Category: From Washington Blade

Russian authorities have released WNBA star Brittney Griner. Griner was released in exchange for Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer who was serving a 25-year prison sentence in the U.S. Griner is serving a nine-year prison sentence after a Russian court convicted her on the importation of illegal drugs after Russian customs officials found vape Read More

As many as several dozen LGBTQ activists wearing white robes and carrying photos of victims of gun violence were planning a procession along city streets from the As You Are LGBTQ bar on Capitol Hill on Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 7, to the nearby St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. The church, located at 301 A St., S.E., Read More

The upper chamber of the Russian State Duma voted Nov. 30 to approve legislation banning LGBTQ propaganda as well as materials that promote discussion of gender reassignment and mention of LGBTQ issues to minors, which is categorized as promotion of pedophilia. Violation of the ban will result in fines of up to 10 million rubles ($160,212.80.) Read More

It hit me one morning this fall as I woke up: I’ve turned 70. As I’ve been celebrating this milestone, I’ve marveled at the changes that have occurred for our LGBTQ community during my lifetime. Marriage equality, Pete Buttigieg (or any LGBTQ person) running for president and/or the fab queer rom-com “Bros” would have been Read More

A district court in the Tokyo Prefecture ruled on Wednesday that Japan’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage is legal. The court added that the absence of a legal system to protect same-sex families infringed upon their human rights. In a statement to Reuters, Nobuhito Sawasaki, an attorney for the plaintiffs told the wire service, “This Read More

Passage of the Respect for Marriage Act became all but certain with the U.S. Senate’s procedural 61-35 vote on Monday night to forego additional debate in the chamber over the landmark legislation. From here, the bill will return to the U.S. House of Representatives, which will consider — and is expected to approve — an Read More

It was 7:15 a.m. and I had just landed after traveling across the country from working with my military unit. My phone started ringing. “Did you see it? and “How are you feeling?” were the messages that started pouring in. Then I saw the news: “Colorado Springs LGBTQ+ Club Q Shooting.” I was struck with Read More

Shortly after five people were murdered and dozens injured over the weekend when a gunman opened fire in a Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub, Fox News host Tucker Carlson defended his and his allies’ escalating use of incendiary anti-LGBTQ rhetoric. During his show on Monday night, Carlson inveighed against individuals and groups that responded to the Read More

A D.C. Superior Court judge on Nov. 17 sentenced a 46-year-old D.C. man to 14 months in jail after he pleaded guilty in September to an assault charge for an incident in which he attacked lesbian activist Aiyi’nah Ford at a restaurant on Aug. 3 An arrest affidavit filed by D.C. police on Aug. 12 Read More

WASHINGTON – In his message this Transgender Day of Remembrance 2022, the day set aside to honor the lives lost to hate, bigotry and anti-trans violence, President Joe Biden marked the lives of transgender Americans known to have been killed this year by horrific acts of brutality and highlighted the attack on the LGBTQ club Read More

Just before midnight on Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-Ny.) announced that consideration of the Respect for Marriage Act and an associated amendment will resume on November 28, when the chamber reconvenes following the Thanksgiving break. The historic legislation would preserve the more than 1,100 rights and benefits enjoyed by married same-sex couples regardless Read More

Thanksgiving is less than a week away, and we all know what that means. No, we’re not talking about digging out all those saved recipes for using leftover turkey. We mean, of course, that it’s time for the Blade’s annual Holiday Entertainment Preview, when we round up all the new LGBTQ viewing options coming our Read More

A Virginia lawmaker has introduced a bill that would ban transgender athletes from school sports teams that correspond with their gender identity. State Del. Karen Greenhalgh (R-Virginia Beach) introduced House Bill 1387 on Tuesday An HB 1387 summary notes it would require “each interscholastic, intercollegiate, intramural or club athletic team or sport sponsored by a public elementary Read More

LGBTQ Victory Fund President Annise Parker always tells prospective LGBTQ candidates that her best advice is to “knock on doors and tell voters what issues you’re running on.” Last night and into Wednesday across the nation that advice paid off as a historic slate of queer candidates were elected to local, state and federal offices Read More

Congress adopted the Voting Rights Act in 1964 to ensure that Black Americans could effectively exercise the franchise. A year later, Congress adopted the Older Americans Act to ensure that our country’s older adults have the services they need to age in community and to prioritize older populations facing special challenges. Almost 60 years later, the back-to-back Read More

The National Trust for Historic Development has chosen the New York City LGBT Historic Sites Project as the recipient of its Trustees Award for Organization Excellence. The LGBT Historic Sites Project is one of nine historic preservation-related organizations that were recognized with awards at a Nov. 4 virtual ceremony that was available to the public. Read More

Eliana Rodríguez and her father Javier floated on a mattress and pieces of broken debris in flood water in Utuado, Puerto Rico, praying help would come for hours.   “The rain kept falling and never stopped,” Rodríguez said of the flood water that filled the home she shared with her father. “We sat in the dark Read More

Same-sex couples can now legally marry across Mexico after lawmakers in Tamaulipas state on Wednesday approved a marriage equality bill. Mexico City in 2010 became the first jurisdiction in the country to allow same-sex couples to legally marry. The Mexican Supreme Court in 2015 ruled state laws that ban same-sex marriage are “discriminatory.” Lawmakers in Read More