Smithsonian Preserves LGBTQ History for a Post-Homophobic Future

Earlier this month, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History announced that it would be adding hundreds of new objects to its existing LGBTQ collection, including a tennis racquet from transgender trailblazer Renée Richards, the diplomatic passport of Ambassador David Huebner (the first openly gay ambassador confirmed by the Senate), and memorabilia from the groundbreaking NBC sitcom Will & Grace.

And now, thanks to a great documentary short produced by MSNBC, those of us not in Washington finally have an opportunity to check out the new materials.  Read More
 

Hockey Canada embraces gender identity inclusion

Jesse Thompson can't wait until hockey season starts again, facing only his on-ice opponents.  Hockey Canada has agreed to make changes to protect young players in Ontario from discrimination and harassment based on a player's transgender status.  These changes resolve a human rights application Jesse filed after facing difficulties at his local arena.  Read More

Japanese "Condom Meals I Want to Make for You" Cookbook Promotes Safe Sex and Questionable Cooking Methods

I never thought I would have cause to use the words “condom” and “cookbook” in conjunction with each other, but, well… I was wrong. A condom cookbook actually exists; it’s called Condom Meals I Want to Make for You, and it’s available on Amazon Japan. For reals. I am not making this up.

Created by manga writer Kyosuke Kagami, who's best known for the title Sentou Hakai Gakuen Dangerous, Condom Meals I Want to Make for You features 11 recipes that use condoms as cooking or serving tools. Condom meat stuffing? It’s got that. Condom escargot cooked with butter? It’s got that, too. There’s some condom sushi in there, too, and condom cookies are on the menu for dessert. Uh… yum? Or something? Read More

Padmini Prakash is India’s first transgender news anchor

The United States isn’t the only place experiencing something of a cultural transgender revolution. It’s happening in India, too, where the country recently witnessed a broadcast by Padmini Prakash.

Prakash, 31, is India’s first transgender news anchor. She works at the Tamil language channel based in Coimbatore in the state of Tamil Nadu.

She’s done all sorts of work — everything from transgender rights activism to teaching dance to acting in a soap opera to competing in transgender beauty pageants. Prakash worked for Lotus News, based in Coimbatore for about a month before she was promoted in August to anchor its 7 p.m. broadcast. Read More 

15 Responses To The Question: “What Does The Word ‘Queer’ Mean To You?”

Fifteen people in their 20s and 30s describe what 'queer' means to them.

“Queer is what you make it.”
“I know many people use ‘queer’ as an umbrella term, and I understand why they do, but I think it’s really reductive to forget that while it may be an umbrella term for some, it’s very specific for others. Queer is what you make of it — and, for me, being queer means that my sexuality is not fixed, that it can evolve over years and that I can be sexually and romantically attracted to various degrees to the spectrum of gender identities that exist. When people ask me what my sexuality is, I say queer, and if they don’t know what that means, I’ll say that I don’t label my sexuality at all — I have a very complicated relationship with the term ‘bisexual’ because of the associations of promiscuity that my LGBT-phobic straight peers attached to it. In that instance, bisexual felt like a word that I could not control in my own social circles. Queer feels like a term that I can make my own.” —Andrea Garcìa-Vargas, 23

Read them all

Jeffrey Tambor: ‘I have never been so scared in my life’

Transparent is being hailed as the TV show of the year. Hadley Freeman talks to its star Jeffrey Tambor about his ‘most transformative role’ yet – and the night he went clubbing as a woman. 

As chance would have it, the week before I interviewed Jeffrey Tambor I spoke to two other actors, both of whom brought up Tambor and promptly went gooey-eyed.

“Jeffrey set the tone for the whole of Arrested Development,” said Tambor’s co-star and on-screen son, Jason Bateman. “We all watched him when we filmed on the first day, and he did it totally straight. He was so bold and completely unconcerned with being likable. He taught me what you can get away with in comedy.” Read More

Would you have sex in this latex nappy to protect against STIs?

The Scroguard claims to provide users with “less worry, more fun”, as it covers all of the skin in the genital area not normally covered by a condom.  Read More

‘Pride’ Warmly Epitomizes The LGBT Movement’s Success In Partnering With Other Causes

UK film, Pride tells the very true story of how a group of gay and lesbian activists from London raised money to support striking coal miners in the small Welsh village of Dulais Valley. 

The story conveys the sincerity of gay and lesbian activists' intentions: even though its members were facing their own struggles related to their identities, they remained firmly committed to supporting the miners. The rapid success of LGBT rights over the last half-century is largely due to the partnerships LGBT people have made with other movements. Read More

Meet Television’s Groundbreaking Intersex Character

In the Season 2 premiere of MTV’s Faking It, which explores the spectrum of sexuality, a main character reveals that she was born with an intersex condition. Here’s what went into that decision — and why it was so important to get it right. Read More

Oldest gay bookstore in America to re-open as AIDS charity shop

When Ed Hermance, the owner America's oldest gay bookstore, announced earlier this year that after 35 years he was getting out of the book business, he said he would not leave Giovanni's Room or the building in Philadelphia to just anybody.

After decades of providing a safe haven both intellectually and physically for the gay community at 13th and Pine streets, he did not want it all to disappear just because of the demise of bricks-and-mortar bookstores.

Earlier this week, he signed a two-year lease with Philly AIDS Thrift, a charity shop that resells donated material to benefit AIDS and HIV programs. A few years ago, it successfully expanded into a double-wide storefront at Fifth and Bainbridge streets, becoming something of a retail and cultural phenomenon itself. Its owners say it raises about $20,000 a month.

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Seven Lesbian Web Series You Need To Binge Watch Immediately

Don’t get me wrong. I could watch Sex And The City reruns all day. I’m not even going to act like I’m embarrassed about it. Give me all the Mad Men, Game Of Thrones, Girls-level straight-people, implied PIV (penis-in-vagina) TV sex because I eat that shit up.

I have no shame.

But sometimes there are moments when I’ve already watched the first two seasons of Orange Is The New Black from start to finish three times, seen almost every episode of The Real L Word twice already and I just cannot deal with Hannah and Adam’s bullshit or the on-again, off-again Carrie and Big saga (so I’m emotionally invested, sue me). There aren’t a lot of other TV options for when you just want to watch some really lesbionic programming, and I really don’t need another web series about four straight girlfriends "just trying to make it in L.A." and maybe ask out the cute Starbucks barista guy one day. More