#lgbtq

Nov 1, 2018

Proposed Federal Re-Definition of Sex Only Latest in Anti-Transgender Attacks from Right

This article first appeared on November 1, 2018 on Political Research Associates. On October 21, The New York Times reported receiving information from the White House that details how the Trump Administration proposes to impose a multi-agency re-interpretation of “sex” under several civil rights laws to mean “[t]he sex listed on a person’s birth certificate, as originally issued.” Further, it would codify “sex” as only existing in a binary of male and female “based on immuta

Oct 28, 2018

Religious Freedom May Now Include Discrimination Against Jews and Muslims

This article originally appeared in on October 25th in Religion Dispatches. As the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services faces harsh criticism for its proposed policy to redefine “sex,” another memo sits on the desk of HHS Secretary Alex Azar, one that would allow South Carolina child welfare agency Miracle Hill Ministries to affirmatively discriminate on the basis of religion while receiving state and federal child welfare funds. While it appears that Miracle Hill has

Sep 26, 2018

Religious Conservatives at Values Voter Summit Use ‘Gender Ideology’ as Anti-LGBTQ Rallying Cry

This article originally appeared on September 24, 2018 in ReWire.News. Gender ideology” took center stage at this weekend’s Values Voter Summit (VVS) in Washington, D.C. And side stage. And student mixer. In each instance, it was used as a handy catchall: Objecting to “gender ideology” allows Christian conservatives to consolidate all their objections to treating LGBTQ people with dignity into one scary talking point. VVS is the annual conference of the Family Research Counci

Sep 7, 2018

Responses to Our Summer 2018 Issue

This letter originally appeared in the American Scholar on September 4th, 2018. Setting aside much of Sandra M. Gilbert’s problematic cover article in the summer issue, “In the Labyrinth of #MeToo”), I would like to focus on three paragraphs. In the middle of her piece, soon after describing the rape of an unconscious woman behind a Dumpster that landed Brock Turner so disgustingly light a sentence that the sentencing judge was recently recalled by voters, Gilbert asks, are

Jul 17, 2018

No, a Proposed House Amendment Wouldn’t Ban Same-Sex Couples From Adopting—It’s Even Worse Than That

This article originally appeared on July 16th, 2018 in Rewire. On Wednesday, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee voted to add an amendment to an appropriations bill that included a provision permitting licensed child-welfare agencies to discriminate on the basis of religion. The amendment drew immediate ire from the LGBTQ community, as many organizations framed the legislation as “barring gay and lesbian couples from adopting.” That’s not quite accurate: The amendment, in

Jun 28, 2018

Justice Kennedy Chose To Let Trump Pick His Replacement. That’s His Legacy.

This article originally appeared on the front page of the Huffington Post on June 28, 2018 on . I am going to speak ill of Justice Kennedy. Justice Anthony Kennedy’s retirement announcement on Wednesday secured his legacy. By declaring his intention to leave the court on the same day he joined an opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts gutting labor rights, and the day after he joined opinions upholding President Donald Trump’s Muslim ban and overturning California’s protection

Jun 5, 2018

I Give You Permission to Call Yourself Bisexual

This article originally appeared on May 31, 2018 on Medium. In a world in which no one is straight, and yet also in which everyone seems to be very straight, I give you permission this June to call yourself bisexual. You could also call yourself pansexual. Or fluid. Or queer. The point is, no one ever tells us that we can, so if you need permission this Pride, here it is. Your gold-plated, engraved invitation. You. Yes you. YOU can call yourself bisexual. “No one is 100% stra

May 11, 2018

LGBTQ Girls Are Much More Likely to Face Discipline in School

This article originally appeared on May 11, 2018 in ReWire.News. In 2015, the University of Arizona interviewed LGBT students across three states asking them about their experiences with over-discipline and school pushout. In response, one student said, “The teachers … they thought we were selling weed in school, they thought that me and her were both selling weed ‘cause like, the way we were dressing, ‘cause we were the only girls at that middle school that dressed like boys

Apr 20, 2018

The Truth About Bisexual College Students And Hunger

This article originally appeared on the Huffington Post on April 13, 2018. In a USA Today opinion column published Thursday, contributor James Bovard takes issue with a new study finding 36 percent of students at colleges and universities experienced food insecurity in the last month. The study looked at data from 43,000 students at two- and four-year schools from 20 states and Washington, D.C. Researchers also found that 36 percent of students experienced housing insecurity

Apr 17, 2018

The Trump-Pence Administration Is Trying to Leave LGTBQ Kids Out of Its Survey on Crime

This article originally appeared on ReWire.news on April 17, 2018. The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is a federally administered survey that provides some of the most crucial data in the United States on the demographics of crime victims, including their sexual orientation and gender identity. The NCVS is administered to youth and adults in households across the country, but last week the Bureau of Justice Statistics issued a public comment proposing to raise the

HERON GREENESMITH

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