54 Bisexual+ Voices from Western Pennsylvania #AMPLIFY

Bisexual Visibility Week

This week is the time of year when we acknowledge and honor bisexuality visibility and awareness, September 17-24, 2017. It is a time to recognize the resiliency, strength, and tenacity of our bi+ neighbors. You can tweet, IG, and more with the #BiWeek hashtag to show your support and appreciation for the bi community. The #AMPLIFY […]

TransPride Pgh Changes Annual Conference Schedule to Respect Yom Kippur

Transgender Pittsburgh

This is a simple story, but one that illustrates cultural competency and respect by a LGBTQ organization. Earlier this year, TransPride Pittsburgh announced plans for their annual TransPride Pride Week and weekend conference, set for the end of September. The weekend conference was scheduled to have a professional day on Friday September 29, a community […]

Jez, 50, Came Out As Trans in 1985 in Rural Washington County #AMPLIFY

Transgender Washington County

  Name: Jez Age:  50 County of Residence:  Washington Pronouns: she/her How do you describe your identity?  Transgender Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face?  Came out when the AIDS epidemic was rampant 1985 How would you describe yourself NOW in terms of “being out”? Struggling everyday to stay […]

Derricka Banner, 26, is the 20th Trans Person Murdered in 2017

She was 26 years old, a black trans woman living in Lenoir, North Carolina. Originally from New York City, she had studied at Caldwell Community College. She previously worked for Wal-Mart and was working most recently with Tyson Foods. She was known to some friends as Ms Bow Wow and sometimes Derricka Lashae. According to […]

Transgender Bigotry in Sharon, Butler Reinforce Need for NonDiscrimination Protections

Pittsburgh Transgender

Content Note: misgendering, deadnaming, lies, transphobia. On Sunday, the Sharon Herald printed a newspaper article updating the community on the status of a civil lawsuit against the Sharon Police Department involving the shooting death of 23 year-old Sean Hake. Sean was a transgender man. The Sharon Herald first reported that he was a trans woman, […]

Six Reasons Bisexual & Pansexual Folks Should Get #AMPLIFYed

Bisexual Umbrella

Visibility matters.  In late September, the nation will be recognizing the bi community via Bisexual Awareness Week. Last year, we compiled a list of the bi and pan folks who had contributed to the AMPLIFY project by that point in time. We had 27 particpants at that point in time. We plan to publish another […]

Kashmire Redd, 28, is 19th Trans Person Killed in 2017

Kashmire Redd

I just read this on TransGriot where Monica Roberts reports that a 28 year old black trans man, Kashmire Redd, was stabbed multiple times by his partner and succumbed to those injuries. This happened in Gates, New York, a suburb of Rochester. Kashmire is the 19th trans person killed this year. 40 year old Doris Carrasquillo […]

Help Us Honor LGBTQ History Month in October

AMPLIFY MLK Day

October is LGBTQ History Month, something we take very seriously on the PghLesbian blog and via the #AMPLIFY project. To help us honor our history, we are planning to publish guest post from LGBTQ neighbors and allies describing the local and regional history they believe we should remember. This will be part of a permanent […]

Morgan, 31, is a Black, Bisexual, Queer, Polyamorous Woman & Mother #AMPLIFY

Pittsburgh polyamorous bisexual queer

Name: Morgan Age: 31 County of Residence:  Allegheny Pronouns: She/her How do you describe your identity? I am a black, bisexual, queer, polyamorous woman and mother. Please describe your coming out experience. Where did you find support? What challenges did you face? I came out to the “general public” in a long Facebook post after the Orlando tragedy in 2016. […]

Kiwi Herring, 30, is the 18th Trans Person Killed in 2017 #SayHerName

Kiwi Herring

Kiwi Herring was a Black trans woman from St. Louis. She died after being shot by police at 8 AM on Tuesday, August 22 outside an apartment complex. Police were responding to a domestic call. According to police, Kiwi had a knife when they entered the apartment in response to the call. She allegedly slashed […]