States and school boards continue to debate and pass policies requiring school administrators to out LGBTQ+ students to their parents, and new research shows why doing so is a bad idea. A study from the University of Connecticut found that a third of youth who were forcibly outed had a greater likelihood of experiencing major depression as well as low family support. Additionally, more than 65% of youth said being forcibly outed was “highly stressful.” “For future research to examine the ways that families can protect or disrupt some of this stress could be really important,” study author Pet ..read more

Out gay Pennsylvania state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D) won his primary race against Mark Pinsley for the role of auditor general, an administrative position overseeing the state’s accounting and financial functions. Kenyatta’s victory makes him the first out gay man to be selected by a major party for a statewide office in Pennsylvania history. If Kenyatta wins in the November general election against Republican incumbent Tim DeFoor (the state’s first-ever Black auditor general) Kenyatta would become the first out LGBTQ+ statewide official in the state. “I am honored to be your nominee and look ..read more

In the U.K., a couple of unconventional brew masters have shot to the top of the non-alcoholic craft beer business with their Drop Bear Beer Company and some fresh takes on stouts, lagers, and pale ales. Based in Swansea, Wales, Joelle Drummond and her wife Sarah are defying the stereotypes associated with craft beer, from the products they’re creating to how they run their workplace — not to mention what typical British brew-masters look like. “I believe from all the research I’ve been able to do that we’re actually the world’s first LGBTQ+ alcohol-free brewery,” Drummond told Pink ..read more

Despite violent threats from the religious right and MAGA extremists, Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) has signed a new law that makes the state a sanctuary state for transgender people, abortion providers, and patients. The new law provides “protections to persons who seek, health care practitioners who provide and those who assist health care practitioners in providing gender-affirming health care services and reproductive health care services” that are legal in Maine. LD 227 establishes that access to such treatment is a legal right and that “interference with access to such services or the prov ..read more

I came out as bisexual in my 40s, and I had to learn how to grant myself permission to embrace my fluidity and attraction to people across the gender spectrum. I originally came out as a lesbian in my 30s after realizing I identified with the queer community. It was another 15 years before I met my current partner and truly recognized my fluidity. Part of this process involved overcoming the fear of being misjudged as heterosexual because of the appearance of my relationship. Fortunately, we’re seeing progress as many are freeing themselves from heteronormative boxes to identify as bisexual a ..read more

Gay and disgraced former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) has dropped out of the race to represent New York’s First Congressional District. He claimed he was worried that running as an independent would take votes away from Republicans and help a Democrat win the district. Santos, who was expelled from the House in December after an ethics probe found evidence that he was involved in fraud, announced his campaign for this November just after last month’s State of the Union address. He said that he would run in New York’s First Congressional District, changing districts after a Democrat won his forme ..read more

The High Court of Dominica has overturned a colonial-era law banning same-sex relations between consenting adults after a gay man filed a lawsuit claiming the ban was unconstitutional. The complainant, who remained anonymous, claimed the law led him “to live in constant fear of criminal sanction for engaging in consensual sexual activity” and caused “hateful and violent conduct towards him and other LGBT persons” that stopped him “from living and expressing himself freely and in dignity,” according to BBC. The ruling stated that the constitution guarantees that “a person shall not be hundred ..read more

Roseanne Barr posted a video to social media where she mocked a rape victim, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) – a sitting member of Congress – shared it saying, “Love her!” Barr was making fun of E. Jean Carroll, who accused Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her in a Bergdorf Goodman changing room in 1995. Carroll told several friends about the sexual assault when it happened but didn’t go public with the accusation until 2019. A jury agreed that Trump sexually abused her and ordered him to pay damages last year, both for the assault and for his later defamation of Carroll. “I just ha ..read more

State Rep. Patty Contreras (D) has served the people of Arizona for over three decades, first as a civil servant in Phoenix, where she was a program manager in human services and parks and recreation, and then as an elected official. In 2022, she was elected to serve the constituents of Legislative District 12 just south of Tempe, home to her alma mater, Arizona State University. She’s one of the first out lesbians elected to the Arizona House, and she’s running for reelection in 2024. LGBTQ Nation spoke with Contreras from her office just minutes after she left a signing ceremony for a bill ..read more

A nonbinary 17-year-old, River Nevaeh Goddard, was found dead earlier this month, and their boyfriend has been arrested in connection to the death. But he’s not being charged with murder. Police were responding to a welfare check at the home of their boyfriend, Shane Curry, in Stow, Massachusetts on April 3, when Curry blocked the entrance to his home and refused to let police in for two hours. Curry’s mother had called the police for the welfare check. When police were able to get in, they found Goddard’s body. Curry, 20, allegedly told police that he stabbed Goddard several times with a swo ..read more