All posts tagged: LGBT

An Episcopal camp offers queer Christians an affirming haven in Idaho

An Episcopal camp offers queer Christians an affirming haven in Idaho

(FāVS News) — The Episcopal Diocese of Spokane, Washington, has maintained Camp Cross — a 130-acre property on the west side of Lake Coeur d’Alene, Idaho — for more than a century. Each week throughout summer, the church hosts themed retreats, from Arts and Music Camp to Clergy Camp. One of those retreats is Queer Camp, a session for LGBTQ+ people and allies of all ages that the church has hosted since 2024. Its third year will run Aug. 28-31. “My hope is folks can know there is a place where they can be Christian and be their full self,” said camp director Alex Flannagan. “It’s not conditional, no one’s trying to change you, you’re fully welcome.” Idaho ranks low compared with other states in legal protections for LGBTQ+ people, according to Equaldex data, but the Episcopal Church in the region has marked its history differently. The Episcopal Church has historically supported LGBTQ+ expression in the Inland Northwest region. In 2025, under the direction of Bishop Gretchen Rehberg, the diocese became a major sponsor of Spokane …

LGBT+ Humanists statement on EHRC’s draft Code of Practice – Humanists UK

LGBT+ Humanists statement on EHRC’s draft Code of Practice – Humanists UK

LGBT+ Humanists has issued the following statement in response to the EHRC’s new draft Code of Practice for services, public functions and associations: Human dignity is at the heart of the promises of equality and human rights laws. The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s draft Code of Practice is meant to help organisations understand how to apply those laws in practice. However, we are deeply concerned that the Code does not sufficiently guide organisations to uphold the rights and dignity of transgender people, and risks leaving even the most inclusive organisations at a loss as to how they may lawfully continue to offer their services as they have always done so. The Gender Recognition Act (GRA) enacted over twenty years ago, promised transgender people with Gender Recognition Certificates (GRCs) legal recognition and associated protections based on their legal sex. Since then, the Supreme Court has said that this does not apply to the Equality Act, under which transgender people must be treated as members of their pre-GRC sex. As we said at the time of …

Humanists UK mourns Maureen Duffy (1933–2026), trailblazing author and first LGBT+ Humanists President – Humanists UK

Humanists UK mourns Maureen Duffy (1933–2026), trailblazing author and first LGBT+ Humanists President – Humanists UK

Humanists UK is deeply saddened to learn of the death of the pioneering writer, activist, and first President of LGBT+ Humanists, Maureen Duffy, aged 92. Born in 1933, in Worthing, Duffy attended King’s College London, where she earned a degree in English, graduating in 1956. She then worked as a teacher, freelance journalist, and copywriter before devoting herself to writing full-time in the 1960s. As one of the first people to fight for lesbian visibility in this country, Maureen’s courage and openness about her sexuality transformed gay and lesbian acceptance in the UK, breaking down barriers and prejudice, and giving confidence to other women like her to do the same. In 1962 she published her first novel, That’s How It Was, a semi-autobiographical account of growing up in post-World War II England. Her second novel, The Microcosm (1966), set in the famous lesbian Gateways club in London, was a feminist work that explored the lives of a group of women in 1960s London. It was considered the first ‘openly’ lesbian novel in English, and was …

Episode four: Born of Mary | LGBT rights and humanism in Britain

Episode four: Born of Mary | LGBT rights and humanism in Britain

In 1977, the campaigner Mary Whitehouse won a private prosecution against Gay News for blasphemous libel, after the paper published a poem imagining a Roman centurion’s love for the crucified Christ. It was the first successful blasphemy case in England for more than fifty years. In the backlash that followed, Whitehouse blamed her critics on an ‘intellectual gay humanist lobby’ working against her. There was no such group. Two years later, in 1979, a handful of activists decided that, if such a lobby did not exist, perhaps it should – and the Gay Humanist Group was born. Its founders called themselves, born of Mary. The phrase captures something of the long, often surprising relationship between humanism and the movement for sexual freedom that this week’s episode of Unholy Histories sets out to explore. The fourth episode of our podcast focuses on the entangled histories of humanism and LGBT rights activism in Britain; tracing how, time and again, the fights for freedom of conscience and freedom of sexuality have drawn on the same arguments, the same …

Barney Frank, architect of landmark Wall Street reforms, dies at 86

Barney Frank, architect of landmark Wall Street reforms, dies at 86

Barney Frank, former U.S. Congressman Adam Jeffery | CNBC Former U.S. Representative Barney Frank, a quick-witted Democrat who gave his name to a landmark financial reform bill after the economic crisis of 2007-2009, has died, his sister Ann Lewis said on Wednesday. He was 86. One of the best-known gay politicians of his time, ⁠Frank served for over 30 years in the U.S. House of Representatives as a member from Massachusetts and a liberal who gladly worked with Republicans. “He’s a guy you can sit down and ​deal with,” Republican Representative Tom Cole from Oklahoma ​said in 2011, when Frank chaired the ​House Financial Services Committee. Along with then Senator Chris Dodd, Frank spearheaded 2010 legislation that tightened banking regulations and consumer protections to avoid a repeat of the 2007 financial crash and subsequent Great Recession. Known as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the law led to new rules on the previously unregulated off-exchange derivatives ⁠market, ‌and set up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to shield consumers from predatory and abusive ⁠practices. It was regarded as one of the main successes in Congress of Barack Obama’s two-term presidency. ‘Things would …

5 new LGBT+ podcasts to listen to this week

5 new LGBT+ podcasts to listen to this week

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more In celebration of Pride Month, here are some LGBT+-fronted podcasts for you to listen to. 1. It Started With A Kiss Streaming platform: All streaming platforms and YouTube Genre: Relationships and LGBT+ It Started With A Kiss is a fun new ITV Studios LGBT+ dating podcast sponsored by Tinder, which feels like a much-needed debrief between old friends. Charismatic hosts Amy Spalding and Gareth Valentino – who are familiar faces from the “I Kissed A Boy/Girl” TV series – get cosy on a plush green sofa with some of your favourite queer icons every week and aren’t afraid to dig into all the juicy details. In the latest episode, they’re joined by Geordie Shore star Nathan Henry, who candidly discusses coming out on TV and …

Library Director Fired After Refusing To Remove Hundreds Of LGBT Books From Kids’ Section

Library Director Fired After Refusing To Remove Hundreds Of LGBT Books From Kids’ Section

When are these people going to learn to just leave the kids alone? A Tennessee library board has voted 8-3 to remove its top librarian, Luanne James, after she refused to carry out an order to relocate hundreds of LGBT-themed books, Critical Race Theory (CRT) and feminist propaganda books from the children’s section of six Rutherford County branch libraries. James was initially ordered to relocate books containing far-left ideology from the juvenile/children’s sections to the adult sections of libraries.  The board cited concerns that the books promoted “gender confusion,” contained LGBT themes/characters, sexual themes, feminist topics, DEI, social justice and related content. The decision stemmed from a broader state review of thousands of materials prompted by a Tennessee Secretary of State letter and federal guidance on gender-related content.  Actions within red states to transfer woke propaganda out of children’s spaces in school libraries and public libraries accelerated after viral complaints by parents who have read some of the horrific selections out loud at board meetings across the country.  Activist librarians have become a plague, disregarding the age …

LGBT Activist Judge Faces Felony Charges For Wrongfully Detaining A Defense Attorney

LGBT Activist Judge Faces Felony Charges For Wrongfully Detaining A Defense Attorney

A Texas LGBT judge with a history of clashing with authorities over her activism has been arrested and charged after she allegedly handcuffed and held a defense attorney captive in her jury box for the crime of arguing for the right to confer with her client during a probation hearing.     Bexar County Judge Rosie Speedlin Gonzalez was indicted last week on a felony charge of unlawful restraint by a judicial officer and misdemeanor official oppression.  The controversial judge was arrested for the 2024 incident, during which she and defense attorney Elizabeth Russell clashed in the courtroom.  Gonzalez has had run-ins with the law before.  In 2022 she was was fined for bringing a loaded rainbow-painted gun through San Antonio International airport in her carry-on luggage.  In 2019 shortly after she took the bench as the “first openly gay judge in Bexar County”, Gonzalez was sanctioned for pasting her courtroom, office and robes with gay pride flags in violation of the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct.  In 2023 the sanctions were lifted by a three judge …

Why eating disorders affect LGBT+ people more

Why eating disorders affect LGBT+ people more

Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more When people picture someone with an eating disorder, many think of a thin, teenage girl with anorexia nervosa. This stereotype is so pervasive it can feel like a fact. The reality is that eating disorders affect people of all ages, body sizes, cultures, races, sexes, genders and sexualities. In 2023, around 1.1 million Australians (around 4.5% of the population) were living with an eating disorder. A growing body of evidence suggests LGBTQIA+ people are particularly vulnerable to developing eating disorders. But we still need more research to understand how and why they affect this group more. Here’s what we know so far about LGBTQIA+ people’s higher risk – and what treatment actually works for them. What is an eating disorder? Eating disorders are serious …