Our weekly column, News is Good, features positive news about the LGBTQ+ community. Too much of what we see in mainstream media coverage focuses on the challenges we face and not the celebrations. Here are a few things weβre excited about this week.
Lawrence City Commission votes to make Lawrence, Kansas a sanctuary city for transgender people. In a unanimous vote of 5-0, the city of Lawrence, located between Topeka and Kansas City, will now be a safe refuge for trans people. The ordinance is a response to the Kansas legislature’s recently passed “Women’s Bill of Rights,” which bars transgender women from using women’s bathrooms, seeking assistance from women’s domestic violence shelters or participating in women’s sports.
TikTok star Maddie Zahm’s debut full-length album arrives this fall. Zahm, who has over a million social media followers on TikTok and Instagram, announced her debut album “Where Do All The Good Kids Go?” will drop Oct. 20. The album comes on the heels of Zahm’s viral hits, “Fat Funny Friend” and the queer-centric “You May Not Like Her” and features 13 tracks produced by Dollgirl/AWAL Recordings.
A first look at Netflix’s “Rustin” biopic about civil rights leader Bayard Rustin. The film, directed by George C. Wolfe and starring Colman Domingo, looks at the life and work of civil rights and queer rights activist Bayard Rustin. About Rustin, Wolfe said, “He is a role model for what it means to be an American, what it means to daily, moment-to-moment, commit to democracy, commit to freedom, commit to possibility, commit to discovery, commit to passing on that which you know to other people.” The film will debut on Netflix Nov. 17.
U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team star Megan Rapinoe gets the cartoon treatment ahead of the Women’s World Cup. Rapinoe, who will retire from professional soccer after this season, is featured in Nike’s World Cup campaign. In the ad, Rapinoe is an 80s action hero and the video even features a cartoon cameo from Rapinoe’s fiancΓ©e, Sue Bird.