Tag: Sarah McBride

Posted on

Carl Siciliano On His Journey To Helping Homeless Queer Youth + More

Carl Siciliano (photo: Mike Ruiz)

Some news items I thought worth your time: • The Caftan Chronicles: Carl Siciliano (above) shares a spiritual episode he had at the age of 15 that eventually led to his founding the Ali Forney Center for homeless queer youth in NYC. Carl’s new book, Making Room, is a must-read. Continue reading “Carl Siciliano On His Journey To Helping Homeless Queer Youth + More”

Posted on

Pete Buttigieg Competes In Ironman Triathlon + More News

Chasten and Pete Buttigieg
Chasten and Pete Buttigieg (image via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • LGBTQ Nation: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg competed in the IRONMAN 70.3 triathlon over the weekend, and social media exploded with kudos. Continue reading “Pete Buttigieg Competes In Ironman Triathlon + More News”

Posted on

Podcast: A Cowboy Christmas Movie + News From UK, Norway, Poland & Hungary

The Randy Report podcast

The Randy Report podcast delivers the week's top stories in a quick, convenient podcast - 'the 60 Minutes of gay news - only shorter' In this week’s podcast: • HIV diagnoses in the UK drop to their lowest levels in 20 years • Norway expands hate speech laws to protect all LGBTQ citizens • Lawmakers in Hungary have drafted a constitutional change that effectively prohibits same-sex couples from adopting • A citizens’ petition in Poland proposes banning Pride parades • Sarah McBride is set to become the highest-ranking transgender legislator in the country • Out political journalist Steve Kornacki shines on Election Night on social media as ‘Korsnacki’ and ‘Map Daddy’ • Don’t miss the upcoming gay holiday romance movie Dashing in December on Paramount TV All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report

Posted on

LGBTQ Candidates Win Across The Country Making History In Their Races

L-R Ritchie Torres, Sarah McBride, Torrey Harris, Michele Rayner (images via campaigns)
There were over 574 LGBTQ candidates on ballots across the nation on Tuesday night. Here are just some of the results that will send these community leaders to represent us. Colorado: Brianna Titone overcame an onslaught of vile transphobic ads to win her election for Colorado State House, District 27. Also, David Ortiz won his race for District 38 in the State House, becoming the first bisexual candidate elected to the Colorado state legislature. An advocate for his fellow disabled veterans, he’ll also be the first wheelchair user elected to the legislature. Delaware: Sarah McBride won her state senate race, making her the first and only openly transgender state senator in the U.S. and the country’s highest-ranking transgender official. Florida: Shevrin Jones became the first openly LGBTQ person ever elected to the Florida State Senate. Michele Rayner won her race for the Florida House making history as the first openly Black queer women ever elected at any level. Georgia: Kim Jackson won her race for the Georgia state Senate, becoming the first openly LGBTQ person elected to that chamber. Kansas: Stephanie Byers was elected to her state house seat in Kansas making history as the first trans person of Native American heritage to be elected to any state legislature. New York: Ritchie Torres and Mondaire Jones were elected in New York, making them the first openly gay, black members of Congress. Jabari Brisport won election to the state senate from Brooklyn’s 25th District. He will be the first openly queer person of color to join the New York Legislature.” Ohio: Charmaine McGuffey, who is openly gay, won the Hamilton County Sheriff’s race and will be the county’s first female sheriff. Oklahoma: Mauree Turner became the first openly non-binary person ever elected to a state legislature in the United States, winning their race for the Oklahoma House. Tennessee: Torrey Harris, who is bisexual, became the state’s first openly LGBTQ legislator. Texas: Ann Johnson won her race for House District 134 in the Lone Star state. Ann will join a growing number of LGBTQ women in the state House and help them pass pro-equality legislation. Vermont: Taylor Small became the first out transgender person ever elected to the Vermont state legislature. (source: Victory Fund)

Posted on

News Round-Up: September 17, 2020

Bear Week 2019 in Sitges, Spain
Some news items you might have missed: • TBT: Remembering a year ago when we discovered Sitges, Spain, for the first time (above) – and it just happened to be Bear Week 🙂 • WSVN Miami: A man was convicted of hate crime charges and sent to prison after he yelled homophobic slurs and beat up two gay men while they were walking their dog in downtown Miami. Quenton Moss, the assailant, was recorded on police body cams bragging to officers, “I split him good. He’s a [expletive]. [Expletive] should die, die.” • OUT: Author and activist Sarah McBride is poised to become the first out trans person serving in the upper chamber of a state legislature. The former Obama administration staffer and current National Press Secretary for Human Rights Campaign won the Democratic primary for Delaware’s first state senate district. The seat is considered a sure-bet for Democrats and McBride is expected to win the general election in November. • GLAAD: Bisexual+ Awareness Week seeks to accelerate acceptance of the bi+ (bisexual, pansexual, fluid, no label, queer, etc.) community. BiWeek draws attention to the experiences, while also celebrating the resiliency of, the bisexual+ community. Throughout BiWeek, allies and bi+ people learn about the history, culture, community, and current policy priorities of bi+ communities.

• Associated Press: Germany’s Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer apologized on Thursday for 65 years of discrimination against gay military service members. “I very much regret the practice of discrimination against homosexuals in the Bundeswehr, which stood for the policy of that time,” said Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a statement. “I apologize to those who suffered because of it.” • Washington Post: A seven-hour “flight to nowhere” advertised by Australian airline Qantas sold out within 10 minutes on Thursday. The flight will depart Sydney on Oct. 10 and return on the same day, with no stops along the way. But passengers are promised views of the Great Barrier Reef, the Uluru monolith and the Australian outback as the plane flies over the country at low altitudes. The 134 available tickets ranged from $787 to $3,787 in Australian dollars, the equivalent of $575 and $2,765. • HuffPost: Donald Trump was called out on Wednesday for bragging that the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus would be lower if one subtracted the deaths from “blue” states. “The blue states had tremendous death rates,” Trump said. “If you take the blue states out, we’re at a level that I don’t think anybody in the world would be at, we’re really at a very low level.” According to data collected by The New York Times, 3 of the top 6 states in terms of deaths have Republican governors and 5 of the top 10 voted for Trump in 2016.

Posted on

Sarah McBride Becomes 1st Trans Person To Address A Major Political Convention

Sarah McBride, currently the Human Rights Campaign’s National Press Secretary, became the first transgender woman to address a major political convention today.

Here’s the full text of McBride’s speech via the HRC:

My name is Sarah McBride, and I am a proud transgender American. Four years ago, I came out as transgender while serving as student body president in college. At the time, I was scared. I worried that my dreams and my identity were mutually exclusive.

Since then though, I have seen that change is possible. I witnessed history while interning in the White House and helping my home state of Delaware pass protections for transgender people. Today, I see this change in the work of the LGBT Caucus and in my own job at the Human Rights Campaign.

But despite our progress, so much work remains. Will we be a nation where there’s only one way to love, one way to look, one way to live? Or will we be a nation where everyone has the freedom to live openly and equally? A nation that’s stronger together? That is the question in this election.

For me, this struggle for equality became all the more urgent when I learned that my future husband, Andrew, was battling cancer. I met Andy, who was a transgender man, fighting for equality and we fell in love. And yet even in the face of his terminal illness … this 28 year old … he never wavered in his commitment to our cause and his belief that this country can change. We married in 2014 and just four days after our wedding, he passed away.

Knowing Andy left me profoundly changed. More than anything, his passing taught me that every day matters when it comes to building a world where every person can live their life to the fullest.

Hillary Clinton understands the urgency of our fight. She will work with us to pass the Equality Act, to combat violence against transgender women of color, and to end the HIV and AIDS epidemic once and for all.

Today in America, LGBTQ people are targeted by hate that lives in both laws and hearts. Many still struggle just to get by. But I believe tomorrow can be different. Tomorrow, we can be respected and protected. Especially if Hillary Clinton is our president. And that’s why I’m proud to say that I’m with her.