Black Trans Woman Candace Towns, 30, is 23rd Victim of Anti-Trans Violence in 2017

30-year-old Candace Towns of Macon, Georgia is the 23rd transgender person lost to anti-trans violence in 2017. From Monica Roberts at Transgriot: Towns was staying at the Rodeway Inn on Eisenhower Parkway, was last seen alive Saturday, and was reported missing on Sunday.  At 4 PM EDT Tuesday an anonymous 911 call was received  reporting […]

Brad, 33, is a Gay, Black Man Who Does Charity Work as a Sister of Perpetual Indulgence #AMPLIFY

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We talked for maybe 20 seconds, and he invited me to the first group meeting of the semester. It was all quick and mundane, but my mind lingered on him afterwards as I thought, “This is a man, and he is gay. He is a gay man.” It wasn’t even about sex, just the idea that a man could be gay and live his life without shame.

Butler Mayoral Election is Referendum Vote on Municipal NonDiscrimination Ordinance Says Local Trans Activist

“[The Nov 7 General Election] will be seen as a referendum vote [on nondiscrimination ordinances].  So, if it fails, no elected official will bring this back up anytime soon, in Butler or the surrounding area. If we get this passed, then it will show the neighboring municipality that it is not political suicide to bring this up and vote on it.”

Stephanie Montez is 22nd Transgender Person Murdered in 2017

A week after her body was discovered, friends of Stephanie Montez spoke out to make sure her authentic identity was acknowledged. The friends of Corpus Christi transgender woman Stephanie Montez were left aghast as their search for her revealed that the Sheriff had identified her as a “man in a dress” in an inexcusably transphobic […]

Meg, 30, is a Genderqueer Femme in Washington County #AmplifyUpdates

At the request of our contributors, we are creating space for people to submit updates. We know that for some folks, life has changed so we are offering an opportunity to post an update to earlier responses. We will NOT be modifying that content, but we will create a link to this new post. This will […]

Tracey, 58, is a Queer Mother Parenting Nonbinary Children #AMPLIFY

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What motivated you to take part in this project? 

Living my truth, parenting non-binary children, wanting to do the best for my family and my clients.

Bebe Beretta, 27, is Nonbinary, Genderfluid, and Wants More LGBTQ Folks to Connect #AMPLIFY

Bebe Beretta

Name: Bebe Beretta Age: 27 (28 in November!) County of Residence: Allegheny County, formerly Butler and Mercer counties Pronouns: She/He/They (anything will do, I’m a pronoun hog!) How do you describe your identity? Non-binary, gender-fluid. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I never really came out. The universe just kind of […]

Dave, 33, Identifies as a Queer, recovering Gay White Man #AMPLIFY

Gay Allegheny County

Name: Dave Hutchinson Age: 33 County of Residence: Allegheny County Pronouns: Any of the three sets – I’ve been in different contexts where each one made sense and felt right. How do you describe your identity?  Queer, recovering Gay White Man™ Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I came out in […]

Phat Man Dee Talks About ‘Creative Love Energy’ and #LGBTHistoryMonth

Phat Man Dee

In honor of LGBT History Month, I’ve asked several friends to share something that they consider significant with regard to the regional LGBTQ experience. Here, Mandy L Kivowitz-Delfaver also known as Phat Man Dee, responds. I’ll admit that she made me tear up quite a bit.  ~ Sue My friend Sue Kerr of the wonderful blog […]

Helen, 51, Came Out as Bisexual in the Army National Guard #AMPLIFY

Bisexual Pittsburgh

Your Name: Helen Franziska Gerhardt Your Age: 51 Your Pronouns: She, her, Your County of Residence:  Allegheny How do you describe your identity? Bisexual Tell me about the first LGBTQ person whom you met. What impact did they have on your life? I was about eight years old when I met the woman from whom I received my middle name, Franziska […]