As president of the Steel City Stonewall Democrats, it is extremely gratifying to write to my community about how thrilled I am to see so much more LGBTQIA+ representation on the ballot than I have ever seen.  Whether for Auditor General, State House Representative, or Convention Delegate, our community is making our way onto the ballot, into government, and into decision-making.  And don’t get me wrong, I appreciate our allies – love them to the moon and back, really—but allies are no substitute for LGBTQIA+ people at the table to represent ourselves.   Let’s start wi ..read more

We’ve all been to a wedding ceremony before. Typically, held in a church or religious building, sometimes somewhere more interesting if the couple wants to be more unique or has enough money or some combination of the two. But typically, the ceremony goes relatively untouched. Every culture has its own wedding traditions, sure, but within those cultures, weddings tend to be fairly similar. To make things worse, if you’re in your mid to late ‘20’s, chances are you’ve been going to a lot of weddings; and let’s be frank, they tend to blend together. Sure, you’re happy for the couple, and sure, it ..read more

I know that this is going to come as a shock to everyone, but I have to say it: The folks who want to ban transgender people from public bathrooms and overturn the Supreme Court’s marriage equality ruling are the same folks who want to ban abortion across the country in all forms and for all reasons. OK, this obviously is not shocking news. But it is important for LGBTQ+ people to know that the fight over abortion rights and the fight over LGBTQ+ rights is the same fight. I remember when I first started writing this column two decades ago; I would often say that straight people act like they h ..read more

At a time when so much is on the line for LGBTQ Pennsylvanians, we again have a battle coming to our commonwealth that we did not ask for. There are West Virginians attempting a hostile takeover of LGBTQ advocacy in Pennsylvania. It is something that needs to be called out to be known by people for what it truly is in order to allow real LGBTQ Pennsylvanians to evaluate for ourselves what is really going on behind the curtain. Screen shot from the Fairness Pennsylvania website listing their headquarters in Charleston, WV. LGBTQ Pennsylvanians deserve to live in a state with full, equal protect ..read more

On April 24, Ovation Film Fest invites audiences to a free night of short films created by Carnegie Mellon University students. Ovation Film Fest’s program celebrates short films about human connection and what it means to be part of a community. The one-night film festival is being held at Simmon B Auditorium at the Tepper School of Business. “Student filmmakers create fantastic work; Ovation’s program is a unique lineup of short films that students did independently, for a class, or with a team. However, these short films rarely get seen by the public. I believe these films and the voices of ..read more

Kathy Griffin has been through even more than you probably know. She lost a lung to cancer, lost her mother and lost many of her close friends. In 2020, the same year her beloved mom Maggie died, she attempted suicide. All the while, she was being investigated by the Department of Justice for a viral 2017 photo that depicted her holding up a severed model head covered in fake blood that resembled Donald Trump, resulting in a career-dismantling fallout. She is also now in the middle of a divorce. So much has happened to Griffin in just the last seven years that it’s easy for something like her ..read more

I am writing this on March 31, the 15th annual Transgender Day of Visibility. All over the world people are celebrating the lives of transgender people, affirming their right to exist, and expressing support, as they do every year on this date. It’s a beautiful thing. I’m also writing this on Easter… Wait, no. No, I am not. I’m sorry. It is not possible for two or more occasions of significance to happen on the same day. So are you #TeamEaster or #TeamTrans? You have to choose. You cannot be both. I’m kidding. Obviously you can be both if you want. It’s extremist conservatives that are demandi ..read more

The Philadelphia Gay News and LGBTQ+ leaders across Pennsylvania endorsed Joe Khan in his bid for Pennsylvania Attorney General. Joe Khan was endorsed in the Democratic primary by the Philadelphia Gay News, the oldest, continuously publishing publication uplifting the LGBTQ+ community in the country. The editorial noted Khan’s work to vote out the Moms for Liberty extremists who took over the Central Bucks School District and his refusal to defend unconstitutional policies that target the LGBTQ+ community. “There were all of these attempts to try and make people feel like gay and tra ..read more

Wednesday evening the Biden-Harris campaign launched the Pittsburgh branch of the “Out for Biden-Harris” program on the North Side. “Out for Biden” is a national organizing program to engage and mobilize LGBTQ+ voters, communities, and leaders across the country in support of the President’s reelection campaign. The launch comes alongside endorsements from seven LGBTQ+ organizations across the country, representing more than 3.8 million members who will use their resources to mobilize equality voters across every battleground state, including Pennsylvania. “Reelecting President Biden and Vice ..read more

Pittsburgh’s Corey Dunbar has won the title of ​​Mr. TBRU 28 Bear in the Texas Bear Roundup. 1st place winner, Dunbar, who hosts bear nights at P Town Bar, got into competing in the Bear scene back in 2022. At that time, there was no recurring Bear night in Pittsburgh. After winning second place in the Leather Bear Contest, Dunbar and the 1st place winner decided to bring Bear nights to the city.  “I had started going out to the bars in 2021 here in Pittsburgh, and there were some people that felt like I would be a great representation for the title,” he says. “They’d ask if I ever though ..read more