Posts by Sue:
UPDATED: Trans Latina Paloma Velasquez Murdered in Houston
On Saturday, February 22, a young Latinx trans woman was found murdered in her home. Her boyfriend returned from work and discovered her body. Reports indicate she had been there alone for hours with no neighbors hearing gunshots. There was no sign of forced entry. What happened to her? With baited breath, we waited for […]
Too Blue to Fly
People tell you a lot of things about grief – the phases, the stages, the array of emotions. They tell you about the heart-stopping-grasp that grief has in your chest, a constricting band that hurts your heart and tightens your breathing. They tell you that each experience of grief is unique, that the absence of […]
Happy Gotcha Day to Stefano DiMera and Spencer Cassadine
On this day in March 2020, I trapped two brothers living in Allegheny West. They moved into our second bedroom. We realized eventually that Spencer was going to be tough to tame. Then we realized Stefano had a seizure disorder, making him hard to place. So we adopted them. Spencer spends a lot of time […]
Q&A With NaTisha Washington, Candidate for PA House District 24
Unfortunately Pittsburgh/Allegheny County does a bad job of celebrating and acknowledging our talented resident until they’re famous or nationally recognized. I’ve fortunately had the opportunity to meet or know about many people around the city doing amazing work but they were not locally supported like they should. Last year I highlighted black environmentalists, but this […]
Women’s History Month: A Historical List of LGBTQ Organizations in Pittsburgh
Here’s a list of regional LGBTQ organizations I’ve been tracking for awhile. Do you have any data? Start dates? End dates? Other groups to include? Email us pghlesbian @ Gmail dot com Organization Name Founded/Established Closed/Shuttered GLCC of Pgh/Pgh Equality Center 1981 Persad Center 1972 PFLAG Pittsburgh 1989 Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force (PATF)/Allies for Health […]
LGBTQIA+ Commission 2022 Black History Month Statement
Five Tips to Comfort the Grieving
Maybe it is The Gilded Age viewing, but I have been noting some social mores and trends when it comes to mourning and grieving. First, condolences. It is not 1893. You most likely have a cell phone, email, Messenger, or a myriad of communication tools. Extend your condolences directly to the grieving person. Not their […]
I Wonder if My Mum is Happy …
It is about as close to 7 hours and 15 days as I can calculate. My father’s birthday has passed, my grandfather’s as well. Valentine’s Day (which was horrible) and soon enough Ash Wednesday, Easter, Mother’s Day, etc. But what strikes me about this is the fact that people seem to really think 7 hours […]
‘The Gilded Age’ and My Family
I’ve been watching The Gilded Age on HBO+ and this is one in an occasional rambling reflection on things the show brings to mind. Not a review – maybe, one day – just thoughts. There are two stories in my family that reflect the multiple dimensions of The Gilded Age. In 1862, William McClelland Ritter […]
21-year-old Latina Trans Woman Murdered in Lubbock, Texas
Cypress Ramos, a 21-year-old Latina trans woman, was found dead on February 13, 2022 in her hometown of Lubbock, Texas. Cypress died from blunt force trauma. Her suspect was quickly identified as 32 year-old Allan Montemayor and has been arrested and faces a murder charge. Her body was found inside a storage locker in a […]