Transgender Day of Remembrance

Rural PA LGBTQ&A with West Branch Pride Organizers in Williamsport, Lycoming County

West Branch Susquehanna River Pride

This is part of a new occasional series exploring LGBTQ organizing in rural Pennsylvania communities. After our recent driving trip through the PA Wilds communities, I was impressed that after an almost complete lack of queer visibility, a slew of new LGBTQ projects unfolded in my feed – a Pride event in Elk County, a […]

82 Trans Stories from Western Pennsylvania Honor Trans Awareness Week

Transgender Awareness Week

The week before Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20, we have Transgender Awareness Week to help raise the visibility of transgender people and address issues the community faces. I’ve curated 82 stories from our #AMPLIFY project to illustrate the multi-faceted experiences of transgender neighbors in Western Pennsylvania. Our project asks people to describe their […]

Trump Targets LGBTQ Foster Care and Adoption – My Latest for @PghCurrent

Political LGBTQ&A with Jonathan Warnock, Indiana Boro Councilmember-Elect

Openly Gay Elected Official Indiana County

I say all the time that I’m just fighting the future, i.e. doing everything I can to mitigate the effects of climate change. Working for LGBTQIA+ rights feels the same. No minority group in history has gotten rights without a fight, and no group will keep them without vigilance. I’ve been involved with this for a long time now, going back to college and grad school working the the ‘gay/straight’ alliance clubs where I went to school. I seem to be unable to turn down the chance to advocate for equality or work to fight our climate future… just ask my husband.

I’m profiled for the Post-Gazette by Tony Norman

Want to host a house party for LGBTQ political blogging?

Long story short, we are hoping to organize a few house parties in the near future among Pittsburghers who support LGBTQ political blogging. I promise that its tied to 2020 Elections. You don’t have to be rich, you don’t have to be cool. You don’t have to watch Dynasty.Curious? Email me pghlesbian @ gmail.

Persad Center Staff Take First Steps to Unionize

For more info, visit this FB page. We are the Persad Staff Union. As therapists, case managers, program coordinators, administrative workers, and allied staff, we are forming our union to better advocate for ourselves, our community, and our clients. We are working together to promote the economic, emotional, physical and mental wellness of our staff […]

13 Openly LGBTQ Candidates Won Their Elections in Pennsylvania in 2019 ‘Rainbow Wave’

Jessica Semler Bruce Kraus

  This is amazing – 14 openly LGBTQ candidates in Pennsylvania were identified by the Victory Fund in yesterday’s elections. 13 of them won. Two of those candidates were from Western Pennsylvania – City Council President Bruce Kraus won reelection and Etna Borough Council candidate Jessica Semler, an openly queer woman, won her first campaign […]

Black Trans Woman Alicia Simmons Found Dead in Her West Philadephia Home

Alicia Simmons, 37, of West Philadelphia was found dead in her apartment on November 3, 2019. Police are investigating the cause of death and have been careful to state there is no evidence of a suspicious cause.  Philly Gay News reports: Deja Alvarez, trans activist and co-chair of Philadelphia’s LGBT Police Liaison Committee, posted on […]