NATIONAL New York stats, trans death, bi erasure, P-town, Pittsburgh

A New York State Department of Health survey revealed that more than 1 million people identify as LGBTQIA+ throughout the state, Gay City News noted. The survey sports statistics about the share of LGBTQ people who live in the state and details about their income, healthcare, employment status, substance use and other categories. About 8.2% of New York State’s population identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or another sexual orientation, and bisexual New Yorkers—who make up the greatest share of LGBTQ+ people—make up 3.9% of the total state population, according to the report.
The National Black Justice Collective (NBJC) issued a release mourning the death of Daquane ‘Dream’ Johnson, a 28-year-old Black transgender woman. She was shot and killed on July 5 in D.C., and authorities are asking for the public’s help in solving this case. Director of Public Policy and Programs Victoria Kirby York said, “Before she was shot, witnesses report the suspects calling Dream a derogatory name, making it likely she was targeted, harassed, and killed because of her identity as a trans woman. I pray that community members come forward to help solve this crime and provide the family with justice and peace. Too often, the murders of our trans siblings remain unsolved, and it should be a priority of law enforcement across the country to solve these cases,”
The Trump administration has now seemingly erased bisexuals from the Stonewall National Monument. According to The Advocate, key historical and cultural pages associated with the Stonewall site have been updated to describe the uprising as a milestone for “gay and lesbian rights,” quietly removing any mention of bi or trans individuals. The erasures are historically inaccurate; Stonewall was heavily led by transgender and gender-nonconforming leaders like Sylvia Rivera, Marsha P Johnson and Zazu Nova; also, Brenda Howard, a bisexual-rights activist often referred to as “the mother of Pride,” helped organize the rally that became the Christopher Street Liberation Day March on the first anniversary of the uprising.

In the queer enclave of Provincetown, Massachusetts, two different hate crimes reportedly recently happened on Bradford Street, per The Provincetown Independent. A gay man was physically attacked  in the early morning hours of June 30, and a series of slurs was hurled from a moving vehicle the following evening. The Provincetown police are investigating the first incident, including a review of security camera footage from homes around Howland Street, Police Chief Greg Hennick and Town Manager Alex Morse told the Independent. Regarding the second, the department filed two charges of disorderly conduct against each of the three people, identified as Ryan Mahimtura, 19, of Framingham; Henry Ward, 19, of Hudson; and a person under age 18, also of Hudson.
In Pennsylvania, the Pittsburgh City Council unanimously passed three bills intended to provide further safeguards to the city’s LGBTQ+ citizens, WESA reported. Councilor Barb Warwick introduced the measures. Two of the items were designed to de-emphasize enforcement of any future law restricting the queer community from participating in otherwise legal activities and create avenues for reporting medical discrimination. A third bill lessens the legal penalty for engaging in sex work from a misdemeanor to a summary offense, the least serious type of criminal charge.
The U.S. government has had to return millions of dollars in funding for LGBTQ+ and HIV groups following a court ruling, per PinkNews. More than $6.2 million in federal grant funding has been returned to nine groups that support LGBTQ+ people and those living with HIV after they won a case challenging an executive order issued by President Donald Trump. Lambda Legal, which represented the plaintiffs in the case, confirmed that the grant funding had since been returned. Executive orders that Trump signed earlier this year were blocked after U.S. District Court Judge Jon Tigar issued a preliminary injunction in June, stating that the orders are unconstitutional and violate both the First and Fifth amendments.

Jim Obergefell—the plaintiff in the 2015 U.S. Supreme Court Case that legalized marriage equality nationwide—fears that same-sex marriage will be erased, according to Out. Although Obergefell v. Hodges was a monumental achievement, Obergefell warned that the battle for equality is far from over. “I always knew I’d be sharing my story for the rest of my life,” he said. “But now it feels different. Now, I tell my story not just with joy but with fear—fear that this story will be erased, our marriage will be erased, that our right to say ‘I do’ will be erased.” Still, he remains hopeful, adding, “I feel fortunate that I can be a voice for our community, that I can continue to fight for those who are marginalized and vulnerable because the LGBTQ+ community includes everyone—and we must fight for all of us.”
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will reportedly resume considering discrimination cases brought by trans people after a pause in which staffers were ordered to automatically classify such complaints as “meritless,” per LGBTQ Nation. EEOC field operations director Thomas Colclough said the agency will resume processing complaints that “fall squarely” under legal precedent set by the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, according to The Washington Post. The 2020 decision established that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act protects employees from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Republican New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte vetoed several high-profile bills that would have negatively affected LGBTQ residents, especially transgender people and students, per GO Magazine. The bills Ayotte rejected include measures that would have limited access to school library materials, allowed public and private facilities to bar transgender people from using bathrooms aligned with their gender identity, and put new restrictions on classroom activities and student surveys. Ayotte is no longtime LGBTQ+ ally, as she once opposed marriage equality and same-sex adoption.
Newly released records shared with The Advocate revealed how local government leaders in Pierce County, Georgia, moved quickly and collaboratively to fire LaVonnia Moore from her position at the public library after a small group of conservative activists objected to the display of When Aidan Became a Brother—a children’s book about a transgender child. Among those involved in discussions about Moore’s future were District 1 Commissioner Troy Mattox, District 3 Commissioner Randy Dixon, District 4 Commissioner David Lowman, County Manager Raphel Maddox, human resources generalist Elena Ryals and library board member Lana Blankenship. Mooresaid she was told she was terminated for “poor decision in the line of performance of duty.”
Cayla Calhoun—a trans woman who fled to D.C. from Alabama for reasons of safety—was attacked by three men near D.C.’s National Mall, according to The Advocate. “They began verbally assaulting me,” Calhoun recalled. “They called me slurs. You know, as queer people, we’ve all dealt with that.” After that, “somehow they pushed me off my Onewheel,” but after getting back on, “I was pushed off again” and was attacked. Injuries included a concussion, multiple broken ribs, a fractured vertebra, a shattered elbow, seven fractures around her eye socket, a broken palate and a fractured femur.  “Honestly, it crossed my mind [that] maybe I need to reach out to Alanis Morissette in case she ever wants to do another version of ‘Ironic,’” said Calhoun.
In Pennsylvania, James Lantz pled guilty to criminal mischief and misdemeanor vandalism as a result of his demonstration against LGBTQ+ teen suicide in April 2024, during which he interrupted a Senate session by yelling at state Sen. Ryan Aument, The Advocate noted. Aument had sponsored several anti-LGBTQ+ bills, including the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” law, a trans sports ban and a ban on LGBTQ+-focused books that he called “pornographic.” Lantz, a 64-year-old filmmaker, has described his upbringing in a small Virginia town as conservative and Christian, recalling it as the kind of place where “nobody was out.” Lantz was fined $16,000 for his protest.
In Florida, the Groveland City Council suspended one of its council members over social-media posts, including one mocking victims of the Pulse shooting—but she’s now suing, claiming the posts were doctored, per The Advocate. Councilwoman Judith Fike was suspended after nearly decade-old posts resurfaced, including one in which she wrote victims of the nearby Pulse mass shooting were killed more easily than if they had been thrown from buildings. At the meeting where she was suspended, Fike claimed the 2016 post had been misconstrued. “It was meant as a support of the community,” she said, according to Central Florida Public Media.
Denver officially launched its bid to host the Gay Games in 2030, aiming to bring the global celebration of LGBTQ+ sport, culture and community to Colorado, per GO Magazine. “Let’s show the world that Colorado is a place where we champion rights for all while creating a championship atmosphere for every athlete,” said Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, the state’s first openly gay governor, in a promo video. The presumptive host city for the 2030 Gay Games will be announced on Oct. 28—one year before the 2026 Games in Valencia, Spain.
In Florida, Boynton Beach painted over a Pride intersection, per WPTV. The city said it removed the painted intersection to “ensure full compliance with state and federal transportation mandates and address safety concerns” and following “recent guidance from the U.S. Transportation Secretary and the Florida Department of Transportation” regarding specific requirements for roadway markings. The intersection at East Ocean Avenue and Southeast First Street was unveiled in June 2021, and featured a painted Progress Pride flag.
Andrea Gibson—a queer spoken-word poet known for works about identity, life and love—has passed away at age 49, The Advocate reported. Gibson was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2021. According to Gibson’s Facebook page, they passed away on July 14 “in their home surrounded by their wife, Meg, four ex-girlfriends, their mother and father, dozens of friends, and their three beloved dogs.” Gibson’s first book of poetry, Pole Dancing to Gospel Hymns, was published in 2008.
A city councilor in southwest Washington state was charged with misdemeanor indecent exposure for stripping to the waist while demonstrating for trans rights on the Fourth of July, OregonLive.com noted. Stevenson City Councilor Lucy Lauser—who sported a sign stating, “My body is not obscene/Stop sexualizing trans people”—was handcuffed and led off the Skamania County courthouse lawn during the one-woman protest. Skamania County Sheriff Summer Scheyer said Lauser, who is trans, previously received a warning after taking off her shirt during a Transgender Day of Visibility demonstration on March 31. Local resident Kathleen J. Fitzgerald plans to collect signatures for a recall petition against Lauser, who won election with 328 votes in November 2023 and is running for mayor in the Aug. 5 primary.

Gay Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Brian Footer, a community activist who has been involved for many years in local and national government affairs, has announced his candidacy for the Ward 1 D.C. Council seat up for election in 2026, per The Washington Blade.  Footer, a Democrat, will be running in the city’s June 2, 2026, Democratic primary for the Ward 1 Council seat, but it’s not currently known if he will be running against incumbent Ward 1 Council member Brianne Nadeau (D), as she has not yet announced if she plans to run for re-election for a fourth term following her 12 years on the Council.
Heightened Scrutiny—which follows ACLU attorney Chase Strangio, the first out trans person to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court, as he fights a high-stakes legal battle to overturn Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth—at NYC’s DCTV Firehouse Cinema, a press release noted. The screenings will take place July 18-24. “The film exposes the dangerous role of mainstream media in fueling anti-trans legislation, uncovering how biased coverage drives hate, endangers lives and threatens democracy itself,” the release stated about the movie, which features insights from journalists like Jelani Cobb, Lydia Polgreen and Gina Chua, and activists like Laverne Cox and Elliot Page.
In Texas, Republican state Sen. Angela Paxton has filed for divorce from her husband, Attorney General Ken Paxton, after 38 years of marriage, citing “biblical grounds” and “recent discoveries,” per The Advocate. Angela posted on X, ““I believe marriage is a sacred covenant and I have earnestly pursued reconciliation. But in light of recent discoveries, I do not believe that it honors God or is loving to myself, my children, or Ken to remain in the marriage.” The couple’s shared political beliefs—rooted in evangelical conservatism and opposition to LGBTQ+ rights—have been central to their identities and to Texas Republican politics.

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