transgender community

On a recent visit to Guatemala, the reining Miss Universe Ximena Navarrete met with transgender women who have been victims of abuse and discrimination.

The transgender community is celebrating a small victory today after the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation made the announcement that they have agreed to allow transgender individuals to identify themselves more accurately on forms supplied by the state agency.

Since the world community has descended on Haiti with relief aid in response to the January 12th earthquake, I am wondering how Haiti's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) communities are being helped.
 

As we all know, June is Pride Month for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities across the country -- and parades abound. Some in our community contest that we are in a holding pattern while other argue that we are ready to assimilate into mainstream society.

The Chicago Community Trust has announced the establishment of The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Community Fund. The endowment will be the first of its kind in a major US city and will offer grants ranging from $200,000-$500,000. The focus is to help improve Chicago’s LGBT community by offering support to the city’s various non-profit agencies.

It’s not easy for any person of African descent to be LGBTQ in our black communities, but our transgender brothers and sisters might feel the most discrimination. The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), in collaboration with the National Gay and Lesbian task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) released a groundbreaking study in September called "Injustice at Every Turn: A Look at Black Respondents in the National Transgender Discrimination Survey."

African American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities have always existed in Harlem, residing here since this former Dutch enclave became America’s Black Mecca in the 1920s.

ISpoke.net is giving people the opportunity to speak. The courage to know that they have support when they hear a negative comment towards the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and to tell the person saying it, ‘That is not okay!’

Every year Mayor Tom Menino's Office of Arts, Tourism, and Special Events puts on its annual Boston GospelFest at City Hall Plaza. And because the Gospelfest is a public and taxpayer-funded community event, it’s open to all -- even its African American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities. But with Pastor Donnie McClurkin, the poster boy for African American ex-gay ministries, who spews anti-gay religion-based vitriol, billed as the main event, many in the African American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) communities will not be in attendance at this year’s event. And neither will the mayor.
 

Thanksgiving marks the beginning of the holiday season, so why not give thanks and give back with 10 philanthropic gift ideas ideal for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community? The recent lesbian cruise run by Sweet instilled many in the community with a sense of volunteerism, so here's a quick guide on how to give! 

Long-time gay rights activist Cleve Jones announced a call for a march on Washington demanding full equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Scheduled to take place Sunday October 11, it is also National Coming Out Day.

The city of London is hoping to drum up excitement among gay sports fans for the 2012 Olympic Summer Games by selling Olympic Pride pins on eBay. According to the description, "This is the first in a series of pin badges to celebrate diversity and engage all communities in support of the London 2012 Games. This pin badge features the rainbow flag and the London 2012 Olympic logo and is launched in support of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community."

February 1 begins Black History Month, a national annual observance since 1926, honoring and celebrating the achievements of African-Americans. Within the African- American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community, Black History Month has always come under criticism.

Last Saturday night in New York, Broadway was, well, even gayer than usual when the 23rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards came to Time Square. The red carpet was filled with celebrities from the LGBT community and their allies. Glee stars Naya Rivera and Cory Monteith MC’d the event that recognized and honored mainstream media for their "fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community and the issues that affect their lives."

Suicide is one of the main causes of death within the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgendered communities. Seattle, Washington has a not-so-secret reputation in the United States for being a city cloaked in depression and suicide (in 2005, Seattle ranked #23 in the country overall and the west coast in general had a higher rate at nearly 12% than the remainder of the country). Seattle is also home to a particularly large LGBTQ community. Coincidence?

Irish and African-American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) communities share a lot in common when it comes to being excluded from iconic institutions in their communities. For LGBTQ African Americans, it's the Black Church, and for LGBTQ Irish, it's the St. Patrick's Day Parade. St. Patrick's Day has rolled around again, and like previous March 17th celebrations nationwide, its LGBTQ communities are not invited. As a contentious and protracted argument for now over two decades, parade officials have a difficult time grasping the notion that being Irish and gay is also part of their heritage.