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PASSAGES Todd Vitale
Todd Louis Vitale, 60, a professional vocalist and Realtor who lived in Chicago's Sheridan Park neighborhood, passed away peacefully Nov. 15, after a long battle with ALS-Lou Gehrig's disease. Born in East St. Louis, Illinois, Todd ...
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Chicagoans gather to mark the 2023 Trans Day of Remembrance
Brave Space Alliance, Chicago Therapy Collective and Life is Work joined forces to celebrate Trans Day of Remembrance under the banner New Era Together Nov. 19 at Venue West, 221 N. Paulina St., on the West ...
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PASSAGES: Mexico's first out nonbinary magistrate Jesus Ociel Baena Saucedo
On Nov. 13, Mexico's first out nonbinary magistrate and LGBTQ+ activist Jesus Ociel Baena Saucedo was found dead in their state of Aguascalientes home alongside their partner Dorian Herrera. They were 38. According to state prosecutor ...
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PASSAGES Ashley Marie McClure-Wolfson
Ashley Marie McClure-Wolfson, "Ash," pharmacist, BCACP, AAHIVP, passed away suddenly Nov. 11. She was 35 and a resident of the Andersonville neighborhood. Born in Burnsville, Minnesota, Ashley graduated from Burnsville High School and completed a six-year ...
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PASSAGES Best-selling author, labor lawyer, feminist, LGBTQ ally Linda Hirshman
Best-selling author, renowned pro-union labor lawyer, Brandeis University professor, feminist and LGBTQ ally Linda Hirshman died Oct. 31 in Burlington, Vermont of cancer. She was 79. Hirshman was born April 26, 1944, in Cleveland where she ...
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PASSAGES James Taylor Bannen
James Taylor Bannen, 61, of Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood, passed away Nov. 11 after an unexpected cardiac event. James was born in Rockford and grew up in Terre Haute, Indiana, the son of Howard James Bannen, ...
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Equality Illinois mourns the death of Magistrate Dr. Jesus Ociel Baena Saucedo
--From a press release
Statement by Mony Ruiz-Velasco, Deputy Director at Equality Illinois, the state's civil rights organization for LGBTQ+ people, regarding the death of Dr Jesus Ociel Baena Saucedo: "I am deeply saddened to learn of the death of ...
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PASSAGES Local bowling legend, Wordle enthusiast Mary Ann Graziano
Mary Ann Graziano was a fervent Wordle player, avid bowler and an ace golfer. But above all else, she was a friend to many. The Palatine native died Oct. 9 at the age of 82, after a long illness that left ...
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PASSAGES: Chicagoan Lisa Love
Chicagoan Lisa Love was shot and killed in the early morning hours of Oct. 17. She was 35, and at the time was the 33rd transgender, nonbinary or gender non-conforming American to be killed in 2023, ...
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PASSAGES: Activist, former Organized Chaos Chicago president Kathy Guzman
Community activist, former Organized Chaos Chicago (OCC) president and founding member and now-retired queer women-focused L Stop website editor-at-large and writer Kathy Guzman died October 26 of heart complications. She ...
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PASSAGES Avid ceramicist Don Heggemann remembered for 'dedicated,' lively presence
Ceramics instructor Dubhe Carreño first met Don Heggemann when he took her Saturday general ceramics class at Northeastern Illinois University in 2010. He took every one of her classes after that. Heggemann eventually joined the staff ...
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PASSAGES: Longtime social justice activist, filmmaker, writer Amber Hollibaugh
Longtime social justice and HIV/AIDS activist, filmmaker, public speaker and writer Amber Hollibaugh died Oct. 20 due to complications from type one diabetes in her Brooklyn, New York home. She was 77. A self-described "lesbian sex ...
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Boisterous activist/business owner Marge Summit remembered
A group of Chicago-area friends gathered Oct. 15 at the Baton Show Lounge to celebrate the extraordinary life of LGBTQ+ activist and community organizer and former bar owner Marge Summit. Summit, the former owner of the ...
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PASSAGES: Lighting specialist, Chicago Gay Men's Chorus alum Xavier Yager
Lighting specialist, former Proctor and Gamble pharmaceutical sales representative and Chicago Gay Men's Chorus alum Xavier Yager died Oct. 1 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in his home due to heart failure. He was 66. Yager was ...
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PASSAGES: Peter Vamvakas
Peter Vamvakas of Forest Park—a loving partner, son, brother, uncle, and friend—died Aug. 23. due to complications from an accident while vacationing in Key West, Florida. He was 60. He was born in Chicago on April ...
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PASSAGES: Renowned DJ, music producer Teresa K. Bristol aka Teri Bristol
Renowned DJ and music producer Teresa Kaye Bristol, aka Teri Bristol, died Sept. 25 in Beechgrove, Tennessee of kidney failure, following an over three-year battle with the disease. She was 66. Bristol was born Dec. 26, ...
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PASSAGES: Former Chicago lesbian nightclub bartender Jennifer Cadieux
Former lesbian nightclub bartender Jennifer Cadieux died Oct. 1 of cancer at the age of 60. She was surrounded by close friends. ...
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Groundbreaking U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein passes away at 90
Dianne Feinstein—the oldest member of the U.S. Senate and the longest-serving senator from California—has passed away at age 90. Feinstein had planned to retire at the end of her 2024 term, according to CNBC. Shecast her ...
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PASSAGES: Chicago musician, producer and DJ Don Crescendo
Queer Chicago musician, producer and DJ Rodney Donovan Taylor, a.k.a. Don Crescendo, was fatally stabbed on the evening of Sept. 12 in his Avondale neighborhood apartment building. He died Sept. 15 at Illinois Masonic Hospital after ...
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Marge Summit's life to be celebrated Oct. 15
--From a press release
A celebration of the extraordinary life of Marge Summit, the legendary Chicago bar owner, promoter of live music artists, political advocate and much more who passed away on May 16, 2023. Born Sept. 3, 1935 in ...
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PASSAGES Beauman "Beau" Kent Breeden
Beauman "Beau" Kent Breeden, 41, passed away Friday, Aug. 11, 2023. Beau is survived by his partner, Eddie Gamboa, and their rabbits Cap and Debbie, as well as queer family that went above and beyond to ...
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PASSAGES: Former OPALGA+ board member, editor JoAnn Ziebarth
Former Oak Park Area Lesbian and Gay Association (OPALGA+) board member and editor JoAnn Ziebarth died July 18 after suffering a bad fall. She was 67. Ziebarth was born Dec. 27, 1955, in DeKalb, where ...
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Singer Sinead O'Connor dies at 56
Sinead O'Connor—the Irish singer and activist who scored a global smash with a cover of Prince's "Nothing Compares 2 U" in 1990 and who was banned from Saturday Night Live for tearing up a photo of ...
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PASSAGES Performer-teacher Jeffrey Stephen Carlson
Jeffrey Stephen Carlson, 48, of Chicago's Andersonville neighborhood passed away July 6. He was both an accomplished Broadway actor and esteemed classical performer, as well as a dedicated teacher of Shakespeare, who leaves behind a legacy ...
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PASSAGES Radical poet, theorist, educator, activist Minnie Bruce Pratt
Radical poet, essayist, educator, theorist and feminist, LGBTQ+, anti-racist and anti-imperialist activist Minnie Bruce Pratt died June 2 in Syracuse, New York surrounded by friends and family members, after a brief and sudden illness. She was ...
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Passages: Benjamin Feathers passes away
Benjamin Feathers, "Pup Fenrir", 41, of Chicago's Uptown neighborhood, died in an apartment fire on July 1. Ben lived a very lively life. He was a lifestyle member of Chicago's Leather community. Like so many others, ...
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PASSAGES Music producer, vocalist, business owner Ralph Lampkin Jr.
Music producer, vocalist and business owner Ralph Lampkin, Jr. died June 24 of a heart attack. He was 66. Lampkin was born April 29, 1957, in New York City, where he lived with his parents Ralph ...
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PASSAGES Artist Stash Kybartas
Stashu Kybartas, a video artist who also worked in installation and performance art, passed away May 17 at his home in Chicago. Robert Colucci, his husband of 48 years, was with him at the time of ...
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PASSAGES Athlete and retired restaurant manager Michael L. Reid
Athlete and retired restaurant manager Michael L. Reid died peacefully under hospital care June 11 due to complications from a decade-long battle with cancer. He was 65. Reid was born February 28, 1958, in Dayton, Ohio ...
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Anti-LGBTQ+ televangelist Pat Robertson dies at 93
The Rev. Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson—an influential and controversial voice of conservative Christianity who even ran for president in 1988—has died at age 93. The Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) initially ...
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PASSAGES: LGBTQ+ advocate Margaret Davis a.k.a. Spencer Ice
Bisexual LGBTQ+ advocate and retired University of Chicago auditor Margaret Davis, a.k.a. Spencer Ice, died May 30 after a 14 year battle with cancer. Davis was born on Aug. 3 (she wished not to have ...
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PASSAGES Chicago cultural and music advocate, poet, educator Diane Gomez
Chicago cultural and music advocate, poet and educator Diane Gomez died May 5 due to complications from cancer. She was 70. Gomez was born September 28, 1952, on the South Side of Chicago to a very ...
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PASSAGES Longtime LGBTQ+ activist and community organizer, former bar owner Marge Summit
Longtime LGBTQ+ activist and community organizer, icon and former owner of the now defunct His n' Hers bar Marge Summit died May 16. She was 87. Summit was born Sept. 3, 1935, on the North Side ...
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WORLD Turkish president, former congressman dies, Polish case, Uganda, sports
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan again attacked the country's LGBTQ+ community in a bid to rally his conservative voters before the May 14 election, france24.com noted. Polls showed Erdogan—whose campaign is dealing with an economic crisis ...
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PASSAGES: Real estate agent and former DJ Earl Reid, Jr.
Real estate agent and former DJ Earl King Reid, Jr. died May 1 due to hypertension and arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease. He was 67. Reid was born in 1956 in Chicago, where he lived his entire life. ...
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PASSAGES Former Gay Chicago Magazine entertainment editor Jeff Rossen
Former Gay Chicago Magazine entertainment editor Jeff Rossen died of complications from COPD on April 19. He was 67. Rossen was born Dec. 10, 1955, in Oak Lawn. He spent his childhood and teen years in ...
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PASSAGES: Retired Chicago Fire Department district chief, paramedic Pat Ciara
Retired Chicago Fire Department (CFD) district chief, paramedic and at one time the highest ranking out lesbian in the history of the CFD, Pat Ciara died April 19 of lung cancer in Lake Worth, Florida. She ...
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Lauren Verdich memorial May 20
Celebration of Life for longtime Chicagoan LGBTQ activist and business owner Lauren Verdich will be Saturday May 20, 2023, 12:30-4 p.m., University Club Chicago, 76 E. Monroe. Donations can be sent to Lambda Legal in Lauren's ...
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NATIONAL Trans-rights cases, Brittney Griner, Elton John, law firm, passages, Twitter
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals plans to meet as a full court to consider a pair of trans-rights cases from West Virginia and North Carolina, NBC News reported. The Richmond-based appeals court said it ...
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PASSAGES Charles "Chuck" Williams was founder of the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity Law, Public Policy
Charles "Chuck" Williams—the founder of the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy, a think tank at the UCLA School of Law—passed away April 11. Williams Institute Executive Director Brad Sears ...
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PASSAGES: Visual artist, Chicago nightlife scene drag performer legend and hairdresser Jojo Baby
Visual artist, Chicago nightlife scene drag performer legend, doll-maker and hairdresser Jojo Baby died March 14 of liver, lung and stomach cancer. They were 51. Baby was born April 10, 1971, in Chicago and grew up ...
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World's first transgender MP passes away at 65
On March 6, Georgina Beyer—a pioneering New Zealand politician who, in 1999, became the world's first openly transgender member of Parliament—passed away at the age of 65. Beyer's friends said she died peacefully in hospice care, ...
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Passages: Longtime activist Achebe (Betty) Powell passes away
Veteran social justice organizer and educator Achebe (Betty) Powell passed away Feb. 21, according to multiple reports. Powell died of COVID-19 related complications at New York Presbyterian Hospital in Brooklyn, according to a Feb. 22 statement ...
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PASSAGES: LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS activist, retired business owner Lauren Verdich
Longtime LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS activist and businesswoman Lauren Verdich died Feb. 12 of complications from pancreatic cancer. She was 77. Verdich was born Dec. 30, 1945, in Chicago. She grew up in the Albany Park neighborhood ...
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Famed gay publicist Howard Bragman dies at 66
Howard Bragman—a gay publicist whose clients included Sharon Osbourne and Stevie Wonder, among many others—died at age 66 after privately battling acute monocytic leukemia, Deadline reported. After graduating from ...
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PASSAGES: LGBTQ activist, writer and therapist Dr. Charles Silverstein
New York City-based LGBTQ activist, writer and therapist Dr. Charles Silverstein died Jan. 30 of complications from cancer surrounded by family and friends. He was 87. Silverstein was born April 23, 1935, in Brooklyn, New York ...
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PASSAGES Gene R. Matterer
Gene R. Matterer died on Jan. 16, 2023 of cancer, according to his family. He was 82 years old. Matterer was born on Feb. 17, 1940. Following his school days in Crystal Lake, Illinois, he enlisted in the army ...
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LGBTQ+ police officer remembered as 'wonder woman'
On Dec. 29, the friends and loved ones of LGBTQ+ Bradley Police Sgt. Marlene Rittmanic gathered at the Comfort Inn in Bourbonnais to mark the one-year anniversary of her passing, ABC 7 Chicago reported. The hotel ...
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In memoriam: LGBTQ community obituaries 2022
The LGBTQ community lost many members in 2022, including at least 35 people in incidents of hate violence against individual transgender people and against patrons of the Club Q bar in Colorado. Here are other memorable ...
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Memorial set for Charlotte Newfeld
Memorial set for Charlotte Newfeld Memorial services for LGBTQ+ community ally and Lakeview activist Charlotte Newfeld will be Tuesday, Jan. 24 at Ann Sather's on Belmont, from 6-8 p.m. Newfeld died Nov. 17 due to natural causes. She ...
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PASSAGES: LGBTQ+ ally, activist and artist Charlotte Newfeld passes away
LGBTQ+ ally, activist and artist Charlotte Newfeld died Nov. 17 due to natural causes. She was 91. At the time of her death, Newfeld was living at the Dobson Memory Care facility in Evanston. Newfeld was ...
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Passages: Sexologist and activist Dr. Thomas Gertz passes away
Sexologist and activist Dr. Thomas Gertz died Oct. 28 due to natural causes. He was 77. At the time of his death, Gertz was in an assisted living facility. He had previously lived at Heartland ...
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PASSAGES Singer Aaron Carter dies at 34
Singer Aaron Carter—the brother of Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter—has died after apparently drowning at his L.A. home at age 34, according to media reports. TMZ originally reported the news. The outlet said that he was ...
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Memorial for Urvashi Vaid to be livestreamed Nov. 3
A memorial celebration of the life of Urvashi Vaid will be held on Thursday, Nov. 3, at 5 p.m. ET/4 p.m. CT at B'Nai Jesherun, 258 W. 88th St., New York City. In-person RSVPs are at capacity. However, the event will ...
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'Will & Grace' actor Leslie Jordan dies in car accident
Leslie Jordan—the openly gay actor who rose to fame on Will & Grace as the frenemy of Megan Mullally's Karen Walker and was immediately recognizable by his Southern accent—died in a single-car crash in Hollywood on ...
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SHOWBIZ 'P-Valley,' Dan Levy, trans/non-binary panel, Christina Aguilera, Spirit Day
Video below
Starz has renewed the show P-Valley (the network's most-watched series) for a third season, The Hollywood Reporter noted. The renewal for the series from creator/showrunner Katori Hall arrives more than two months after the sophomore season ...
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PASSAGES Kathleen Joan DeBold
-- From www.kfhpa.com/obituary/Kathleen-DeBold
Kathleen Joan DeBold, celebrated DC LGBT activist, died suddenly on October 9, 2022 in Ocean City, MD. Kathleen was born on November 16, 1955 in Brooklyn, NY, to Francis Charles and Joan Marie DeBold. During childhood, ...
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The life of trans icon Gloria Allen celebrated at event
A celebration of the life of noted transgender activist, mentor and teacher Gloria Allen was held on Oct. 6 at Center on Halsted. Allen—who wasaffectionately called "Mama Gloria" by her friends and colleagues, saw her efforts ...
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Comic and LGBTQ+ ally Judy Tenuta dies at 72
Judy Tenuta—an unconventional stand-up comic who often played the accordion and who guested on numerous TV shows and appeared in two "Weird" Al Yankovic videos—died Oct. 6 of ovarian cancer in Studio City, California at age ...
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Slain LGBTQ+ police officer to be honored in Bradley on Oct. 6
A candlelight vigil will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 6, at the Bradley Police Department to honor Sgt. Marlene Rittmanic's 50th birthday, The Daily Journal reported. "What was supposed to be a day ...
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PASSAGES Timothy Lamar Schannep
Timothy Lamar Schannep, of Evanston, passed away on Aug, 24 at age 71. He was born on July 17, 1951, in Phoenix, and was the youngest of seven children. He was raised in North Manchester, Indiana, ...
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Queen Elizabeth II dies in Scotland at age 96
The Queen died peacefully on the afternoon of Sept. 8, the Royal Family announced on its social media accounts. Elizabeth ascended to the throne in 1952, on the death of her father, King George VI. She ...
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Philadelphia AIDS and housing activist Michael Hinson Jr. dies at 55
Michael Hinson Jr.—a longtime AIDS and housing activist, and leader in Philadelphia's Black LGBTQ+ community—died Aug. 27 of an undisclosed cause at age 55, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. An obituary in the Philadelphia Gay News stated ...
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Families and activists gather to honor Jeffery Pub hit-and-run victims
On Aug. 21, a brief memorial service was held at The Rainbow Beach Field House to honor the three victims of a hit-and-run incident that took place in front of the Black gay bar The Jeffrey Pub, located on Chicago's South ...
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Event for Jeffery Pub crash victims to be held Aug. 21
There will be an event to remember the victims of the Aug. 14 car crash at Black gay nightspot Jeffery Pub on Sunday, Aug. 21, at 3 p.m. at Rainbow Beach Field House, 3111 E. 77th St. The victims were Devonta ...
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PASSAGES Trailblazing lesbian activist Pat Norman dies
Pat Norman, a trailblazing lesbian in San Francisco who became a "first" in some important city appointments, died Aug. 5 at an assisted living facility in Las Vegas, according to The Bay Area Reporter. Norman, born ...
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PASSAGES Singer/actress Olivia Newton-John dead at 73
Olivia Newton-John—the Australian singer who charmed generations of viewers in the 1978 blockbuster movie Grease and had such music hits as "Physical," with both garnering many LGBTQ+ fans—died Aug. 8 at age 73, according to media ...
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Journalist Chuck Colbert passes away at 67
Journalist Charles "Chuck" R. Colbert—who had written for several LGBTQ+ publications, including Windy City Times—passed away June 30. He was 67. He was a freelance journalist based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, according to his biography on ...
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PASSAGES Lesbian writer/activist Elana Dykewomon dies at 72
Tributes have poured in following the death of Oakland-based esteemed lesbian writer/activist Elana Dykewomon, who passed away Aug. 7 at age 72, according to EuroWeekly. She received the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction in 1998 ...
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PASSAGES Chicago Latino Theater Alliance Executive Director Myrna Salazar dies at 75
The Chicago Latino Theater Alliance (CLATA) announced that co-founder and Executive Director Myrna Salazar passed away Aug. 3—two weeks after celebrating her 75th birthday. According to a press release, "Salazar ...
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PASSAGES Janan Lindley, wife of longtime activist/former bar owner Marge Summit
Janan Lindley died in hospice at home with her wife, Marge Summit, by her side July 29 of cancer. She was 82. Lindley was born June 20, 1940 and was raised in New Orleans. She studied at Loop College and from ...
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Reports: Chicago trans woman murdered in West Englewood neighborhood
A Chicago trans woman was attacked and died the late evening of July 11/early morning of July 12, according to reports. An individual was found with multiple stab wounds after Chicago Police Department (CPD) answered a ...
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Former Japanese prime minister dies after being shot
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe died on July 8 after being shot while giving a campaign speech on a street in central Japan, CNN reported, citing public broadcaster NHK. Japanese publication Nikkei also reported that ...
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PASSAGES Local trans leader Maritxa Vidal
Maritxa Vidal, a leader in the Chicago trans community, has died at age 64. She passed away June 9. As a child, Vidal immigrated from Cuba with her family hoping to find a better life. Vidal is a longtime advocate for ...
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Dan Wolf, owner of The Bagel, dies at 77
Dan Wolf, the longtime owner of the iconic The Bagel Restaurant & Deli, has died at age 77. According to an obituary at legacy.com, Wolf was of the few child survivors of the infamous Theresienstadt concentration ...
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