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Human Rights Campaign Foundation releases new data on the LGBTQ+ wage gap
-- From a press release
WASHINGTON — Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, released ...
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Human Rights Campaign celebrates advances in LGBTQ+ policies one year into Biden-Harris administration
-- From a press release
WASHINGTON, DC — One day before the one year anniversary of the inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) celebrates the advances that have been made in LGBTQ+ ...
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LGBTQ+-rights activist Jim Obergefell announces political run
Jim Obergefell—the LGBTQ+-rights activist and named plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide—announced Jan. 18 that he is launching a bid for the Ohio state House, CNN.com reported. "I took a history-ma ...
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Chief Judge Evans responds to Mayor Lightfoot's request on electronic monitoring
-- Press release from Office of the Chief Judge Cook County Circuit Court
Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans responded Jan. 19 to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot's request for a moratorium on use of electronic monitoring for defendants accused of certain violent crimes by pointing out the national and state ...
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Two join races for state office, Personal PAC comments on threats to reproductive rights
-- From a Personal PAC press release
Chicago, IL — Today, following the news that anti-choice extremists Richard Irvin and Avery Bourne would run as Republicans for governor and Lieutenant Governor of Illinois, Personal PAC President and CEO Terry Cosgrove released the following ...
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COVID Mayor Lightfoot ends isolation
Five days after testing positive for COVID-19, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she is out of isolation, per CBS Chicago. "Thank you to everyone who has reached out to me and sent their well wishes. I am ...
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Aurora mayor joins crowded GOP field in race for governor
Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin announced his candidacy for governor of Illinois on Jan. 17, joining a slew of Republicans hoping to challenge Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker in November, NBC Chicago reported. Irvin, a Black Republican and ...
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WORLD Archbishop demoted, Israel ruling, Denmark petition, tennis icon
Pope Francis demoted Archbishop Giacomo Morandi, the number-two official in the doctrine office, due to the belief that he is responsible for the controversial document that bars blessings for same-sex couples, according to Newsweek. Morandi is ...
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NATIONAL Lambda Legal, Penn. city's change, couple on the run, Bayard Rustin
Lambda Legal filed a complaint with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Society, Inc. on behalf of a former employee who was fired after they and other Dallas Arboretum ...
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National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund ED urges action on voting rights
-- From a press release
"The National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund urges the U.S. Senate to pass the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. Voting rights are a cornerstone of our democratic process and ...
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POLITICS Laura Ricketts co-chairing Valencia's finance committee
Laura Ricketts—a co-owner of the Chicago Cubs, along with her family, and a leader in the LGBTQ+ community—is co-chairing the finance committee of Illinois secretary of state candidate Anna Valencia, according to the Politico Illinois Playbook. ...
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Martwick: Dept on Aging seeking nominees for Senior Hall of Fame
Illinois state Sen. Robert Martwick (D-Chicago) announced the Illinois Department on Aging is seeking nominations for the Senior Illinoisan Hall of Fame. "Many of our senior citizen neighbors have put incredible amounts of time and effort ...
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Mayor Lightfoot tests positive for COVID-19
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that she's tested positive for COVID-19. On Jan. 11, she issued a statement saying, "Earlier today, I tested positive for COVID-19. I am experiencing cold-like symptoms but otherwise feel fine which ...
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Minneapolis City Councilor Andrea Jenkins elected City Council President
—From an HRC press release
MINNEAPOLIS — Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) congratulates Andrea Jenkins, a Minneapolis City Councilor and Human Rights Campaign board member, on her election to the role of City Council President. Jenkins, who became the first ...
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Clay Aiken announces another political run
Former American Idol star Clay Aiken announced he's running for Congress in North Carolina, seeking the Democratic nomination in the 6th District, WOKV.com reported. In a video posted online, the openly gay father reintroduces himself, saying, ...
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Lightfoot announces director for new public-safety commission
On Jan. 10, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that Adam Gross will be the first-ever executive director of the newly created Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability. "The establishment of a community-led Commission for oversight ...
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WORLD German official, museum items, cake case
WORLD COMPILED BY WCT STAFF In Senegal, lawmakers stopped from passing to parliamentary vote a draft bill that sought to toughen already severe laws against same-sex relations, Openly News reported. Gay sex is punishable by up ...
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Lightfoot, CTU still stuck in stalemate; classes canceled Jan. 10 [UPDATE]
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) are still stuck in a stalemate over remote versus in-person learning, with classes canceled again for Jan. 10. ...
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VIEWPOINT For LGBTQ community, the movement behind Jan. 6 is an existential threat
The stakes could not be higher. The LGBTQ movement has succeeded beyond our wildest dreams in democratic societies worldwide. Where we have had access to freedom of speech and assembly, remarkable advances have followed. This is ...
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Bobblehead Hall of Fame unveils Pete Buttigieg figure
The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum, in Milwaukee, unveiled the first bobblehead of United States Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, who was the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, during 2012-20, earning him the nickname ...
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Pritzker issues statement on anniversary of Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection
Chicago, IL - On the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 Insurrection, Governor JB Pritzker released the following statement. "One year ago, a vicious attack on American democracy left five police officers dead and scores of ...
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ELECTIONS Chicago Ald. Pat Powell announces congressional run
Chicago Ald. Pat Dowell has dropped her bid to be the next Illinois secretary of state and will, instead, run to succeed retiring U.S. Congressman Bobby Rush. In a statement, Dowell said: "First, I want to ...
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Pritzker appoints Chakena Perry to Shore's MWRD seat [UPDATE]
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has appointed Chakena Perry to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) seat vacated by Debra Shore, who recently was named regional administrator of the U.S. EPA, according to the Buzz section ...
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Former Chicago resident Todd Connor running for Indiana state Senate
Onetime Chicago resident Todd Connor announced he is running for the Indiana state Senate to represent Porter County. Connor, who's openly gay and who served in the U.S. Navy during 2000-04, is currently CEO of Veterans ...
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U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush to retire [UPDATE]
U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Illinois)—an Army veteran and Baptist minister who has served in Congress since 1993—is reportedly retiring, per The Chicago Tribune. In the 1960s, Rush, 75, co-founded the Illinois Black Panther Party. He then ...
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Illinois Lt. Gov. Stratton, U.S. Rep. Garcia test positive for COVID-19
Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton and U.S. Rep. Jesus "Chuy" Garcia (D-Illinois) have tested positive for COVID-19. Stratton, the state's second-in-command said in a tweet that she had "mild symptoms and will isolate as I recover," ...
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Former Democratic leader Harry Reid dies at 82
Harry Reid, the former Democratic Senate leader who spearheaded epic legislative battles through three decades in Congress, has died at age 82 following a long battle with pancreatic cancer, according to media reports. Reid rose from ...
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WORLD Croatia MP, missing student, French president's wife, Senegal bill
The boyfriend of Croatian MP Domagoj Hajdukovic shared a picture of the pair kissing, according to PinkNews. Matija Stainer shared a picture of himself with Hajdukovic to Facebook, thanking followers for their support. In June 2020, ...
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NATIONAL Gay mayor, COVID data, trans journalist dies, Bette Midler
Robert Garcia, the out mayor of Long Beach, California, is running for a Congressional seat in 2022, per LGBTQ Nation. He will seek to represent 47th District in the House of Representatives, a seat currently held ...
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Human-rights champion Archbishop Desmond Tutu dies at 90
Archbishop Desmond Tutu—a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who was known for his stances for human rights and against South Africa's white minority rule—died Dec. 26 at age 90. According to Reuters, the presidency conveyed news of ...
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Rufus Gifford confirmed as State Dept. chief of protocol
The U.S. Senate unanimously confirmed Rufus Gifford as chief of protocol for the State Department, The Washington Blade reported. Gifford now again has the rank of ambassador and a lead role in diplomatic engagement for President ...
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U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky tests positive for COVID-19
U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Illinois) announced she has tested positive for COVID-19, CBS Chicago reported. Schakowsky noted previously that her husband, Bob, tested positive for COVID on Dec. 17. On Dec. 21, Schakowsky herself was "having ...
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Debra Shore reflects on new role in EPA, past accomplishments
In October, President Joe Biden appointed Debra Shore to be the next Region Five Administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), representing six states in the Midwest and the lands of 35 federally recognized tribes. Shore—who ...
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Gail Morse now part of two Illinois Supreme Court committees
Gail H. Morse, a tax partner in the Chicago office of the global law firm Jenner & Block, was appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court to its Committee on Professional Responsibility and reappointed to its Committee ...
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Pride in the Pews: from storytelling to mobilizing Black LGBTQ+ leaders of faith
Storytelling, justice and community—these core values drove Pride in the Pews when it began in March 2021 as a campaign to collect 66 stories from Black LGBTQ+ Christians across the country. While the mission for Pride ...
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Report: Kim Foxx's office showed 'major failure' in handling Smollett matter
A 59-page report from special prosecutor Dan Webb concluded that Cook County prosecutors, including State's Attorney Kim Foxx, repeatedly went out of bounds in their handling of the Jussie Smollett case—and then repeatedly misled the public ...
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COVID U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker test positive
U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker separately revealed they have tested positive for COVID. Fully vaccinated (including getting a booster shot), the 72-year old Massachusetts progressive declared on social ...
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NATIONAL New Jersey, Audre Lorde, LGBTQ book, youth items
In the face of growing anxiety over the Supreme Court's conservative bent, state lawmakers in New Jersey are moving to pass marriage-equality legislation, Gay City News reported. According to Garden State Equality, the New Jersey Assembly's ...
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Senate confirms ex-mayor Emanuel as U.S. envoy to Japan
On Dec. 18, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel as ambassador to Japan. According to The Chicago Tribune, the Senate voted 48-to-21 to confirm Emanuel, with the longtime political operator receiving ...
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Lightfoot cleared of concealment in Anjanette Young raid
An investigation that the private law firm of Jones Day and retired federal judge Ann Claire Williams led essentially cleared Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot of malicious information concealment related to the wrongful police raid of Anjanette ...
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Wisconsin LGBTQ+-rights activist Dick Wagner dies at 78
Longtime LGBTQ+-rights activist and onetime Dane County, Wisconsin, Supervisor Dick Wagner has died at age 78, NBC15.com reported. According to a friend, Wagner was found at tiny Kerr-McGee Triangle Park, which he helped create in the ...
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HRC Foundation announces recipients of 2021 Global Small Grants
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRCF), HRC's educational arm, announced this year's recipients of small grants as a part of the organization's Global Partnerships Program. The announcements were made on ...
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NATIONAL Bullying items, non-binary student, trans ornaments, Hillary Clinton
In Tennessee, a Bedford County seventh-grader died by suicide Nov. 28 after he was ruthlessly bullied for being gay, according to LGBTQ Nation. The parents of 12-year-old Eli Fritchley say his peers repeatedly told him he ...
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Lisa Middleton becomes Palm Springs mayor, third out trans mayor in U.S. history, first in CA
--From a press release
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — Today LGBTQ Victory Fund and Equality California jointly praised news that Palm Springs, California City Councilwoman Lisa Middleton will be sworn-in as Palm Springs mayor on Thursday. Middleton will become the first ...
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Chile's political houses approve marriage equality by landslide margin
Chile approved marriage-equality legislation in a landslide vote on Dec. 7, NPR reported. Both houses of Chile's Congress authorized the measure with overwhelming majorities, making it the eighth Latin American country to allow same-sex marriage, as ...
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State Sen. Sara Feigenholtz to be honored by National Council of Jewish Women
--From a press release
CHICAGO — On Dec. 8, 2021, Illinois state Sen. Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago) will be honored with the Hannah G. Solomon award by the Chicago chapter of the National Council of Jewish Women. This award recognizes achievement ...
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Biden announces diplomatic boycott of 2022 Beijing Olympics
The Biden administration will not send an official U.S. delegation to the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics in Beijing, starting a "diplomatic boycott" aimed at criticizing China over what the United States said is the Asian ...
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U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids reaches marginalized communities with children's book
U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids' children's book, Sharice's Big Voice, tells the story of how an Indigenous lesbian mixed martial artist and lawyer became the first LGBTQ+ representative of Kansas. "My hope is that when children or ...
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WORLD Court rulings, Dutch apology, trans candidates win, Global Black Pride
Botswana's Court of Appeal upheld a 2019 ruling that decriminalized gay sex, effectively striking off two sections of the penal code that had outlawed homosexuality, according to Reuters. Before the 2019 High Court ruling, which was ...
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NATIONAL Trans murder milestone, Victory Fund, Matthew Shepard, Palm Center
Nikai David was fatally shot in Oakland, California—becoming at least the 50th trans, non-binary or gender non-conforming person reported killed in the United States in 2021, PGHLesbian.com noted. Forty-four of the victims have been BIPOC, and ...
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Canada's House of Commons unanimously votes to ban conversion therapy
Canada's House of Commons voted unanimously to ban so-called LGBT conversion therapy, the BBC reported. The legislation would make it illegal to have a child undergo the practice or have anyone unwillingly undergo it. Conversion therapy—which ...
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Mayor Lightfoot issues statement about lawsuit against FOP
--From a press release
Today, at my direction, the City's Department of Law voluntarily dismissed their lawsuit against the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7 without prejudice. This verified complaint for injunctive relief was initially filed in response to the ...
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POLITICS Foster, Schneider support Casten in primary battle against Newman
Suburban congressional colleagues Bill Foster and Brad Schneider are backing two-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Sean Casten, of Downers Grove, in his primary bid for re-election against freshman Democratic U.S. Rep. Marie Newman, of La Grange, The ...
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FDA pushed to end discriminatory tissue donation policy
--From a press release
Chicago, IL. — U.S Representatives Mike Quigley (D-IL), Joe Neguse (D-CO), David Cicilline (D-RI), and U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Elizabeth Warren ...
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State Rep. Greg Harris not seeking re-election
Illinois state Rep. Greg Harris—the first openly gay and HIV-positive state leader in the General Assembly—announced that he won't seek re-election and will leave the House when his term expires in early 2023, The Chicago Tribune ...
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Mike Simmons among LGBTQ Victory Fund-endorsed candidates
Incumbent Illinois state Sen. Mike Simmons was among the political candidates that the LGBTQ Victory Fund backed in its latest round of endorsements. LGBTQ Victory Fund—the only national organization dedicated to electing LGBTQ+ leaders to public ...
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Oak Park-River Forest Chamber of Commerce elects first Black LGBTQ president in organization's history
In November, the Oak Park-River Forest Chamber of Commerce elected Darien Marion-Burton to serve as the organization's first Black LGBTQ president. Marion-Burton will begin his role in January 2022 and said he's excited to bring a ...
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DuPage Democrat employee resigns after Wisconsin parade posts
Mary Lemanski resigned from her role as social-media manager of the Democratic Party of DuPage County after being criticized for insensitive tweets she made about the parade tragedy in Waukesha, Wisconsin, according to NCTV17.com. In now-deleted ...
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WORLD HIV case, Ireland items, Kim Petras, actress' illness
A woman in Argentina has become only the second documented person whose own immune system may have cured her of HIV, NBC News noted. Researchers have dubbed the 30-year-old mother, who was first diagnosed with HIV ...
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NATIONAL N.Y. governor, GLSEN report, flower shop, political items
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a pair of LGBTQ-related bills aimed at protecting sex-trafficking survivors as well as requiring utility and telephone companies to respect customers' preferred pronouns, The New York Post reported. One of ...
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DNC makes statement on Transgender Day of Remembrance
--From a Democratic National Committee press release
DNC Chair Jaime Harrison and DNC LGBTQ Caucus Chair Earl Fowlkes released the following statement to commemorate Transgender Day of Remembrance (Nov. 20): "This Transgender Day of Remembrance, we honor the lives lost due to anti-trans ...
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COVID U.S. opens boosters for all adults
On Nov. 19, the United States, through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), allowed COVID-19 booster shots for all adults and took the extra step of urging people 50 and older to seek one, ...
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Four LGBTQ leaders to be inducted into LGBTQ Victory Hall of Fame
--From a press release
Washington, DC — LGBTQ Victory Institute announced it will induct four political leaders into the 2021 class of the LGBTQ Victory Hall of Fame, which honors the LGBTQ elected officials, appointed officials and candidates who made ...
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HHS acts to prevent discrimination, strengthen civil rights
--From a press release
Washington D.C. — Today, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and Office for Civil Rights (OCR), announced actions to further ...
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IL General Assembly LGBTQ Caucus condemns Proud Boys led censorship in Downers Grove
--From a press release
CHICAGO - The five openly LGBTQ members of the Illinois General Assembly today call on Downers Grove District 99 to protect LGBTQ youth in their community from hate and censorship by immediately rejecting calls to censor ...
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Bishops approve paper that falls short of denying Communion to pro-choice Biden
--From a press release
On Nov. 17, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops voted overwhelmingly to approve a document that fell short of refusing Holy Communion to President Joe Biden or others who support abortion rights—something conservatives in the Church ...
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LGBTQ+ equality in nine Illinois municipalities detailed in Human Rights Campaign Index
--From a press release
WASHINGTON — Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation, the educational arm of the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) civil rights organization, in partnership with ...
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Lightfoot makes personnel announcements
On Nov. 16, Chicago announced that Andrea Kersten is the new chief administrator of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA). She also announced that Erin Harkey is the new commissioner of the Department of Cultural ...
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Lightfoot signs order helping those returning from incarceration
Chicago Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot, alongside Ald. Walter Burnett and community leaders, signed an executive order to create a first-of-its-kind Interagency Reentry Council, a press release noted. This newly established ...
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184 LGBTQ candidates won elected office in 2021; trans, cisg women best win/loss records
--From a press release
Washington, DC — At least 184 out LGBTQ candidates won elected office throughout 2021, more than in any other odd-numbered election year in U.S. history. The previous record was 169 candidates set in 2019. Transgender women ...
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More than a quarter of LGBT state, local employees face discrimination at work
--From a Williams Institute press release
More than one-quarter of LGBT state and local employees have experienced discrimination at work About half of LGBT people who work in education and law enforcement are not out to their supervisors Over 600,000 LGBT employees ...
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Wyoming GOP no longer recognizes Liz Cheney
The Wyoming Republican Party will no longer recognize U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney as a member of the GOP in its second formal rebuke for her criticism of former President Donald Trump, NBC News reported. The 31-29 ...
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Fraternal Order of Police head says he will resign
John Catanzara—the controversial head of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7, Chicago's largest police union—said Nov. 15 he will retire from the Chicago Police Department, The Chicago Tribune reported. He made the announcement after h ...
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Emails show how Trump, officials planned to downplay COVID dangers
The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis released new emails and documents that show the extent to which top White House officials, under former President Donald Trump, interfered in the Centers for Disease Control and ...
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COVID Colorado governor opens boosters for everyone
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signed an executive order Nov. 10 allowing any fully vaccinated Colorado adult to receive a COVID-19 booster shot, Rocky Mountain PBS reported. "The health and safety of Coloradans [have] been my top ...
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