For the Huntington Wood Library’s Drag Queen Story Time, a glittering drag queen comes to the library to read to young children once a month. The program, said to be the third of its kind [...]

Kelly Stough, known to some as Keanna Mattel, was laid to rest in fine style Saturday with a funeral at the James H. Cole Home for Funerals in Detroit with a memorial service later in the evening at the Affirmations LGBTQ community center in Ferndale. Stough was murdered Dec. 7 in the Palmer Park neighborhood and was remembered fondly by friends and family. That, her mother said, is the way it should be.

DETROIT — "A Christmas Story, The Musical" has announced a local partnership with the Michigan Humane Society during their Fox Theatre engagement running Dec. 20 through 22.

Hosted by by Chela Yoga from Waterford, all Affirmations-supporting community members are encouraged to come by on Monday, Dec. 24 from 9 to 10 a.m. to participate in a holiday-inspired yoga session.

his holiday season, hundreds of families in Detroit will not have clean water running through their homes, due to impending Detroit Water and Sewage Department shut-offs. Hydrate Detroit, a local 501(c)(3) water rights organization, would like to “Give the Gift of Water Restoration” to ensure that families and seniors who cannot afford to pay their water bills are able to enjoy a fully hydrated home throughout the holiday season. It is encouraging anyone who can to give to the organization via an online fundraiser to pay water bills.

HUNTINGTON WOODS — Over 150 residents and supporters packed the gymnasium of the Gillham Recreation Center for Tuesday night’s Huntington Woods City Commission meeting after news broke over a California-based organization’s intent to protest the [...]

Creating Change will be held at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center from Jan. 23 through 27 in 2019. More information its included events, speakers and programs can be found online at creatingchange.org. Creating [...]

As stressful as coming out to one's family can be, it's an important step in the lives of all LGBTQ people who want to live open lives. In ideal circumstances, the change in the family [...]

DETROIT - This week the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office charged Sterling Heights native Albert Weathers, 46, in connection with death of 36-year-old Kelly Stough of Detroit. According to a Human Rights Campaign report, Stough was [...]

Melinda Phelps did not initially set out to be a certified public accountant. Born and raised in Detroit, and a product of Michigan colleges, Phelps first started out as a stockbroker. But as a proud [...]

BTL Photo: Andrew Cohen “It’s a self-portrait,” said artist Michael Gute, describing "Detroit Figure," one of his paintings featured in the Together We Can Exhibition, whose purpose is to bring awareness to the [...]

A crowd of almost 60 gathered at Affirmations' community chat to discuss the future of the center. BTL Photo: Eve Kucharski Searching for answers and concerned about its future, a crowd of 56 [...]

“Some people only choose to be equitable because the law of the land will punish them for deviating from that behavior,” said Brumalis. “If trans people lose protections, there will be a surge in assaults, unemployment and homelessness because there won’t be anything to shield and protect us from bigotry.”

Equality Michigan has announced that Executive Director Stephanie White will be leaving her position effective Jan. 9, 2019. The organization's boards unanimously decided not to renew her contract. This decision, according to a press release, was made as a result of EQMI's efforts to retool for 2019 and years to come.

LGBT Detroit invites supporters of their services to celebrate the holiday season together with their 16th annual Holiday in December benefit. The benefit, happening on Saturday, Dec. 8 at 2:30 p.m. that includes gifts and raffles, will support LGBT programs and services.

Last June, in honor of Wayne State University's 150 years in existence, the Wayne State University Library System's Reuther Library invited its student body and the local community to take part in exploring the school's history and "evolving relationship with LGBTQ students, staff and faculty." Though the actual event happened during a pride month panel already, the event is now up for viewing on YouTube.

A small crowd of about 20 came out Monday, Nov. 19 to the Wayne State University Student Center Ballroom for what organizers believe was the university’s first official Transgender Day of Remembrance service. The service, [...]

About 20 people came out on Tuesday, Nov. 20, for a Transgender Day of Remembrance service at the Ruth Ellis Center in Highland Park. The service was designed to be an intimate conversation among trans women and men of color.

It was supposed to be a quick run to pick up a few groceries, but when Jacqueline Street, a trans woman, stopped into the Walmart in Benton Harbor on Nov. 15, she got more than just bread and milk at an unbeatable price. Street said she was discriminated against and repeatedly misgendered while attempting to check out.

Creating Change will be held at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center from Jan. 23 through 27 in 2019. More information its included events, speakers and programs can be found online at creatingchange.org. Creating [...]

Two years ago, after the Michigan State Board of Education approved a set of policy recommendations for the support and inclusion of LGBTQ students, the father of a child attending Dexter’s Cornerstone Elementary School scheduled a meeting with principal Craig McCalla. He took issue with the school's bathroom policy: allowing students to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity.

This month, Lambda Legal and Michigan Protection & Advocacy Service announced the successful settlement of a 2015 lawsuit filed on behalf of John Dorn against the Michigan Department of Corrections. Lambda Legal is an organization [...]

This month, through a collaboration between the Michigan Employee Resource Group for Equality or MERGE and the Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce, LGBTQ organizations across Metro Detroit were given the opportunity to connect one-on-one [...]

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) named Wayne State University the winner of its 2018 Project Degree Completion Award during its annual meeting in New Orleans. The annual Project Degree Completion Award identifies [...]

In a Nov. 14 press release, Affirmations announced that it has suspended its search for a replacement executive director and laid off three employees: Development Director Katie Koch, Education and Training Manager Becca Budde and [...]

Affirmations Interim Executive Director Lilianna Angel Reyes has resigned from the organization, effective Thursday, Nov. 15. She made the announcement via social media Nov. 9.

In a press release posted on their website Nov. 8, the San Francisco Opera announced it was removing University of Michigan professor and countertenor David Daniels from the role of Medoro in Handel’s "Orlando." Initially planning to present the opera next summer, the announcement comes in the wake of a lawsuit filed last month against Daniels in which it is alleged that he sexually assaulted one of his students.

They held out as long as they could. Keith Orr and Martin Contreras, owners of Common Language Bookstore in Ann Arbor, recently announced that they plan to close their feminist, LGBTQ store at the end of the year. The announcement comes after years of dwindling sales that they attribute at least in part to internet sales and the rise of online giant Amazon.com

One look at The Bearded Lady's waiting room - a bright, cheery space complete with a beer fridge, coffee maker, bookshelf, standing lamp and a backdrop of family photos - and visitors might think they missed the barbershop and stumbled across someone’s living room. Ash Hipps is the shop's owner. She said that's exactly how customers are supposed to feel because comfort for all is the shop's priority.

Rev. Dr. Justin Tanis is known by many in the LGBTQ community for his book that explores the relationship of the transgender community to religion: "Transgender: Theology, Ministry and Communities of Faith." The 2003 work has helped give Tanis, who is not only transgender himself but also the managing director for the Center for LGBTQ and Gender Studies at the Pacific School of Religion, a unique outlook on the topic.

DETROIT – Five Southeast Michigan organizations that serve boys and men of color received support to evaluate their impact thanks to funding made available through the Community Foundation and the national capacity-building program called Research, [...]

The ballots are counted and the final votes will soon be certified. The outcomes up and down the state ballot will have an impact on LGBTQ Michiganders and allies in the coming two years and [...]

For the LGBTQ community, Jennifer V. Kurland's race for governor is one to watch not only because of its progressive platform but especially because of her running mate: Charin H. Davenport. Beyond being a vocal [...]

The rally was called We Will Not Be Erased and the message was clear: no matter what he tries to do, Donald Trump cannot redefine the transgender community out of existence. The rally, which drew a crowd of about 120 to the Ruth Ellis Center parking lot Friday, was organized after The New York Times reported on a leaked memo from the Trump administration that revealed its desire to define gender as a “biological, immutable condition determined by genitalia at birth.”

Although her legal battle began in 2013, Aimee Stephens is still fighting for the right not to be fired simply for being transgender. A former employee of R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Home, she announced to her team members that she would be transitioning from male to female and lost her job as a result. Now, even though the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the funeral home's actions are a form of sex discrimination, Stephens stands at the brink of a review by the Supreme Court of the United States — potentially reversing the ruling in her favor. Despite this reality, the ACLU has chosen to recognize Stephens for her landmark case at their Nov. 9 Annual Dinner, among four other honorees.