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Nex Benedict's autopsy report released
The full autopsy report for Nex Benedict (he/they)a 16-year-old transgender and Indigenous student from Oklahoma's Owasso High School who died in February a day after a school fighthas been released. The Oklahoma Office of the Chie ...
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Former Chicago Girl Scouts CEO Brooke Wiseman to receive Luminary Award
Brooke Wiseman, a now-retired nonprofit leader in the Chicago area, spent most of her career creating leadership development opportunities for girls and womenand making sure that hungry children could be fed. While leading Girl Scouts of ...
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Windy City Times seeks nominations for 30 Under 30 Awards
--From a press release
CHICAGOAfter a four-year hiatus, Windy City Times has revived its 30 Under 30 Awards. Windy City Times is seeking to recognize 30 more outstanding LGBTQ+ individuals (and allies). Nominees should be 30 years or younger as ...
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UPDATE: Nex Benedict's death ruled a suicide; family responds
A medical examiner's report concluded that the cause of death of Oklahoma student Nex Benedict (he/they) was suicide, media reports confirmed. Benedictâa 16-year-old transgender studentâdied Feb. 8, a day after ...
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Florida settles 'Don't Say Gay' lawsuit
On March 11, the state of Florida settled a multi-year lawsuit against the so-called "Don't Say Gay" law, which limits how LGBTQ+ topics can be discussed and presented in schools, The Hill reported. The settlement agreement ...
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Federal investigation initiated in Nex Benedict case
The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights has started an investigation into the Oklahoma school district where Nex Benedict, a transgender 16-year-old sophomore, went to school and was bullied before his death, The Advocate ...
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Court blocks Texas attorney general's demand for PFLAG data
From a press release: AUSTIN, TexasâTravis County District Court Judge Maria CantĂș Hexel on March 1 blocked the latest effort by the Texas Attorney General's Office to persecute Texas families with transgender youth, temporarily haltin ...
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NATIONAL School items, HIV/AIDS activist dies, Nex Benedict, inclusive parade
In a new survey, the Pew Research Center asked public K-12 teachers, teens and the U.S. public about the ongoing scrutiny placed on classroom curricula, mainly regarding race and LGBTQ+ identities, ABC News noted. Among other ...
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Appeals court allows Ind. ban on gender-affirming care for minors
On Feb. 27, a federal appeals court in Chicago allowed Indiana's ban on gender-affirming care to go into effect, removing a temporary injunction that U.S. District Court Judge James Patrick Hanlon issued last year, ABC News ...
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Activists and others urge removal of Oklahoma schools superintendent after Nex Benedict death
TULSA, OKLAHOMAâToday more than 350 national, state, and local organizations advocating for equality across the U.S., alongside notable public figures, issued an open letter to Oklahoma legislative leadership urging justice ...
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911 calls, videos show cascade of failures in Nex Benedict's death, GLAAD responds
"It is haunting to hear Nex Benedict, in their own words, describe how school and state leaders failed, at every level of leadership, to keep them safe from bullying and harm. Less than 24 hours later, ...
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Oklahoma non-binary student dies after being assaulted
Officials acknowledged there are unresolved questions about a 16-year-old non-binary Oklahoma student who died one day after a fight in a high school bathroom, NBC News noted. Chuck Hoskin Jr., principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, ...
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Owasso High School student of Bridge v. Oklahoma State Board of Education case dies, groups respond
--From press releases
Oklahoma City, Okla. â In response to the death of 16-year-old Owasso High School student Nex Benedict following an assault in the school restroom, Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the ACLU of Oklahoma ...
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Center on Halsted to host trans youth & family summit
Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., has announced that its Trans Youth & Family Summit 2024 will take place March 16. This year marks the sixth annual event, which partners between Youth Services' Pride Youth ...
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Human Rights Campaign report releases new data on experiences of Black queer youth
--From a press release
WASHINGTON â Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), the educational arm of the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, released a report in ...
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HRC State Equality Index: Anti-LGBTQ+ 2023 state legislative season "most destructive"
--From a press release
WASHINGTONâToday, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), the education arm of the nation's largest Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, in partnership with the Equality Federatio ...
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New Survey: Unstable housing most cited reason for food insecurity among LGBTQ+ youth
--From a Williams Institute press release
A new report by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law finds that 85% of LGBTQ+ youth programs surveyed said unstable housing was the main reason LGBTQ+ youth had inadequate access to food. The programs ...
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NATIONAL Toni Atkins, Maine, bisexual advocate dies, Jussie Smollett, school board
San Diego leader and California Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins kicked off her bid to become California's next governor, becoming the latest Democrat to join the 2026 race, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported. Atkins is ...
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NATIONAL Women's college, banned books, military initiative, Oregon
After backlash regarding a decision to update its anti-discrimination policy and open enrollment to some transgender applicants, a Catholic women's college in Indiana will return to its previous admission policy, per The National Catholic Reporter. In ...
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NATIONAL Social Security, NBJC grants, Discord's policy, Sam Altman, Ohio deaths
A nonbinary former employee of the U.S. Social Security Administration, identified as "J. Doe," filed suit against the agency, claiming workplace misgendering forced them to resign, Philadelphia Gay News reported. Doe claims that constant misgendering at ...
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Lambda Legal, ACLU of Iowa file lawsuit against sweeping anti-LGBTQ law in Iowa
--From a press release
Last Tuesday, Lambda Legal filed a lawsuit wit ACLU of Iowa and with co-counsel support from the law firm Jenner & Block LLP to block a sweeping law in Iowa (SF 496) that seeks to silence ...
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Bring Chicago Home: Guess who's saying no again
Commentary by Bob Palmer and Mark Swartz
Chicago is ushering in an era of change with a new progressive mayor with a vision to invest in communities long ignored and a significant increase in like-minded city council members. We are excited to see ...
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NATIONAL Tenn. law, banned books, rainbow complex, journalists quit
Under pressure from a lawsuit over an anti-LGBTQ+ city ordinance, officials in Murfreesboro, Tennessee removed language that banned homosexuality in public, MSNBC noted. Passed in June, Murfreesboro's "public decency" ordinance ...
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Fla. students walk out after school board's anti-trans actions
In Florida, hundreds of students at Coconut Creek's Monarch High School held a walkout on Nov. 28 after their principal and several other school officials were reportedly reassigned over a transgender student's participation on the girls ...
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OPINION For LGBTQ+ children, the holidays are often the most challenging time of the year
Holiday time for most of us is a time to spend more time with family and loved ones, but for many children, it is a harsh reminder of their non-acceptance and thus, is all the more difficult as well. ...
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YEPP 'rises' to occasion at fall fundraiser
Members and guests of Youth Empowerment Performance Project (YEPP) gathered Nov. 17 at Chicago Theater Works, 1113 W. Belmont Ave., for the organization's fall fundraiser, Rise Up: Our Celebration of Resistance. The evening marked both the ...
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NATIONAL Bishop removed, business news, Jezebel shutting down, MAP head
Pope Francis removed the bishop of Tyler, Texasâa conservative prelate active on social media who has been a fierce critic of the pontiff, PBS reported. A one-line statement from the Vatican said the pope had "relieved" ...
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Illinois attorney general part of effort against Oklahoma anti-trans youth law
--From a press release
Chicago — Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is opposing a state law in Oklahoma that severely limits the ability of transgender youth to access critical, lifesaving gender-affirming care. Raoul, along with a coalition of attorneys general, ...
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IDHS head Dulce Quintero reflects on making history, being an advocate
Dulce Quintero has always believed in helping peopleâand decades of doing so has resulted in an especially noteworthy achievement. Recently, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker appointed Quintero, a member of the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame, as ...
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Kwame Raoul backs Maryland school board's efforts for LGBTQ+ safety, inclusion
--From a press release
Chicago — Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as part of a coalition of 19 attorneys general, supported a Maryland board of education's efforts to create a safe and supportive environment for LGBTQ+ children and students. The ...
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Ninth Circuit temporarily blocks Idaho restroom ban as court challenge proceeds
--From a press release
(Boise, ID, October 26, 2023) â The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit today temporarily blocked enforcement of an Idaho school facilities law that singles out transgender students for discriminatory treatment. The law was ...
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UPDATE: Illinois school district approves LGBTQ+ musical 'The Prom'
After reconsidering a decision to postpone the event, Community Unit School District 300 will allow Hampshire High School to run its spring musicalâThe Prom, which is about ...
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Harlem unveils supportive housing for LGBTQ+ youths, young adults
On Oct. 24, NYC government officials and nonprofit organization leaders held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of a housing development in Harlem with services for homeless LGBTQ+ youth and young adults between the ages ...
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Loyola School of Law to present LGBTQ+ Youth Symposium Nov. 4
--From a press release
Chicago law firm Matt Cohen and Associates has announced a first-of-its-kind symposium and resource fair for LGBTQ+ youth, families, and allies at Loyola University School of Law. located at 25 E. Pearson Street, Chicago, Illinois, 60611 ...
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OPINION Renewing state's Invest in Kids program is investing in anti-LGBTQ+ hate
In February 2020, Bishop Thomas Paprocki of the Diocese of Springfield warned transgender students in the Diocese's educational system that they "may be expelled from the school" if they live their lives authentically. Lansing Christian School ...
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Police investigating shooting of gender nonconforming Chicagoan
Gender nonconforming Chicagoan Dominic Dupree (also known as Dominic Palace) was shot to death October 13 in his vehicle in Chicago's South Shore neighborhood. They were 25. In an email statement to this publication, the Chicago ...
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NATIONAL White House, school news, LGBTQ+ deaths, Navy petty officer honored
The White House condemned conservative social-media activist Chaya Raichik for ridiculing openly gay Interior Department official Tyler Cherry on the site X (formerly Twitter), describing her posts as "cruel and unacceptable" ...
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Illinois colleges make list of most unsafe places for LGBTQ+ youth
Campus Pride has released its list of the worst places for LGBTQ+ youthand several Illinois colleges and universities are on it. According to a press release, "the Worst List identifies the 'absolute worst, most unsafe campuses ...
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Kentucky, Tennessee allowed to enforce anti-trans youth healthcare bans
The Cincinnati, Ohio-based Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has allowed Tennessee and Kentucky to enforce laws banning gender-affirming medical care for minors, such as puberty blockers, hormones and surgery, Reuters reported. The ruling is the ...
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Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoes some LGBTQ+ measures and approves others
For California's LGBTQ+ community, Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has made things interesting over the last few days. Late last week, Newsom vetoed three progressive measuresâincluding an unexpected rejection of a ...
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OPINION Social media use, mental health literacy and related problems among LGBTQ+ youth
Special to Windy City Times Depression levels in the United States have risen steadily over the past five decades, and steep increases have been observed in recent years among children, adolescents, and adults under 25 years ...
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Arrests, fights punctuate battles across Canada over gender diversity in schools
Arrests were reported in the Canadian cities of Ottawa, Halifax, Vancouver and Victoria, among others, on Sept. 20 as opposing groups clashed on how schools address issues of gender identity and how teachers refer to transgender ...
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WORLD Quebec lesbians, violence study, Rugby World Cup, Ugandan bill
The hidden history of Quebec lesbians is being explored, the CBC reported. Between 1985 and 1996, a group of lesbians leased the Plateau-Mont-Royal school and ran it as a community center. The school was also home ...
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NATIONAL Historic political win, Columbus situation, trans coach, Gold + Williams
Fabian Nelson won a Democratic primary runoff in Mississippi's 66th state House districtand he's now the state's first openly gay legislator, The Guardian noted. (Republicans are not running a candidate for the general election sched ...
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UIC among nation's top 30 campuses for LGBTQ+ students
--From a press release
The University of Illinois Chicago has been named one of the top 30 colleges and universities for LGBTQ+ students, according to Campus Pride, a national organization serving LGBTQ+ and ally student leaders and campus organizations in ...
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NATIONAL James Baldwin Awards, archdioceses, school items, 'RuPublicans'
On Aug. 21, the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) hosted the 3rd Annual James Baldwin Legacy Awards to honor the contributions of Black men and masculine elders within the Black LGBTQ+/same gender loving (SGL) movement and ...
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Planned Parenthood of Illinois receives $525K grant for youth STI pilot program
âFrom a press release. CHICAGO - Planned Parenthood of Illinois (PPIL) received a $525,000 grant to pilot a new Chicago Healthy Adolescents & Teens (CHAT) STI testing initiative for adolescents 13 to 24-years-old in Chicago. The ...
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N.C. legislators override governor's veto of three anti-trans youth bills
On the evening of Aug. 16, the North Carolina legislature's Republican supermajority overrode vetoes from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper regarding several billsincluding three that target transgender youth, CNN reported. The ...
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Center on Halsted leaders discuss transition and organization's future
In Marchâafter a 15-year tenure that was productive but also controversial in spotsâModesto Tico Valle officially stepped down from his position as CEO of Center on Halsted, the largest LGBTQ+ ...
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New HRC data: LGBTQ+ youth still lack critical support and acceptance
From a press release: WASHINGTONâThe Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, released a report in partnership with the ...
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40% of Florida parents surveyed want to leave the state because of the Don't Say Gay law
--From a press release
New research from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law and Clark University finds 40% of Florida parents surveyed said they would like to move out of Floridaâ20% very much so and 19% somewhatâbecause of ...
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Florida to now allow AP psychology to be taught after anti-LGBTQ+ flap
UPDATE: The Florida Department of Education said over the weekend of Aug. 5 that it will now allow the full curriculum for an advanced placement (AP) psychology class to be taught to high school students, The Advocate reported. ...
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EXCLUSIVE Legendary coach Dorothy Gaters on her career, being part of the LGBTQ+ community
One thing became apparent during a recent talk with iconic John Marshall Metropolitan High School girls' basketball coach Dorothy Gaters. She IS Marshall High School. Even though the talk took place in an office (alongside her ...
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Center on Halsted's Jenny Urban trains a new generation of chefs
Recently, Windy City Times chatted with Chicago chef Jenny Urban, the Director of Culinary Arts at Center on Halsted. Urban has been in the Chicago restaurant scene for more than a decade, and they've recently brought ...
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Northwestern University volleyball player sues over alleged hazing
A former Northwestern University volleyball player has filed a lawsuit against the school, alleging university officials failed to properly address a hazing incident that took place two years ago, NPR reported. The anonymous plaintiff (identified as ...
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Darius Caffey offers a seat at The Table On Air
Darius Caffey is making moves at Chicago Access Network Television with a new program titled The Table On Air. He's the host of the show focusing on the work and accomplishments of Black LGBTQ+ members of ...
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NATIONAL Rufus Gifford, school items, N.C. situation, Texas judge
Rufus Gifford, the highest-ranking openly LGBTQ+ official at the State Department, is leaving his post as chief of protocol to become finance chair for President Joe Biden's re-election campaign, The Advocate reported. Gifford, who is married ...
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UPDATE: NU fires football coach in wake of hazing scandal
Northwestern University fired longtime coach Pat Fitzgerald on July 10 amid allegations of widespread hazing within the football program, according to media reports. ...
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Students sue to block discriminatory Idaho restroom ban
--From a Lambda Legal press release
(Boise, ID, July 7, 2023) Lambda Legal, Munger Tolles & Olson LLP, and Alturas Law Group, PLLC, last night filed a federal lawsuit against the Idaho State Superintendent of Education Debbie Critchfield and other Idaho ...
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One in five LGBT high school students experiences hunger because of food insecurity
--From a press release
A new study by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law finds 20% of LGBT high school studentsan estimated 371,000 youthexperienced hunger last month because there was not enough food at home. Among older youth ...
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Guest essay by Florida mom Nicole Pejovich: What's Happening to Florida's Public Schools?
Related video below
A queer Florida parent answers questions about recent laws, how Floridians are coping, and how you can help Books pulled from school library shelves by the dozens. All evidence of inclusivity stripped from classrooms. The politically ...
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Art-felt: Pearl Dick helps young victims of trauma with mentoring
Almost a decade ago, glass artist Pearl Dick and clinical psychologist Dr. Brad Stolbach co-founded Project FIRE (Fearless Initiative for Recovery and Empowerment), an arts program that provides victims of trauma the chance to heal through ...
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Artist Isabella Mellado illuminates the masks within community
By Jess Savage
Chicago-based artist Isabella Mellado's paintings and sculptures are vibrant, colorful and larger than life. Her work represents autobiographical and allegorical scenes, nearly all of it featuring characters inspired by the ...
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Fabrizzio Subia navigates loss and grief through art
When it comes to loss, Fabrizzio Subia may know more than most people. Having dealt with everything from familial loss to the erasure of his history, the Ecuadorian-American multidisciplinary artist (who has also done things like ...
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NATIONAL La. bills, LGBTQ Southerners, gay-bar shooting, Maddow, Lemon, Grindr CEO
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) issued a press release criticizing Louisiana legislators for advancing three discriminatory bills targeting LGBTQ+ youth. The Senate passed a Gender Affirming Care Ban (HB 648) ...
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Violent clash takes place at Calif. school-board meeting over LGBTQ+ rights
On June 6, protesters clashed and fights erupted outside a meeting of the Glendale Unified School District board, which was scheduled to vote on recognizing June as Pride Month, ABC7 reported. After the skirmishes, police in ...
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Lightfoot to teach at Harvard in the fall
Former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is slated to teach at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, where she will lead a course tentatively titled "Health Policy and Leadership," The Chicago Sun-Times reported. The course ...
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San Francisco's Harvey Milk School celebrates birthday of its namesake
Students at the Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy in San Francisco's LGBTQ Castro neighborhood took to the streets Monday, May 22, and marched on Harvey Milk Day. The day of special significance in California honors the ...
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Illinois middle-school teacher loses job for promoting 'This Book Is Gay'
Making This Book Is Gay available to her eighth-grade students resulted in Illinois teacher Sarah Bonner being reported to policeand eventually losing her job, according to an item from The Advocate. According to Today.com, Bonner (who ...
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NCLR, GLAD, Trevor Project, coalition of groups support Biden administration's proposed Title IX Athletics Rule
--From a press release
WASHINGTON, DC — The National Center for Lesbian Rights, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), and The Trevor Project — along with the National Education Association and more than a dozen other organizations — have submitted ...
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UIC's 'lavender' graduates step out into the world
On May 2, University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) held its 17th annual Lavender Graduation Ceremony in front of a crowded room of queer graduates and their friends, allies and families. The event was held in ...
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Louisiana House passes discriminatory education bill targeting LGBTQ+ youth, HRC responds
--From an Human Rights Campaign press release
Baton Rouge, Louisiana â Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, condemns the Louisiana House for passing HB ...
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Indiana governor signs anti-LGBTQ+ bill that focuses on students
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a measure that will require schools to notify a parent if a student requests a name or pronoun change at school, according to ABC 7 Chicago. It was one of the ...
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Illinois to become first state to punish book-banning
Illinois is about to become the first state to punish public institutions that ban books. Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker has said he supports a House bill that would withhold state funding from any of the state's ...
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Families, doctors challenge Oklahoma's ban on health care for trans youth
--From a press release
OKLAHOMA CITY - Families, transgender adolescents, and their medical providers are challenging a new law criminalizing age-appropriate medical care for transgender adolescents signed by Governor Kevin Stitt yesterday. In a ...
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