In response to recent legislative efforts on behalf of the LGBT community seeking to overturn a federal ban on gay blood donors, the Illinois-based anti-gay group Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH) is launching a campaign to protect the extent ban. The Huffington Post reports that the AFTAH’s campaign, entitled “Keep the Gay Blood Ban,”…
Reverend Ouyang Wen Feng, the first and only openly gay pastor in Malaysia, is encouraging the country’s gay and lesbian people to “keep coming out” in an effort to fight LGBT discrimination. The outspoken equal rights advocate, who is also the leader of a controversial gay-friendly ministry, hopes to empower Malaysia’s gay community to speak…
Australian-born John Makk and his husband of seven years, Bradford Wells, are facing long-term separation after the Obama administration denied their petition requesting permanent U.S. citizenship. The decision was made in accordance with the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which discounts same-sex couples from receiving federal benefits. Makk, who is also his husband’s primary caregiver,…
Teen singer and former Disney star Miley Cyrus has taken a strong stand in favor of marriage equality in recent months, vocalizing her frustration with discriminatory business and practices via Twitter. Now, the 18-year-old has taken her advocacy to another level – and selected a new a tattoo designed in part to promote the validity…
Leading LGBT civil rights organization Lamda Legal recently filed a lawsuit against a Queens, New York Sizzler Steakhouse after an employee allegedly attacked a lesbian woman for being gay. The suit was filed on behalf of Liza Friedlander, who was eating lunch at Forest Hills restaurant when the manager began shouting slurs and obscenities and…
The California Supreme Court announced Thursday that it will hold a hearing in September to resolve arguments surrounding the state’s current ban on same-sex marriage under Proposition 8. On September 6, 2011, the court will take on the question of whether or not ballot initiative sponsors are justified in their attempts to fight court rulings…
In an effort to promote LGBT equality and to address the shortage of blood donors in the U.S., Massachusetts Senator John Kerry has launched an initiative to overturn legislation which currently prevents gay men from giving blood. Sen. Kerry is working closely with a colleague in the House of Representatives to prove that the ban,…
After sampling nearly 17,000 businesses and local governments nationwide, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has released the results of a new survey which included unprecedented questions on the availability of domestic partner benefits for same-sex couples. The survey revealed that nearly one-third of all U.S. workers had access to health benefits for their domestic…
Dollywood, a popular theme-park inspired by country singer Dolly Parton and located in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, is facing backlash from the LGBT community this week after an employee forced Olivier Odom, a lesbian woman, to turn her T-shirt reading “marriage is so gay” inside-out before entering the park. In response to the incident, Odom and…
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) announced Monday that it will embark on a nationwide bus tour to promote LGBT rights by sharing the message of equality with the American public. The “On the Road to Equality” tour is set to visit 17 cities in 11 states and will focus on areas where gay marriage is…
