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Gay San Diego mayor elected US Conference of Mayors president

Todd Gloria has had a whirlwind two decades as a public servant. Beginning with his successful 2008 San Diego City Council election, followed up by his second successful campaign in 2012 — this time as president of the San Diego City Council — Gloria has been strapped to a rocket...

Washington BladeJun 15, 2026

Health programs for LGBTQ+ veterans targeted by new administration directive

The administration’s war on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has now come for the Department of Veterans Affairs, and it could mean the end of specialized LGBTQ+ programs at the VA. A new internal memo reportedly instructs the VA to remove LGBTQ+ labels from staff and servi...

LGBTQ NationJun 15, 2026

Calif. governor’s race spotlights Becerra’s LGBTQ advocacy

California voters selected its two front runners for the state's open governor seat following the second election of Gavin Newsom. Last week former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra became the Democratic nominee for governor, setting up a general election...

Washington BladeJun 15, 2026

Psychologist says Trump is the sickest person he has ever seen

Dr. John Gartner, a medical professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and psychology expert, says that Donald Trump is in the worst health he has seen in his decades-long career. "In 40 years of clinical practice and almost 30 years of teaching psychiatric resident...

LGBTQ NationJun 15, 2026

Nancy Mace & Sarah McBride show that the biggest fights are still to come

Noted anti-trans Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) lost the Republican primary for South Carolina governor in a truly decisive defeat, coming in fifth place. But the pain and policy that she has brought with her rhetoric still remains and can’t be expected to go out the door with her when s...

LGBTQ NationJun 15, 2026

UFC fighter says ‘Michelle Obama is a man’ at White House event

UFC fighter Josh Hokit, in a crude post-match stunt, told podcaster Joe Rogan that, “Michelle Obama is a man. Am I right America?” The incident occurred as part of President Trump’s UFC Freedom 250 event held on the White House lawn on Sunday night. Hokit won his fight then gave ...

Washington BladeJun 15, 2026

Military junta in Niger bans homosexuality with 5 to 10 years in prison

The military junta that took over the Sahara nation of Niger in 2023 announced the country's new penal code last Friday. The new penal code criminalizes homosexuality and imposes a prison sentence of five to ten years. The AP notes that homosexuality wasn't formally illegal in Ni...

LGBTQ NationJun 15, 2026

Trump is already planning how to sow chaos if Republicans lose in November

The primaries in California took place almost two weeks ago, but the election is far from over. For Republicans who see a landslide for Democrats heading their way in November, the Los Angeles mayoral race has become the template for undermining the results. California primaries ...

LGBTQ NationJun 15, 2026

There is no Pride in detention

“There Is No Pride in Detention” is the name of a campaign led by Rainbow Migration, the British organization to which I contribute as part of an advisory panel. The campaign, launched during Pride Month, highlights the fact that an unknown number of LGBTQ people are held in immi...

Washington BladeJun 15, 2026

UFC fighter says, "Michelle Obama is a man!" at White House Freedom 250 event

After Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) competitor Josh Hokit won his heavyweight fight against Derrick Lewis during the UFC Freedom 250 event on the White House lawn on Sunday night, he concluded his victory interview with popular transphobic broadcaster Joe Rogan by declarin...

LGBTQ NationJun 15, 2026

David Archuleta on Mormon faith, ‘Idol,’ more in new book

‘Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself’By David Archuletac.2026, Gallery Books$29/290 pages So just make up your mind already. The decision is very much in your control – or, at least that’s how it’s supposed to be. It’ll be your future, your path, and seizing it may not just be...

Washington BladeJun 14, 2026

‘Suffs’ an entertaining chronicle of battle to pass 19th Amendment

‘Suffs’June 16 – 28National Theatre1321 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.$115 and upBroadwayatthenational.com Poised to kick off a two-week run at D.C.’s National Theatre (June 16-28), “Suffs,” the Tony Award-winning musical written by Shaina Taub, promises an entertaining chronicle of wha...

Washington BladeJun 14, 2026

It's Flag Day… so why don't we celebrate our flags?

June 14 is Flag Day. That's right, smack in the middle of Pride Month – which celebrates a community that absolutely adores flags – there is a day celebrating a flag. I'm not the first person to notice this. A sketch in season 13 of RuPaul's Drag Race, which aired in 2021, notice...

LGBTQ NationJun 14, 2026

Hate killer convicted, Nancy Mace loses everything & trans designer makes history

O'Shae Sibley's killer found guilty on hate crime charges What he was convicted of: Dmitriy Popov, who stabbed gay dancer O’Shae Sibley to death in 2023, was found guilty of second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter as a hate crime, and aggravated harassment because of race...

LGBTQ NationJun 14, 2026

Gay dad goes viral for honest reflection on raising a straight son

A gay dad's thoughts on the trials and tribulations of raising a straight son went viral last week as parents across the internet connected to his feelings. The Brazil-based father posted in Portuguese under the handle @cleccio. According to X's translation, he opened by saying t...

LGBTQ NationJun 13, 2026

D.C. Council approves expanded grant funding for Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs

The D.C. Council on June 9 gave its first round of approval to an amendment to the city’s fiscal year 2027 budget that calls for increasing the number and size of funding grants that the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs provides for local organizations providing services for the L...

Washington BladeJun 12, 2026

Judge upholds decision to keep anti-trans referendum off Maine's ballot this year

A state judge in Maine agreed on Thursday that "Protect Girls' Sports," an anti-transgender activist group, tried to get a referendum on sports participation on the ballot this fall but failed to collect enough valid signatures. Earlier this year, Protect Girls' Sports, a campaig...

LGBTQ NationJun 12, 2026

Anti-LGBTQ+ group praises GOP gov. for signing "Family month" declaration

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) signed a proclamation on June 3 designating this month as "Marriage and Family Month." His proclamation makes his state just the latest among several red states that have recently tried to give Pride Month a conservative and anti-LGBTQ+ rebranding. “T...

LGBTQ NationJun 12, 2026

Gender-bending buddy film gets 4K restoration for 25th anniversary

If you think the idea of a movie about two gender-nonconforming buddies embarking on an anti-establishment crime spree feels dangerously radical in 2026, just think how it must have felt 25 years ago. That’s when “By Hook or By Crook,” a DIY independent film shot in low-tech “Min...

Washington BladeJun 12, 2026

Happy Straight Pride Month! Wait… let me double check my notes

It’s finally that time of year, when we celebrate "Straight Pride!" And frankly, it’s about time. For centuries, heterosexual people have been oppressed, marginalized, and forced to live in the shadows of a ruthlessly queer-dominated world. It’s time we address this glaring inequ...

LGBTQ NationJun 12, 2026

Trump's biggest & worst lies aren't about the "rigged" 2020 election

In his June 9 interview with Kristen Welker on NBC’s Meet the Press, Donald Trump returned again to his loathsome “Big Lie” that he won the 2020 presidential election due to massive fraud in the states that declared Biden as the winner. Ever since November 3, 2020, Trump has sung...

LGBTQ NationJun 12, 2026

Everything Donald Trump is doing makes sense – if he’s dying

It can be hard to work out what might be going through Donald Trump’s head at the best of times, but lately his actions have seemed to be increasingly bizarre and reckless. However, all of those actions become much easier to understand with one simple perspective shift: Trump kno...

LGBTQ NationJun 12, 2026

German group slams White House’s LGBTQ rights record ahead of World Cup

A German advocacy group on the eve of the 2026 World Cup sharply criticized the Trump-Vance administration over its anti-LGBTQ policies. The World Cup will take place in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico through July 19. The tournament began on Thursday in Mexico City with Mexico beat...

Washington BladeJun 11, 2026

School fires art professor after student complains about queer-related assignment

The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) suspended tenured art therapy professor Savneet Talwar after a student complained about her assignment asking students to develop an ethical treatment plan for a hypothetical queer, Muslim woman living in the United States, The Gu...

LGBTQ NationJun 11, 2026

Giant inflatable of Elon Musk touts his role in producing child pornography

A giant inflatable bust depicting the shirtless tattooed likeness of transphobic, white supremacist near-trillionaire Elon Musk appeared in New York City's Times Square on Thursday morning. Its appearance foreshadowed the Friday debut of Musk's space exploration company, SpaceX, ...

LGBTQ NationJun 11, 2026

Queer businesses are cleverly fighting Trump's anti-immigrant raids

Community advocacy, protest, and mutual aid weren't new concepts for queer businesses and their employees before Donald Trump unleashed Operation Metro Surge on Minnesota late last year. When the brutal immigration raids began, queer businesses were as ready as they could be for ...

LGBTQ NationJun 11, 2026

MAGA hate pastors say female teachers cause men to become gay

Christian nationalist hate pastor Joel Webbon — a man who blames Jewish people for all social evils, thinks marijuana makes men "spiritually gay," and thinks Adolf Hitler wasn’t so bad after all — and the co-hosts of his Right Response broadcast said in a June 9 episode that fema...

LGBTQ NationJun 11, 2026

Trans sheriff's deputy settles health care lawsuit after 7 years of legal battle

After seven years, sheriff’s deputy Anna Lange and Houston County, Georgia, have reached a settlement in the case over the county’s health insurance excluding gender-affirming services. The legal case and the county’s push to exclude trans health care are estimated to have cost t...

LGBTQ NationJun 11, 2026

Gay 1920s-era Hollywood star to be honored in Staunton, Va.

A project is underway in Staunton, Va., to honor William ‘Billy’ Haines, who was born and raised in Staunton before becoming an out gay 1920s and early 1930s-era Hollywood movie star whose acting career ended around 1934 when he refused demands that he conceal his sexual orientat...

Washington BladeJun 11, 2026

Fox host rages at mindblowing videos of LGBTQ+ people dancing

Fox host Jesse Watters wanted to make his audience mad about Pride Month, but he had an odd way of doing it: by showing amazing videos of queer people dancing. Watters started the segment with what he described – apparently derogatorily? – as a "gay dance fiesta," referring to a ...

LGBTQ NationJun 11, 2026

Straight Pride Month would finally help cishet people feel like they belong

As we kick off June’s Pride activities, many cis-hetero Christian nationalists are feeling dejected. So, in their attempts to reclaim the month, many Republican governors have pushed “counterprogramming” by labeling June as “Nuclear Family Month” in Indiana and Tennessee, “Strong...

LGBTQ NationJun 11, 2026