LGBTQ

Hannah Blythyn, the Labour minister for social partnership. (Facebook) Trolls have targeted a minister’s wife in response to Wales’ ambitious plan to become the most LGBT-friendly country in Europe – proving why it has to be achieved. Fast. Laura Murton, who is married to Welsh Labour deputy minister for social partnership Hannah Blythyn, shared some of the shocking abuse she has faced simply for standing up for LGBT+ people. In a tweet, Murton showed an email sent by someone describing themselves as a “property finance consultant and Christian evangelist from...

Lawrence Chaney has come out in support of Victoria Scone. (BBC Three/Instagram/@victoriascone) RuPaul’s Drag Race star Lawrence Chaney has eviscerated critics daring to take aim at the first cis woman competing in the franchise’s 12-year-long history. Victoria Scone, the camp queen from Cardiff, is to make herstory on season three of Drag Race UK after being announced on the show’s lineup earlier this week. Daniel Pérez, a long-standing fan of the show whose Twitter bio states he is “if cringe was a person”, responded to Scone’s casting with a seven-minute-long YouTube...

Mj Rodriguez attends the OUTLOUD: Raising Voices Concert Series at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on 6 June 2021 in Los Angeles, California. (Getty/Alberto E. Rodriguez) Trailblazing trans and Emmy-nominated actor Mj Rodriguez has opened up about bonding with an LGBT+ fan who was made homeless by his family. Rodriguez discussed her fame in the wake of her role as Blanca Evangelista on the groundbreaking drama Pose, which ended this year after its third season. She told PEOPLE that she is grateful for all the joy in her life from the...

An American Airlines pilot took over the PA system to rant about being gay. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) An off-duty pilot hijacked an American Airlines public address system to rant to passengers about being gay. In a viral clip uploaded to YouTube, the Envoy Air pilot told uneasy and shocked riders after the flight landed in Chicago about how he was once suicidal and a sex addict. Touting the three-minute-long rant as an Evangelical Christian “testimony”, Inside Edition reported, the unknown pilot said: “I was raped or molested as a young boy...

Moderna is starting clinical trials for a potential HIV vaccine. (Envato Elements) A Moderna HIV vaccine candidate is about to enter human trials. Moderna is expected to launch a clinical trial for its experimental HIV vaccine as early as this week, according to the National Institute of Health’s trial registry. The potential vaccine uses the same mRNA technology used in Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine. In a post on ClinicalTrials.gov, the pharmaceutical company said it is looking for 56 people between the ages of 18 and 50 who are currently HIV negative to...

Everybody's Talking About Jamie will premiere on Prime Video this September. (YouTube) The film adaption of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is being released very soon and we can’t wait. Ahead of its release on 17 September on Prime Video the film received an early screening at Outfest in the US. Following its premiere at the film festival, the first reviews of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie are in – and they’re glowing. It’s described as “a positive transfiguration from stage to screen” by The Wrap and “a feel-good tonic in tough...

Pete Buttigieg with his husband Chasten in South Bend, Indiana, where he announced he was dropping out of the presidential race (Scott Olson/Getty) Pete Buttigieg has announced that he and his husband Chasten Buttigieg are officially daddies – and they simply could not be happier. Taking to Twitter Tuesday (17 August), the transport secretary, 39, said that he and Chasten, a 32-year-old teacher, have long wanted to have children. And after three years of marital bliss – and a Cabinet job promotion for Pete – their dreams of starting a...

Albro McLean. (National Prosecuting Authority) A man who raped his lesbian neighbour in a bid to “make her a woman” has been jailed for life in South Africa. Albro McLean, 41, from Cape Town, sexually assaulted the woman, who was described as a “long standing neighbour”, on 28 August, 2017. He was serving a suspended sentence for the sexual assault of a minor at the time of the attack, South African news outlets have reported. McLean had known his victim, who was 21 at the time of the sexual assault,...

Drag legend RuPaul will be joining the cast of Netflix's newest adult-oriented comedy series Chicago Party Aunt. (World of Wonder) Drag Race Philippines will go head to head with Manila Luzon’s Drag Den. Just when you thought it was safe to change the channel, RuPaul has announced yet another edition of Drag Race. Drag Race Philippines will be the second spin-off to film in Asia, following Drag Race Thailand. It also joins localised editions in the UK, Canada, Holland, Spain, Chile, Italy and Down Under. Officially opening casting to Filipino...

Several thousand LGBT+ people and their allies proudly marched for Bucharest Pride on Saturday (14 August), the first since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. An estimated 8,000 people walked the streets of the Romanian capital waving colourful flags, blowing whistles and attempting to resume the spirit of Pride after last year’s event was cancelled. Teodora Ion-Rotary, executive director of LGBT+ rights group ACCEPT Association, told the Associated Press that Bucharest Pride “remains a protest that asks for the very basics”. She said: “The march asked for protection from violence, protection...

Trans dad Sav Butler is adopting a 'gender-free' approach to parenting (TikTok/@tired_honestly) A trans dad has eloquently explained why he isn’t revealing his baby’s gender until the child is old enough to share it for themselves. Sav Butler, 20, a father of two from Portland, Maine, has opted for a genderless parenting style with his children to avoid imposing stereotypes based on their “assumed” gender. Having struggled with his own gender throughout his childhood, Butler hopes this approach will help his children find their “true selves” sooner and be comfortable...

An Illinois appellate court ruled Hobby Lobby violated the state's anti-bias law by denying a trans employee access to the women's bathroom. (Lewis Geyer/Digital First Media/Boulder Daily Camera via Getty) Retail giant Hobby Lobby has lost its 11-year battle to ban a transgender woman from using the women’s bathroom while at work. The Illinois Second District Appellate Court said in its Friday (13 August) ruling that Hobby Lobby unlawfully discriminated against Meggan Sommerville, 51, based on her gender identity. The unanimous three-judge panel ruled the company violated Illinois law barring...

Lil Nas X attends the BET Awards 2021. (Getty/Paras Griffin) Lil Nas X turned down a role in HBO’s critically-acclaimed Euphoria to focus on his music career and we have well and truly been robbed. The 22-year-old hitmaker told Variety in an interview published Wednesday (11 August) that, for now at least, he prioritises making music above pretty much everything. And that included a chance to star on Euphoria, the dark teenage drama about drugs, despair and a serious amount of sex. What could have been, eh? Starring Zendaya in...

An activist's silhouette is seen through a rainbow flag. (Getty) When a school board banned Pride flags a farmer decided to pick up a paintbrush and create a giant show of rainbow solidarity. This week, the school board in the city of Newberg, Oregon, voted to ban Pride and BLM flags, signs and clothing, as well as any other items it considers “political”. According to KGW8, at the virtual school board meeting on Tuesday (10 August), one Newberg parent told officials: “Black students and other kids of colour are under...