Equality Michigan is a statewide political advocacy organization that works to ensure LGBTQ Michiganders not only achieve equality in all aspects of life but have the resources they need if they fall victim to discrimination. [...]
LANSING - Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel today announced a settlement with the plaintiffs in Dumont et al. v Gordon et al. (Case No. 2:17-cv-13080), a case centering on some state-contracted foster care and adoption agencies’ [...]
GRAND RAPIDS – The Michigan Department of Civil Rights has scheduled two fact-finding hearings in Grand Rapids on March 28 in response to allegations of discriminatory conduct against people of color. The hearings will be [...]
An annual spring fundraiser for the Affirmations LGBTQ community center, Spring Bash has long been a mainstay on the 501(C)(3)'s calendar. However, this year is special in two ways: it's a celebration of the organization [...]
A part of its Annual Gun Law Scorecard, the California-based Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence ranks all 50 states on a multi-point gun safety rubric and issues both a ranking and letter grade to each.
Originally established in 2007, the Florida-based 501(c)(3) National Association of Gay and Lesbian Real Estate Professionals was started with the direct intention of not only bringing both allied and LGBTQ business professionals together, but to work on a legislative level to aid in the elimination of discriminatory housing practices in the U.S.
Corktown Health Center and its community partners invite southeast Michigan residents who identify as part of the LGBTQ community to participate in a new online survey.
The Democratic field of contenders continues to grow and I am impressed by the wide range of talent in the party. On Nov. 7, 2018 I wrote that Democrats need a coherent message and younger candidates to win in 2020. My thought was there should be no one over 70 on the ticket. I stand by that today.
Fifteen months after firing all members of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, President Trump has restaffed the advisory body with nine new appointments.
With court orders barring President Trump from enforcing his transgender military ban out of the way, the Defense Department late Tuesday unveiled its plan to make the policy a reality, announcing it would begin April [...]
LGBTI advocacy groups around the world have condemned Friday’s terrorist attack at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, that have left at least 49 people dead. Express, an LGBTI newspaper in Auckland, reported organizers of the Wellington [...]
Optimistic about the prospects of enshrining a prohibition on anti-LGBT discrimination into federal law with a new Democratic majority in the U.S. House, Democrats on Wednesday introduced legislation known as the Equality Act to make [...]
Along with three other awardees, Dr. Arianna T. Morales was highlighted for exemplary work by the National Organization of Gay and Lesbian Scientists and Technical Professionals Inc. As a result of her recognition, Michigan-based Morales received a 2019 LGBTQ+ Engineer of the Year Award for her work as a staff research scientist with General Motors.
Now celebrated across the U.S. and in countries all around the world, the International Transgender Day of Visibility got its start 10 years ago when Michigan-based activist Rachel Crandall-Crocker felt the need to not only mourn the loss of members of the transgender community via the Day of Remembrance but to honor the living members of the community. Now, as she gears up for the 10th consecutive March 31 of celebrating the transgender community, Crandall-Crocker said she has two primary feelings: pride and disbelief.
A group of six members of the youth advisory board of the Ruth Ellis Center traveled to New York from Feb. 21 through 24 to take part in the 2019 U.N. Global Engagement Summit at the United Nation’s headquarters. The opportunity came about as part of a collaboration between attorney London Bell and the Bell Global Justice Institute and the Ruth Ellis Center. Bell, a member of the United Nations Association of Greater Detroit, had been preparing the youth for the trip since last June.
Spurred to Action Fifteen years ago, when John Kerry ran for president against George W. Bush, Kerry came to Michigan for a rally at Macomb University. For Jody LaMacchia, today a candidate for state representative, [...]
Receiving an HIV diagnosis is unquestionably life-altering, and not always only because of the direct effects of the virus itself. Cara Mitrano is an undergraduate student at Wayne State University and was recently selected by [...]
Last week LGBTQ Victory Institute, an organization dedicated to putting LGBTQ people in office, and 10 partner organizations announced the first National Out to Win Day will be held on Tuesday, April 2. Its goal is to get 22,272 LGBTQ people pledging to consider a run for office.
Antonio David Garcia, known as Dave by most, is back at the head of Affirmations in Ferndale, returning to the role of executive director on April 29 after a break of five years. Garcia, a [...]
On Wednesday, March 6, Hammer Alkotait was handed a sentence of 18 to 20 years in prison after a plea agreement convicting him of the second-degree murder of Gabino Rodriguez. The Detroit man, who was [...]
Corktown Health Center and its community partners invite southeast Michigan residents who identify as part of the LGBTQ community to participate in a new online survey. The purpose of the survey, known as the Corktown [...]
The Human Rights Campaign announced on Friday, March 8, that an unprecedented 161 leading businesses have joined HRC's Business Coalition for the Equality Act. Of them, five are from Michigan: Ally Financial and General Motors [...]
The two men who allegedly helped “Empire” star Jussie Smollett stage a fake homophobic and racist attack say that they have “tremendous regret” for how the incident has affected minority communities and victims of [...]
It’s pronounced “Boot-a-judge.” That was the first thing South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg cleared up for the Washington Blade in response to questions about his 2020 presidential run in a Jan. 31 interview. Buttigieg, [...]
Owners Martin Contreras and Keith Orr recently announced the sale of Aut Bar, the popular LGBT owned restaurant and bar in Ann Arbor’s Braun Court. Aut Bar will now be owned by BarStar Group, which currently owns and operates several successful establishments in Ann Arbor including Lo-Fi, Nightcap and Babs’ Underground.
Poet, educator and self-described thought leader, J. Mase III will be speaking at the opening ceremony for LGBTQ Week at Oakland University on March 12. Mase will be speaking about faith and the criminalization of the black trans body through poetry and a discussion. As a trans man, Mase said he was a unique insight into the issue.
Former bar owner and gay rodeo enthusiast James Osmond Brown II, known to many as Diamond Jim, died Feb. 11 from congestive heart failure. He died at his home in Detroit with his rescue dog Diamond by his side. He was 58.
Feeling alone or misunderstood in one's adolescent years is, for many, a rite of passage. Especially within the LGBTQ community, that period often leads those enduring it to discover more about themselves and find a group of peers who feel similarly.
Last week, commissioners in the city of St. Joseph went through the first reading of a non-discrimination ordinance targeted at expanding Michigan's Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to expressly protect the rights of its LGBTQ citizens.
Masterpiece Cakeshop — famed for its case that reached the U.S. Supreme Court after its owner refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple — has reached a new agreement with the State [...]
Equality Michigan educates and advocates to amend Michigan law and address issues that disproportionately impact LGBTQ lives throughout the state. Support from members of the community ensures that the organization has what it needs to [...]
February - Detroit Public Schools CEO Creates Task Force, Looks at LGBT Student Issues: In response to a community town hall, Detroit Public Schools CEO Dr. Kenneth Burnley announced that he would create a [...]
A hearing on Capitol Hill Wednesday became a veritable tale of two cities as transgender troops testified about their commitment to military service while Trump administration officials sought to explain why they would seek to [...]
The Democratic Party’s support for LGBT rights and the election of a record number of LGBT people — nearly all Democrats — to public office in the 2018 midterm elections were widely discussed at the [...]
Tennis great Martina Navratilova is taking heat for her recent comments on transgender athletes. Navratilova, a lesbian and an 18-times Grand Slam winner, called it “cheating” for trans women to compete in women’s sports.
Vice President Mike Pence backs the newly announced Trump administration global initiative calling on nation’s to decriminalize homosexuality, a spokesperson for his office told the Washington Blade on Wednesday. The global initiative seems aimed at [...]
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib visited the Ruth Ellis Center Feb. 21 for the second time, to hear from faith leaders and LGBTQ youth about the importance of LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections. The visit, which drew an invited crowd of about 20, was sponsored by Inclusive Justice, a statewide Michigan faith organization dedicated to addressing LGBTQ inclusion issues within the faith community. Tlaib received a warm welcome.
There were 31 hate and extremist organizations operating in Michigan in 2018, according to a new report from the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights organization located in Alabama. The SPLC released a 73-page [...]
New testimony in the case of Albert Weathers, a Sterling Heights pastor charged with the murder of transgender woman Kelly Stough last December, alleges the pastor has a history of interacting with sex workers in the Palmer Park neighborhood over the past decade.
In a Feb. 19 Ingham County Services Committee meeting, a resolution unanimously passed to improve the accessibility of gender-segregated restroom facilities on Ingham County's property.
To be held on Saturday, March 16 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. at Livonia's Schoolcraft College, the Michigan Psychoanalytic Society will hold its 44th annual symposium titled "Queer Theory Meets Psychoanalysis: Productive Synergies and Clinical Implications."
LANSING — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer encouraged young women in Michigan high schools last week to explore their aptitude for cybersecurity and computer science through the 2019 Girls Go CyberStart program.
The debate over LGBTQ issues may finally split the United Methodist Church, America’s second-largest Protestant denomination. Following a special session of the church's General Conference in St. Louis, Missouri, over the weekend, delegates voted down [...]
The debate over LGBTQ issues may finally split the United Methodist Church, America’s second-largest Protestant denomination. Following a special session of the church's General Conference in St. Louis, Missouri over the weekend, delegates voted down [...]
New testimony in the case of Albert Weathers, a Sterling Heights pastor charged with the murder of transgender woman Kelly Stough last December, alleges Weathers has a history of interacting with sex workers in the [...]
Spurred to Action Fifteen years ago, when John Kerry ran for president against George W. Bush, Kerry came to Michigan for a rally at Macomb University. For Jody LaMacchia, today a candidate for state representative, [...]
There were 31 hate and extremist organizations operating in Michigan in 2018, according to a new report from the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights organization located in Alabama. The SPLC released a 73-page [...]
Pete Buttigieg would make history if he becomes the first openly gay Democratic presidential nominee — and his path to the nomination may depend on whether the LGBT community supports him in his pursuit.
The year was 1978 and Jaye Spiro was teaching self-defense classes at senior citizen centers around Detroit. At one such complex, whose name she no longer recalls, Spiro met a feisty senior citizen named Ruth Ellis.
LGBTQ and Pagan ConVocation, an annual event that brings together people from a wide variety of mystical paths and faiths for knowledge sharing, networking and having fun, will take place this year from Feb. 21 [...]
