Diss-United Kingdom
“Gender Identity”, Dissed: The United Kingdom’s Supreme Court has ruled that the “concept of sex is binary, a person is either a woman or a man.” The case was brought by an anti-transgender group in Scotland. The group lost its case in Scottish courts, but Wednesday’s decision overrules the Scottish court’s decision. Judge Patrick Hodge of the High Court said transgender people are still protected from discrimination, but the U.K. government did not say how it would secure trans rights.
Hate Speech laws, Dissed: An anonymous, but believable, claim says the United States is reportedly telling the United Kingdom to repeal its hate speech protections in order to get a trade deal. The vice president will demand that the British government roll back laws against hateful comments, including abuse targeting LGBT groups. The source said that the vice president is “obsessed by the fall of Western civilization,” and believes that free speech is supposedly being suppressed in the U.K. through such laws.
HIV services DOGED at HHS
It took 20 years to get it right. Now, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will fix what ain’t broken by integrating HIV services into a newly created entity called the “Administration for a Healthy America.” This new division will consolidate several existing agencies, including the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Health Resources and Services Administration, and others. The AHA will oversee key areas, including primary care, maternal and child health, mental health, environmental health, HIV/AIDS, and workforce development.
Santos sentencing
The hope that the name George Santos would never appear in these columns again has been dashed. In a sentencing statement urging a sentence of seven years in prison, Federal prosecutors called him a “pathological liar and fraudster” who “made a mockery of our election system.” Santos pleaded guilty to felony wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. The prosecutors detailed his “assortment of fraudulent schemes,” from stealing the identities of elderly donors to submitting falsified campaign finance documents and fabricating most of his biography using lies “to enrich himself and capture one of the highest offices in the government of the United States.” He was expelled from Congress in 2023. He has been appearing on late-night shows on Fox News, no doubt hoping to earn a pardon or a cabinet appointment, but so far, no such luck.
YouTube hate speech changes
Without much fanfare, YouTube eliminated the phrase “gender identity and expression” from its public-facing hate speech policy. GLAAD and other acronymical advocates warn that the change removes clarity around protections for transgender and nonbinary users. The company claims there has been no change in policy. Previously, YouTube’s policy barred content that promotes violence or hatred based on “gender identity and expression.” The revised policy now groups “Sex, Gender, or Sexual Orientation” as protected categories, making no reference to gender identity. The policy change came just after a presidential executive order declaring that the U.S. government would only recognize two sexes — male and female — determined at birth. YouTube said it was a routine edit for clarity, and should alarm no one. GLAAD forecasts, “Real-world harm. YouTube and other platforms should be protecting LGBTQ creators and users during a time when right-wing extremists and others are seeking to harm them.”
Gay U.S. Rep. announces Senate bid
As New Hampshire’s longtime senator Jeanne Shaheen shut the door on her senate career by announcing retirement, she opened the door for Chris Pappas, who represents New Hampshire’s First Congressional District. Pappas would be the first out gay man in the U.S. Senate since President James Buchanan’s long-time roommate and rumored love interest, Sen. William King, who was vice president of the U. S. and represented the states of Alabama and North Carolina in the Senate. He was called “Aunt Fannie” by people who knew him and served with Buchanan in the Senate in the 1840s. Lesbians and bisexual women have held seats in the Senate, now and in the past.
Beloved lesbian takes over Gill
Kate Kendell, who sprung from the Brow of Zeus in Utah has been named the new CEO of the Gill Foundation. Tim Gill founded the foundation in Colorado in 1994, following the success of Quark Software. Since then, it has invested more than $446 million in programs and nonprofit organizations nationwide, with a focus on LGBT issues. Grant recipients have included NCLR, GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders, GLAAD, the GenderCool Project, PFLAG, GLSEN, many state-level LGBT groups, and many that worked for marriage equality. Kendell was in private law practice in Utah and became the beloved staff attorney of the Utah ACLU. She left Utah to helm the National Center for Lesbian Rights and was recently the CEO of a health care foundation in California. She accepted the job at Gill Foundation because she says the time is right for her to get back into the fight for queer equality. She left the NCLR in 2018, “Thinking the LGBT movement was in pretty good shape. But I have watched with growing dismay to see some of those hard-won gains pushed back on, undermined, or in peril.” She will split her time between domestic bliss in San Francisco and LGBT warfare in Denver.
Pride bans proliferate
It’s a sign of the times that Pride Celebrations are experiencing pushback in some venues.
Washington, D.C.: The “World Pride Celebration” scheduled for this summer in Washington, D.C., has canceled performances at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and issued a travel warning to transgender individuals considering attending to take precautions in the city.
Naples, Florida: The municipal government of Naples, Florida, has refused to grant Naples Pride an event permit, citing increased security costs due to a probable rise in anti-transgender protests. The city also asked event organizers not to allow admittance to anyone under 18 years of age, which could force the event “indoors.” Pride-related “drag shows” were held indoors in 2024 at the city’s request, citing the, since ruled unconstitutional, “Drag Ban” passed by the Florida Legislature. The city wants Naples Pride to pay $36,000 for security. The amount is higher than what’s required for similarly sized events or what Naples Pride has paid annually since 2017.
Budapest, Hungary: The pushback got particularly intense in Hungary, as the Parliament passed a constitutional amendment disallowing any public events, rallies, marches, or gatherings related to LGBT events, Pride or otherwise. Parliament passed the “Assembly Act” by a vote of 140 to 21. The Amendment solidifies a law passed earlier banning public events held by LGBT organizations, making it much harder to change if a friendlier government comes to power. That may happen in the next parliamentary elections, if the huge protest marches against the Amendment are any clue as to voter behavior. The majority party pushing the amendment is behind in the polls for the 2026 elections. The debate centered on the measure’s effect on children who observe Pride celebrants’ stereotypical behavior at the festivals. The Assembly Act declares that a child’s rights to moral, physical, and spiritual development trump any right other than the right to life, including peaceful assembly.
Marriage equality ban lifted
Colorado Governor Jared Polis has signed legislation repealing the state’s same-sex marriage ban, which was added to the Colorado Constitution about the same time as Utah voters approved a constitutional referendum defining marriage as a strictly heterosexual affair. These bans were passed by 30 U.S. states in the first part of the 21st century. Twenty-six state constitutions, including Utah, still contain the anti-marriage equality language even though the U. S. Supreme Court ruled them unconstitutional in 2015. In signing the legislation, Polis said, “Colorado is for everyone, no matter who you are or who you love.” Colorado citizens voted out the language in the 2024 election. Follow the link for a full explanation of the states whose constitutions contain anti-marriage equality language: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._state_constitutional_amendments_banning_same-sex_unions
‘Invisible Histories,’ seeks visible address
“Invisible Histories” is a nonprofit set up to preserve the history of LGBT communities in the U.S. South. The group, founded in 2016, has a significant digital site, but scattered physical archives. The group is seeking a permanent brick-and-mortar location in Charlotte, North Carolina. The U.S. Federal government is revising how it expresses, stores, and portrays LGBT history. Many of the Federal Government’s digital and physical assets are removing references to transgender people’s participation in LGBT historical events. Dr. Maigen Sullivan, co-executive director of Invisible Histories, said the Fed’s action has given urgency to Invisible Histories’ effort to establish a permanent archive, “In a time when our histories are at risk of being erased, we are doubling down on our commitment to safeguarding and amplifying the voices of Southern LGBTQ people.” The facility in Charlotte will house the archives and will become a research center.
Billie Jean King scores star
Billie Jean King is the first woman to be honored in the Hollywood Walk of Fame’s new category for sports entertainment. The 81-year-old tennis legend’s star is the 2,807th on the Walk of Fame, located near the intersection of Hollywood and Vine across from the Pantages Theater. “The important thing is, I don’t want to be the last one,” King told a crowd which included her friends, wife Ilana Kloss, NBA star Magic Johnson, and Oscar-winning actor Jamie Lee Curtis.
