Hundreds of athletes, professors, and advocacy organizations penned letters to the NCAA on April 23 calling on its leadership body to support trans athletes and make it clear they are welcome on college sports teams. The letters were addressed to the NCAA Board of Governors, a governing body, and featured signatures from prominent and well-respected stars ranging from Megan Rapinoe to Sue Bird, adding further weight to the cause. Other former professional athletes who signed the letter included former NFL players Chris Kluwe, who is an ally, and RK Russell, who came out as bisexual in 2019 whe ..read more

“Challengers,” directed by gay filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, is the tale of two tennis pros who’ve known each other since they were 12. Professional tennis players Art (Mike Faist) and Patrick (Josh O’Connor) are in love. They know it, and they’re even capable of expressing their desire without too much self-consciousness. But their potential is wrecked by competition and their inability to act out queerness without the meditation of a woman. Tashi (Zendaya) began as one of their peers, playing tennis at the college they all attended. After a broken knee destroyed her ability to participate in th ..read more

The origin story of the legendary East Village club the Pyramid is now in print. Reading “We Started a Nightclub” is a bit like immersing yourself in a fairy tale, although we’re guessing that the sex and drugs involved will probably prevent Disney from ever animating it. But there’s something magical about the story – and tragic as well. In the most perfect of places, a tiny nightclub was born, and open to just about everything — music, drag shows, performance art, theater, rock, disco, opera, Shakespeare, gay, straight, transgender and more personalities than stars on Broadway. Its heyday wa ..read more

LGBTQ groups are calling on the Supreme Court to reject local laws in Oregon that bar individuals from sleeping or camping on public property, arguing that such policies disproportionately harm marginalized people and open the floodgates to jurisdictions looking to clamp down on homeless individuals.  The groups spoke out on April 22 as the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, which originated in 2018 when the Oregon Law Center first filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of homeless individuals who said they were impacted by the ordinances in ..read more

This month’s Gay City News music roundup reviews new albums by gay synth-pop icons the Pet Shop Boys and trans “ambient emo” artist Claire Rousay. Pet Shop Boys | “Nonetheless”| Parlophone/Warner | April 26th Pet Shop Boys.Alasadair McLellan By this point, we know what to expect from the Pet Shop Boys: ironic yet sincere lyrics, music that synthesizes disco and synth-pop, arena-ready production. “Nonetheless,” their 15th album, delivers while going in a new direction. It gives off a mood of jaded melancholy, with late ‘60s Scott Walker, Roxy Music’s “Avalon” and ‘80s sophistipop as touchstones ..read more

A new queer rock festival is making its debut at Coney Island this May. Frankie Fest is a one-night-only show that highlights queer and LGBTQ+ ally artists. The festival was created in honor of Frankie Maddox Rex of the local band The FMs, who tragically passed away on May 11, 2022. “It felt like a very obvious thing for us, this is such a big part of Frankie’s life and legacy,” said Matte Namer, Rex’s bandmate in The FMs. “I think many people have memorials for friends that have passed or funerals. This just feels like the best way to honor them.” “Frankie Fest is something that I’ve wanted t ..read more

Less than a year since out gay former NFL player Carl Nassib announced his retirement, he’s slated to make an appearance at the NFL draft to announce a draft pick for the team that drafted him eight years ago: the Cleveland Browns. Nassib, a former linebacker and defensive end who in 2021 became the first active NFL player to come out as gay, will announce the Browns’ second round draft choice alongside Peggy Rajski, a film director and interim CEO of The Trevor Project, which is a non-profit focusing on suicide prevention among LGBTQ individuals. Nassib has been involved with The Trevor Proje ..read more

Queer couples are more likely to live near coastal areas and urban population centers, which puts them at an elevated risk of experiencing the effects of climate change, according to research conducted by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. The Williams Institute combined US Census data with NASA and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) data to extract key takeaways about same-sex couples who live in counties where there are greater risks of environmental, infrastructure, and social problems stemming from climate change. The 15 counties with the greatest share of same-sex coupl ..read more

The explosion of color and exuberance that greets Dorothy when she lands in Oz in the dazzling revival of “The Wiz” now at the Marquis is just one treat in what is easily the happiest musical on Broadway right now. Almost 50 years after the show was a smash — and took home the Tony Award for Best Musical — the show is back in a big way. William F. Brown’s original book has been updated by Amber Ruffin, and the show is sassier and simpler than the original. There’s a pointed comic sensibility — irony bordering on edginess — that contemporary audiences will relate to, making this feel more like ..read more

Despite the gloomy rain on Thursday, April 18, there were sunny smiles abound as Housing Works accepted a $300,000 check from Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and cut the ribbon on their newest community health center in East Harlem. The new site at 145 E. 125th Street will be the second in Harlem for the NYC-based nonprofit which has been providing comprehensive services to homeless and low-income New Yorkers since 1990. What started as a response to the HIV/AIDS crisis in New York City has grown into an expensive practice providing basic medical care, housing, food, psychiatric care as well as ..read more