Tag: transgender lawmaker

Posted on

Sarah McBride Poised To Become 1st Trans Member Of Congress

Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride poised to become first out transgender member of Congress

State Sen. Sarah McBride of Delaware won the Democratic Primary for Delaware’s lone U.S. House seat last night with nearly 80% of the vote. The win means McBride is poised to become the country’s first openly transgender member of Congress. Continue reading “Sarah McBride Poised To Become 1st Trans Member Of Congress”

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

Virginia: Danica Roem Sworn In As First Openly Trans Lawmaker In A U.S. Legislature

Danica Roem

Awesome news today from Virginia as Danica Roem was sworn in as the first elected openly transgender state-wide politician in the U.S.

From The Washington Blade:

Roem last November defeated former state Del. Bob Marshall, an anti-LGBT Republican who had represented the 13th District since 1992. Roem, a former journalist, is the first openly transgender person ever seated in a state legislature in the U.S.

Roem is among the five openly LGBT members of the Virginia General Assembly.

State Del. Dawn Adams (D-Richmond), who defeated former state Del. Manoli Loupassi (R-Richmond), is the first out lesbian elected to the General Assembly. The joined state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) and state Dels. Mark Sickles (D-Fairfax County) and Mark Levine (D-Alexandria).

Roem and Adams were sworn-in on the same day the 2018 legislative session began.