Tag: Beyond the Beltway

Some notable people who came out in 2017 Charlotte, NC – This past year, more personalities stepped out into the light and professed their sexual orientation. From pop stars to athletes, the rainbow got a little bit larger with them included. Here are some of those faces in the news. Aaron Carter, onetime child pop sensation, who ruled the airwaves at age 12 with his hit single “I Want Candy” (2000), came out as bisexual in an emotional Twitter post in August. After living with his sexuality “weighing on my chest for nearly half of my life,” he wrote. Alia […]

US Senate confirms 3 anti-gay men to courts of appeal Washington, D.C. – Last week, the United States Senate confirmed three nominees to the federal bench with proven and extensive anti-LGBT records: Leonard Steven Grasz to the US Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit, Don Willett to the 5th Circuit, and James Ho to the 5th Circuit. The Senate Judiciary Committee also progressed with the nomination of anti-LGBT crusader Matthew Kacsmaryk to the US District Court of the Northern District of Texas and is expected to vote soon on the nomination of fellow anti-LGBT crusader Kyle Duncan for the […]

Canadian PM apologizes to LGBT community for wrongs Ottawa, Canada – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau apologized to his country’s LGBT community in an emotional speech to parliament on November 28. “Today, we offer a long overdue apology to all those whom we, the Government of Canada, wronged,” the prime minister said. “We are sorry. We hope by acknowledging our failings we can make the crucial progress LGBTQ2 people in Canada deserve. We will continue to support each other in our fight for equality because we know that Canada gets stronger every single day that we choose to embrace diversity.”

Three HIV advances to celebrate on World AIDS Day Charlotte, NC – As World AIDS Day approaches on December 1 each year, there is as always much work to be done, but there is also cause for celebration. Each year it seems we get closer to the ultimate goal of controlling and eradicating this global epidemic that first began making headlines over 30 years ago. Three historic firsts are among the victories that can be celebrated this year:

Registry of LGBT community in Tajikistan raises concerns Washington, D.C. – On October 18, Human Rights First expressed alarm over reports that Tajikistani authorities have created a registry of gay and lesbian citizens and called on Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to publicly raise concerns about this action. The organization notes that this registry could serve as a precursor to violence and discrimination against the LGBT community. These reports come amidst the ongoing crisis for LGBT communities in Azerbaijan and in Chechnya, where victims, mostly gay and bisexual men, have been detained, tortured, and killed in custody.

US opposes UN ban on death penalty for gay people, others New York, NY – As reported in Out.com, on October 6, the United Nations voted to pass a resolution banning a death penalty for the crime of being homosexual, and to our immense relief, the motion passed with a vote of 27 to 13. What isn’t so relieving, however, is that the United States was one of the nations to vote against the measure. The United States was joined in its no vote by Bangladesh, Botswana, Burundi, China, Japan, Qatar, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and […]