marriages are recognized as valid, even in the case of a reversal of the Supreme Court’s 2015 decision legalizing marriage equality.Biden noted that more has to be done to protect LGBTQ people from discrimination and urged Congress to pass the Equality Act.

Kimberly Akimbo, which walked away with five prestigious Tony Awards. The production secured accolades such as Best Musical, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical, and Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre. Close on the heels of Kimberly Akimbo were Some Like It Hot and Leopoldstadt, as both showed earned four wins each.

If Madonna is open to performing some not-so-massive hit singles during The Celebration Tour, here are 10 we really hope end up being highlighted when the venture begins next month.“Beautiful Stranger”“Beautiful Stranger” is a hidden gem from Madonna’s discography that deserves a prominent place in her upcoming tour. Released in 1999 as the theme song for the Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me movie, this infectious psychedelic pop and disco song peaked at No.

Thematically, “Vulgar” explores the concept of embracing a provocative demeanor, as both Madonna and Sam Smith know something about. Sadly though, the song does not deliver a profound message nor possess the infectious catchiness that typically compels listeners to sing along. Of the two verses, Madonna’s stands out as more intriguing and playful, featuring lines such as “Boy, get down on your knees” and “So watch what you say or I’ll split your banana.” Additionally, Madonna cleverly references her musical history with the nostalgic line, “Let’s get into the groove.”The chorus consists of the Grammy-winning duo repeatedly chanting the word “Vulgar,” seemingly eschewing the conventional structure found in mainstream pop songs.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has issued an executive order declaring the state a safe haven for transgender people seeking out gender-affirming health care.The order, issued by Moore on June 6, during an Annapolis Pride celebration, aims to protect people who travel to Maryland seeking out gender-affirming care, which may be banned or restricted in their home states.

Passages, the “sexy and sad” romantic drama from writer-director Ira Sachs, and Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winning documentary Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovani Project, the festival aims to celebrate the community that’s been there for decades.Other highlights of this year’s festival include It’s Only Life After All, a newly-minted documentary about the Indigo Girls, the Argentinian drama Horseplay, and Nelly & Nadine, a poignant documentary about two women who, after their release from Ravensbrück concentration camp, forged a life of companionship and love.Cinema Art executive director Helen Chamberlin, a native Washingtonian who spent her summers as a youth in Rehoboth, has watched the area’s community evolve over the years. “I remember it was very prevalent that there was an LGBT — or LGB — community here in Rehoboth back in the mid-seventies,” she recalls.“When I looked at the original mini film festival that they did for this community — when I got here, it was called ‘LGBTQ Cine-brations’ — I thought to myself, ‘You know, Pride has become such a huge phenomenon globally…let’s get in the game here.”Getting in the game meant re-branding the festival, scheduling it during Pride Month, maintaining partnerships with organizations like festival co-presenter CAMP Rehoboth, and going after some of the most buzzed-about queer-themed titles to premiere this year at Sundance and Berlin.“When you rebrand something, you have to grow your audience,” says Chamberlin, who stepped into her role at the Cinema Art and the Rehoboth Beach Film Society a year ago.

Fellow Travelers starring none other than Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey has been released, and if any gay person wasn’t already excited for this upcoming show, this teaser should get them on board.The trailer features Bailey and Bomer’s characters crossing paths, and it’s clear that their eyes meeting in a flirtatious encounter is setting the stage for what lies ahead. The Fellow Travelers teaser is scintillating and sexy, but it doesn’t give too much away.

a ban on transgender athletes last year.The most prominent of the bills is a measure to ban transgender youth from accessing gender-affirming treatments meant to treat gender dysphoria, including puberty blockers, hormones, or surgical interventions, the latter of which are rarely performed on minors.The ban on gender-affirming care appeared to be dead last month after Sen. Fred Mills (R-New Iberia, the chairman of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee, voted with Democrats to reject the bill when it came before the committee.  Mills said that his decision had been heavily influenced by a 2022 Louisiana Health Department study on gender-affirming health care.It found that no gender-affirming surgical procedures had been performed on any minors enrolled in Medicaid in the state between 2017 and 2021, and that hormone and puberty blockers were rarely prescribed to transgender-identifying minors in Louisiana during that same period. National conservative pundits — who have deemed opposition to LGBTQ visibility, transgender rights, and “wokeness” as essential to their party’s brand — were outraged at Mills’ defection, and promised political retribution.Mills’ fellow Republicans caved to pressure from those voices to revive the bill.Senators then used a rare procedural maneuver to recommit the bill to a different committee, allowing it to pass on a 29-10 vote, reports the Associated Press.The bill now heads back to the House, which previously overwhelmingly approved the ban on gender-affirming care.

“I tell folks, when they ask why to choose Baltimore Pride over other cities’ Prides, is that attending Pride in other cities requires lots of money and can be very pricey,” says Tremor Wilson, senior director of advocacy and community engagement at the Pride Center of Maryland, which organizes Charm City’s annual celebration. “If you go to New York City Pride, for example, hotels are $500 minimum and up, so it’s not affordable to the average person.“With Baltimore Pride, we partner with local hotels to offer affordable rooms that are cheaper than what they’d regularly cost,” Wilson continues.

Metro Weekly that he felt flying the Pride flag above the center of county government was the most meaningful event on the schedule. “When we raised the Pride flag four years ago, there was a lot of hate and anger not only in our community but across the country for the actions we were taking,” Glass says. “We continue to raise the Pride flag every year because we are not backing down to haters and bigots and homophobes.

Andrew Hartzler, the nephew of anti-LGBTQ Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler, has once again gone viral for sharing a video of his parents hiring an exorcist to “exorcize the demons” they believe were “responsible” for “making him gay.” Hartzler first went viral in the summer of 2022 after posting a video of his aunt Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler crying after opposing the Respect for Marriage Act of 2022.The Respect for Marriage Act requires states to recognize same-sex marriages made in other states and repeals the Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as only between a man and a woman.Using Biblical values as the basis for her argument, the Congresswoman tearfully begged for the bill not to pass.After the bill passed, Andrew Hartzler posted a response to his aunt, pointing out how this kind of speech is “hateful rhetoric and blatant discrimination” against LGBTQ people.Hartlzer went through his aunt’s speech, highlighting her leaps in logic and fundamental ignorance about religion, the government, and LGBTQ people. When the Respect for Marriage Act came to President Biden’s desk, Andrew Hartzler was invited to the signing ceremony on December 13, 2022. Hartzler has since worked at Oklahomans for Equality, an Oklahoma-based LGBTQ advocacy group that operates the Dennis R.

Pose, Ryan Jamaal Swain, one of the stars of FX’s Emmy-winning, dearly missed ballroom drama, doesn’t hesitate a moment before responding. “Oh, of course. Season two, episode eight.

On Friday, June 2, the Capital Pride Alliance honored LGBTQ leaders and trailblazers at its annual Capital Pride Honors ceremony, marking the start of Pride in the nation’s capital.Receiving the “Paving the Way” award was Admiral Rachel Levine, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of Health at the U.S.

Pose, Ryan Jamaal Swain, one of the stars of FX’s Emmy-winning, dearly missed ballroom drama, doesn’t hesitate a moment before responding. “Oh, of course. Season two, episode eight.

slammed by LGBTQ advocates as one of the worst bills targeting the transgender community, in part due to its provisions that extend well beyond the realm of transgender health care.In addition to banning gender-affirming medical care for minors, it restricts what bathrooms students may use in schools, limits the scope of sex education to exclude LGBTQ-related topics or information on sexually transmitted diseases, and allows school administrators, employees, and students to misgender trans-identifying minors. None of those other provisions have been challenged in court. The plaintiff families sued last month, alleging the law’s provisions barring transgender minors from accessing gender-affirming treatments infringe on their parents’ right to autonomy in terms of how they choose to raise and make medical decisions for their children and on the youths’ right to equal protection under the law.Corey Shapiro, the legal director for the ACLU of Kentucky, said in a statement that the families “should be able to begin or continue essential medical care” for their children, arguing that the law is an egregious form of government overreach into personal family decisions.They also argue that it is inconsistent with leading medical organizations’ recommendations for treating children suffering from gender dysphoria.“Banning medically necessary care for trans youth is not supported by science or reputable major medical organizations,” Shapiro said.

Since the beginning of the HIV epidemic, racism and anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination have created dangerous hurdles for those seeking prevention or treatment,” Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement. “With the generous support of Gilead Sciences, we’ll be able to continue providing critical resources to help overcome these hurdles, especially focusing on Black and Latiné communities in the U.S.

New York Post.The calls come as several national corporations, including Bud Light, Target, and LEGO Group, find themselves on the receiving end of abuse for partnering with out LGBTQ influencers, embracing LGBTQ customers, or creating Pride-themed merchandise.Social conservatives have become enraged, arguing that promoting or trumpeting LGBTQ visibility advances an “agenda” that is being thrust into people’s faces.“This is bad. Very bad.

A major Japanese court ruled that the current ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.On Tuesday, a Japanese district court ruled that the government’s current policy of prohibiting same-sex marriages violates the country’s constitution. Supporters of LGBTQ rights say this is a step in the right direction toward marriage equality in the country.According to Kyodo News, Judge Osamu Nishimura, of the Nagoya District Court ruled that the current system of marriage in Japan is unconstitutional because it excludes same-sex couples, thereby leaving them with no legal protections when it comes to issues like health care decision-making, child-rearing, and inheritance rights, among other rights and privileges that come with matrimony.This is the second court ruling finding that the government’s ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional, following a similar challenge from the city of Sapporo.However, district courts in Tokyo and Osaka sided against petitioners in two other challenges to the existing marriage law.

Last month, the board of the Temecula Valley Unified School District voted to block a social studies textbook whose supplemental resources mention gay civil rights activist and politician Harvey Milk as a historical figure of note, with the president of the conservative-leaning board calling the former San Francisco Supervisor a “pedophile.”The textbook, titled Social Studies Alive, was recommended to be approved for students in first through fifth grades. Although the textbook itself doesn’t mention Milk, the board’s conservative Christian majority – which took power during the 2022 midterms – objected to a supplemental reading package mentioning Milk that accompanies the textbook. Milk, a U.S.

RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 8 left fans in complete shock, as the Snatch Game competition took an unexpected turn. Among the beloved queens of the Drag Race franchise, Heidi N Closet’s decision to quit the competition after a series of intense drama left viewers astounded, as it has only happened a few times before in the history of the show.Following the controversial episode, Closet took to social media to candidly express her thoughts and shed light on her departure. In her own words, she explained, “So through out the last 9 months I dealt with sadness, depression, and anger and through that I did make a diss track but THANK U to my amazing partner and group of friends that helped me through that and reminded me about peace and love.

seized on drag as a contentious issue in the modern-day culture wars, with many GOP lawmakers seeking to ban public drag performances in the name of protecting children from being exposed to potentially inappropriate material.Some overzealous law enforcement authorities in Nashville even went so far as to threaten singer Hayley Kiyoko with legal action earlier this year over having drag queens on stage with her as part of her concert tour — despite the fact the Tennessee law seeking to ban drag shows in public had been blocked by the courts.But conservatives have also seized on drag shows as emblematic of the military’s overall LGBTQ-inclusive service and recruiting policies, with many arguing that allowing drag shows at military facilities is an inappropriate use of taxpayer funds, undermines military readiness by weakening soldiers’ resolve, and hampers the military’s recruiting efforts by making military service unpalatable to social conservatives, especially those from the South or so-called “red states.”“Per DoD Joint Ethics Regulation (JER), certain criteria must be met for persons or organizations acting in non-federal capacity to use DoD facilities and equipment,” Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said in a statement to Politico. “As [Defense] Secretary [Lloyd] Austin has said, the DoD will not host drag events at U.S.

Judy Blume has a movie out. I’ve not yet seen it, but good for her. Her Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing was the first book to elicit laughter from me.

Since the beginning of the HIV epidemic, racism and anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination have created dangerous hurdles for those seeking prevention or treatment,” Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement. “With the generous support of Gilead Sciences, we’ll be able to continue providing critical resources to help overcome these hurdles, especially focusing on Black and Latiné communities in the U.S.

seized on drag as a contentious issue in the modern-day culture wars, with many GOP lawmakers seeking to ban public drag performances in the name of protecting children from being exposed to potentially inappropriate material.Some overzealous law enforcement authorities in Nashville even went so far as to threaten singer Hayley Kiyoko with legal action earlier this year over having drag queens on stage with her as part of her concert tour — despite the fact the Tennessee law seeking to ban drag shows in public had been blocked by the courts.But conservatives have also seized on drag shows as emblematic of the military’s overall LGBTQ-inclusive service and recruiting policies, with many arguing that allowing drag shows at military facilities is an inappropriate use of taxpayer funds, undermines military readiness by weakening soldiers’ resolve, and hampers the military’s recruiting efforts by making military service unpalatable to social conservatives, especially those from the South or so-called “red states.”“Per DoD Joint Ethics Regulation (JER), certain criteria must be met for persons or organizations acting in non-federal capacity to use DoD facilities and equipment,” Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said in a statement to Politico. “As [Defense] Secretary [Lloyd] Austin has said, the DoD will not host drag events at U.S.

On Thursday, Mayor Muriel Bowser kicked off Pride month in Washington, D.C. by raising an LGBTQ Pride flag above the John A.

Forsyth News. The controversy attracted the attention of several parent groups, one of which demanded that the district shelve LGBTQ-themed books separately in school libraries, while others demanded their complete removal.At the same time as the Forsyth challenges were moving forward, the Georgia General Assembly passed a bill requiring school districts to enact an expedited complaint resolution policy regarding any challenged books.Under the process, parents or guardians of students in the school system can file complaints, and administrators must promptly remove the books and begin a 10-day review and decision-making process, during which they will decide whether the book is banned.The law also allows for a 30-day appeals process that allows anyone to challenge an administrator’s decision by attempting to have the school board overrule the administrator.Ultimately, Forsyth County Schools reviewed the challenged books, with a committee comprised of teachers, media specialists, students, and parents reading the material and providing feedback on whether they should be banned permanently.The committee considered the quality of the content in the book, how the “objectionable” or “sexually explicit” material was introduced, and what age level the content might be appropriate for, if at all.Following that review, seven of the eight books “indefinitely” banned from the shelves were ultimately deemed acceptable for high school students, with only All Boys Aren’t Blue, a memoir by George M. Johnson about growing up as a gay Black man, remaining banned from shelves.In response to parent and student complaints about Forsyth County Schools’ book-banning process, the U.S.

report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).The CDC estimates that there were about 32,000 new HIV infections in 2021, representing a 12% drop from 2017.During that same timeframe, annual infections were reduced by more than twice as much — dropping 34% — among gay and bisexual men aged 13 to 24.The decrease in infections among that subgroup accounted for more than half of the overall drop in new infections.The decrease in new HIV infections was more prominent among young white gay and bisexual men, compared to their Black and Hispanic peers — underscoring continued disparities among various racial groups in prevention and treatment.Much of the decrease appears to be attributed to increased use of pre-exposure prophylaxis — PrEP, a daily pill that can prevent transmission of HIV.PrEP increased from being used by 13% of those eligible for it in 2017 to 30% of those eligible for it in 2021. However, the majority of that increase was driven by white people who were eligible for PrEP due to their sexual behavior, 78% of whom were written a prescription for the daily medicine in 2021, compared to only 11% of eligible Black people and 20.5% of eligible Latinos.The CDC estimates that about 1.2 million people in the United States have HIV, but about 1 in 8 are unaware of their status, usually due to reticence around getting tested or lack of access to health care services.Awareness of one’s status is especially low among young people, who represented about 15% of total new infections in 2021, reports CNN.

revised version of the bill that rolls back some of its more severe provisions. For instance, under the original version of the legislation, merely identifying as LGBTQ could land someone in prison, while under the new law, only those who engage in same-sex conduct can be prosecuted.The revised version of the bill also rolls back provisions that would have required family, friends, and neighbors to report any suspected same-sex activity, even between consenting adults, to authorities or risk fines and imprisonment.

As the region’s major theaters rebound from the dark nights of the pandemic, it’s nothing short of miraculous that its fringe scene — under-recognized and under-funded at the best of times — has found a way to keep the curtains rising. Operating on a wing and a prayer, these tiny theater troupes may be labors of semi-volunteer love, but they are, without doubt, the crazy, tinkling bells that keep a city’s culture alive, vibrant and just a whole lot more fun to explore.