This article has been updated to include new information. Target announced this morning via a press release that they would be removing certain items from their 2023 Pride collection. The statement reads: “For more than a decade, Target has offered an assortment of products aimed at celebrating Pride Month. Since introducing this year’s collection, we’ve […]
Author Archives: Dana Piccoli
Dana Piccoli is an award winning writer, critic and the managing director of News is Out, a queer media collaborative.
Dana was named one of The Advocate Magazine’s 2019 Champions of Pride. She was also one of Curve Magazine’s 2017 Pridelist for her work in LGBTQ media. Dana is an inaugural recipient of the Curve Award for Excellence in Lesbian Coverage.
Posted inTop Stories
News is Good: Hulu to broadcast Pride, Philly bookstore turns 50 and more
Welcome to our weekly column, News is Good, where we feature 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 we’re excited about this week. LGBTQ+ bookstore Giovanni’s Room celebrates 50 years in […]
Posted inCommunity
Self-care for activists
Alyssa Keegan is a whole-person coach and certified peer counselor at Fresh Path NY who specializes in alternative lifestyles and non-monogamous relationships. Keegan, who is queer and nonbinary themself, works with many LGBTQ+ clients. News is Out asked Keegan to share their thoughts on self-care, in particular for those who are working or volunteering in […]
Posted inArts and Entertainment
News is Good: A “Selling Sunset” wedding, LGBTQ+ small business grants and more
Welcome to our weekly column, News is Good, where we feature 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 we’re excited about this week. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1xq5KMzUdk&embeds_euri=https%3A%2F%2Ffoundersfirstcdc.org%2F&embeds_origin=https%3A%2F%2Ffoundersfirstcdc.org&source_ve_path=Mjg2NjY&feature=emb_logo New LGBTQIA+ National Grant for LGBTQ+-owned small […]
Posted inArts and Entertainment
Ways the LGBTQ+ community and allies are fighting back against drag bans
Drag has recently become a target of conservative leaders across the country. From drag bans to threats from white supremacy groups showing up to intimidate performers at drag brunches, drag and gender nonconformity have become a leading issue used to fire up evangelical and right-wing voters. This is far from the first time drag has […]
Posted inFrom Washington Blade
George Santos charged by Justice Department
Federal prosecutors have charged U.S. Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) with criminal violations of federal statues. Originally reported by CNN on Tuesday, the exact nature of the charges couldn’t immediately be learned but the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Justice Department’s public integrity prosecutors in New York and D.C. have been examining allegations of false […]
Posted inBooks
Journalist Kevin Naff on his book “How We Won the War for LGBTQ Equality” and the battle to come
On the heels of his 20-year anniversary at the Washington Blade, Editor Kevin Naff is looking back on some of the biggest stories that shaped the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement. His book, “How We Won the War for LGBTQ Equality — And How Our Enemies Could Take It All Away,” features curated writings from Naff’s two decades at the […]
Posted inArts and Entertainment
News is Good: Grand Haven, MI’s first Pride, a festival hit on VOD and more
Welcome to our weekly column, News is Good, where we feature 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 we’re excited about this week. Grand Haven, Michigan, to celebrate first ever Pride […]
Posted inArts and Entertainment
LGBTQ+ Changemaker: Author Ryan La Sala
The LGBTQ+ Changemakers series features LGBTQ+ people all over the country who are making a difference through visibility and ingenuity. Ryan La Sala’s star isn’t just on the rise–it’s surging into the stratosphere. The fantasy and young adult author, who uses he/they/pronouns, has written three acclaimed queer YA books with another coming out in October. […]
Posted inFrom Washington Blade
Missouri rabbi says anti-trans policies threaten his children
Last month, the office of Republican Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey temporarily removed its online form for members of the public to lodge “a complaint or concern about gender transition intervention” they may have “experienced or observed.” Bailey had just issued an emergency rule proscribing gender affirming care in the state for minors as well […]
Posted inFrom Bay Area Reporter
Gunned down SF Black trans activist remembered at vigil
The pain of a community mourning a young Black trans man who was gunned down outside of a San Francisco Walgreens made itself known Monday — with a hundred people showing up at a vigil to remember him.
Posted inFrom Tagg Magazine
Workplace discrimination prevents three-quarters of LGBTQ+ women from coming out at work, reveals research
Three-quarters of LGBTQ+ women and non-binary people still fear coming out at work because of high rates of discrimination, according to new research carried out by myGwork, global talent platform and professional network for the LGBTQ+ community. The study, carried out to coincide with Lesbian Visibility Week, delves into some of the specific challenges that […]
Posted inFrom Washington Blade
Justice Department sues Tenn. over law banning healthcare for transgender youth
The Justice Department on Wednesday filed a complaint challenging Tennessee’s Senate Bill 1, a recently enacted law that denies necessary medical care to youth based solely on who they are. The complaint alleges that SB 1’s ban on providing certain medically necessary care to transgender minors violates the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. The department is also […]
Posted inFrom Tagg Magazine
Workplace Discrimination Prevents Three-Quarters of LGBTQ+ Women from Coming Out at Work, Reveals Research
Three-quarters of LGBTQ+ women and non-binary people still fear coming out at work because of high rates of discrimination, according to new research carried out by myGwork, global talent platform and professional network for the LGBTQ+ community. The study, carried out to coincide with Lesbian Visibility Week, delves into some of the specific challenges that […]
Posted inArts and Entertainment
News is Good: “The L Word” at the White House, MN bans conversion therapy and more
Welcome to our weekly column, News is Good, where we feature 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 we’re excited about this week. “The L Word” cast celebrates Lesbian Visibility Week […]
Posted inTop Stories
10 lesbian bars where you can celebrate Lesbian Visibility Week
The week of April 24-30 is Lesbian Visibility Week. It’s a time when lesbians, who comprise about 14% of the LGBTQ+ community, are celebrated. What better way to celebrate than by heading out to support one of the remaining two dozen lesbian bars in the country? Not within driving distance of these bars? For more […]
Posted inFrom Washington Blade
Harry Belafonte, ‘King of Calypso’ and LGBTQ ally, dies at 96
A rainbow banner slung over his right shoulder proudly proclaimed the spry octogenarian a “Grand Marshal 2013” of the New York City LGBT Pride March, joining another vibrant octogenarian, Edith “Edie” Windsor, who was also a “Grand Marshal 2013” that bright sunny June day. Between the two of them, the honor was an acknowledgement of […]
Posted inFrom Philadelphia Gay News
Pa. legislators hope to expand statewide protections for LGBTQ community
While GOP-led state legislatures are advancing a record number of anti-LGBTQ bills in 2023, the Pennsylvania Assembly’s LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus seeks to make significant pro-LGBTQ changes to state law. With two new bills, state lawmakers hope to formally codify marriage equality as well as expand anti-discrimination protections for the LGBTQ community. The intent by several […]
Posted inFrom Washington Blade
Biden criticizes GOP-led efforts to ban books
President Joe Biden criticized elected Republican officials for the increasingly widespread practice of banning books from America’s schools and libraries in prepared remarks delivered from the White House on Monday. Addressing an audience gathered in the Rose Garden for the Council of Chief State School Officers’ Teachers of the Year event, the president said, “Empty […]
Posted inFrom Windy City Times
CDC: Almost 90% of mpox-associated deaths involved Black men
A new report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that almost 90% of pox-related deaths in the United States were among Black men, CNN noted. Moreover, nearly all of the victims
