WASHINGTON – Today, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced that Federal Health Benefit Plan (FEHB) providers will no longer be permitted to have blanket exclusions on all transition-related services in their federal employee healthcare plans. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) praised the news as a victory for transgender federal employees. “This critical change is…
The transgender military community has been rocked this morning upon learning of the suicide of a transgender veteran, Jess Shipps. The Military Freedom Coalition reports that from what has been known so far, certain people received a goodbye letter from Shipps this morning – including a member of that organization. One of the nation’s leading…
SAN DIEGO— Equality Professionals Network (EPN), a coalition that represents lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) business professionals and their allies, will hold their Third Annual LGBT & Allies Career Event Tuesday, June 30, 4:30 p.m., at the San Diego LGBT Community Center, 3909 Centre St, San Diego, CA 92103 in Hillcrest. This free event…
In a press conference today, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) called for the removal of the Confederate flag from the Statehouse grounds, saying the killings of nine church-goers at Emanuel AME in Charleston last week mandated a change in the state’s heart. The Post and Courier reported that in a bi-partisan gathering inside the…
The Tijuana Tourist and Convention Bureau granted the titles of Ambassador of Tourism” to three social justice activists including City Commissioner Nicole Murray Ramirez (Chairman, International Imperial Court Council of the U.S.A., Canada, and Mexico). Popular Mexican recording artist Rocío Banquells and long-time community activist and great grandmother Maria Gallegas were also honored. President Miguel…
WASHINGTON, D.C.– Six SPARTA members will be attending the White House’s annual LGBT Pride Month Reception. Two actively serving transgender service members will attend the Reception Wednesday, June 24. Upon receiving his invitation, Air Force Senior Airman Logan Ireland notified his command, who authorized a policy exception to allow him to attend in male dress…
KAMPALA, Uganda, —The Imitation Game, the film, which explores LGBT issues in post-war Britain, was shown within the EU-Africa Film Festival in Kampala, Uganda, one of the most anti-LGBT countries in the world. Both male and female homosexual activity is illegal. Under the Ugandan Penal Code, “carnal knowledge against the order of nature” between two…
Psychiatric disorders can be difficult to diagnose because clinicians must rely upon interpreted clues, such as a patient’s behaviors and feelings. For the first time, researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report identifying a biological marker: the over-production of specific genes that could be a diagnostic indicator of mental illness in…
WASHINGTON — Last week, anti-equality Rep. Raul Labrador (R-ID) and Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the so-called First Amendment Defense Act (S. 1598, H.R. 2802) – legislation that would create a breakdown of government services and runaway litigation by giving federal employees and contractors a right to sue the federal government over opposition to marriage…
The Texas Supreme Court on Friday upheld a divorce granted in a lower court for a same-sex couple, a rare decision in a state that has a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, reports Reuters. The court ruled that state authorities, who tried to block the divorce, did not have appropriate standing in the matter and…
