BUSINESS How an unsettling health journey inspired Ron DeRosa to found a men’s health clinic in Hinsdale
When Ron DeRosa turned 40, what should have been a pleasant milestone arrived trailing a host of problems. “I had my first child,” DeRosa recalled. “I remember holding my son, looking in the mirror and thinking, ‘I don’t know who this guy is any more.’…
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Demi Palecek brings working-class roots to 13th District House race
Demi Palecek is one of three openly queer candidates running for Illinois House in the 13th District, joining Sunjay Kumar and Ridge Knapp in one of the most LGBTQ+-represented legislative races in the state. Palecek, who identifies as queer, grew up in southern Illinois in a low-income, working-class household shaped by immigration, mental health challenges…
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HHS announces sweeping proposals to prevent gender-affirming care for trans minors
On Dec. 18, the Trump administration—in the forms of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz—announced a sweeping crackdown on gender-affirming care for trans youth, according to The Advocate. One proposal would ban any hospital from providing gender-affirming healthcare to trans youth from…
Nation & World
WORLD Project Not Alone, Senegal arrests, Ghana’s anti-LGBTQ+ law, Tasmania’s reparations
Erasing 76 Crimes noted that eight gay men and two lesbians have been set free this year in Cameroon and Nigeria because of readers’ donations to Project Not Alone, which helps victims of African homophobia. Those 10 individuals were the focus of this year’s Project Not Alone, which built on the project’s previous work that…
Theater / Dance
Anthony Rapp makes Chicago his Home for the Holidays
Out and proud performer Anthony Rapp is celebrating his new life in Chicago with Home for the Holidays this season. This December, he presents an intimate show for fans inside the Lookingglass Theatre Company space right on the Magnificent Mile. Accompanied by Rick Bertone and supported by various local talent, Rapp has curated a variety of tracks…
Music
Lakeside Pride ensemble performance marks World AIDS Day
On Dec. 1, the Lakeside Pride music ensemble Wilde Cabaret held an intimate concert in observance of World AIDS Day. The event, which took place at Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted St., was a benefit for the organization Season of Concern Chicago, which supports local theater artists in times of need. The evening featured not only music but a wealth…
Film / TV / Gossip
FILM ‘Wake Up Dead Man’ takes a stab at religion
Debuting in 2019, the comedic thriller Knives Out has spawned two sequels: Glass Onion in 2022 and Wake Up Dead Man in 2025. These celebrity capers have explored deep issues, such as class, race and identity, through zany characters placed in remote areas of the world. The first chapter was set in a faraway mansion, the second on an isolated island…
Books / Art
Trans
Trans Up Front Illinois announces grant from Born This Way Foundation
The organization joins cohort of 55 youth-nominated organizations across eleven countries supporting youth mental health, wellbeing Chicago, IL — DECEMBER 10, 2025 — Today, Trans Up Front Illinois announced its selection as a 2025–2026 Kindness in Community Fund grant recipient by Born This Way Foundation, founded by Lady Gaga. Trans Up Front Illinois will be receiving vital funds from the youth-driven grantmaking program…
Lesbian
New Ravenswood collective aims to create “friendship-forward” sapphic spaces
It takes a lot of work to open a new business as an entrepreneur. It takes even more work to divorce a husband, leave the Mormon church and come out as queer. Founder of Garden Of collective Eden Strader did all of that. The collective, aimed at creating a wholesome sapphic community, boasts a fully furnished and…