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Kamala Harris wants your vote
The conflict is internal. It’s a secret struggle, really, that Kamala Harris has been forced to face in public. The Democratic presidential candidate doesn’t like to brag. It’s unbecoming, it’s immodest, it places the individual ahead of the community. Instead, Harris, who was inculcated in the spirit of the 1960s civil rights and social and economic justice movements, profoundly believes in community and coalition building.
“That’s exactly how I was raised,” Harris tells the Los Angeles Blade in a June 18 phone interview. “It’s not about you. It’s about getting the job done.”
The job done of winning the presidency means not taking any group or voter for granted, including the LGBT community. Harris’ struggle to tout her own achievements, which she discusses in her memoir The Truths We Hold: An American Journey, stands in sharp contrast to the man she intends to defeat, Donald Trump, the biggest chest-pounding, klieg lights-seeking braggadocio con artist the world has seen in decades. Harris, a former district attorney and California attorney general who believes Trump is a racist, thinks the House should launch impeachment proceedings into the president’s illegal behavior. She also thinks Trump should be prosecuted after he leaves office.
Some wonder if Harris is “tough enough” to go up against Trump. They need only look at her precision prosecution of Attorney General Jefferson Beauregard Sessions during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing. Despite being interrupted by her Republican colleagues, Harris forced the flabbergasted Sessions to throw his hands in the air. “I’m not able to be rushed this fast!” Sessions said, as if needing a fan and mint julep. “It makes me nervous.”
Or juxtapose a visibly frightened Trump crouching behind a lectern during a disturbance at a rally before four burly men rushed to his rescue—to Harris who was initially surprised but sat calmly when a white man rushed the stage, grabbed her microphone and had only black lesbian MoveOn.org communications director Karine Jean-Pierre for protection.
Harris calmly walked off the stage, smiling, while the man was hustled away. She then calmly returned to deliver her talk about pay equity. No one talks about the courage it takes for Harris to stand alone onstage, despite what one presumes is an ongoing avalanche of death threats from Trump supporters.
The field of 23 Democratic presidential contenders is expected to narrow after the June 26-27 debates. But while Harris is top-tier, she is not a shoo-in for the nomination, which is still a long ways away.
“I hate to say this—but we need a man. Nothing against her. I’m sure she’s smart and great. But I’m going with Joe Biden. He’s got thick skin and he’s the only one who can beat Trump,” one white gay man tells the Los Angeles Blade on background.
Biden’s “thick skin” is now under scrutiny. Though he had been advised against it, on Juneteenth, the former vice president cited working with notorious racist segregationist senators James Eastland (a Mississippi plantation owner who believed integration would lead to “”mongrelization”) and Herman Talmadge (who as Georgia governor closed schools rather than desegregate) as an example of civility and bipartisanship.
New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, an African American presidential candidate, was offended and said Biden should apologize. Biden took umbrage and pushed back. “Cory should apologize,” Biden told reporters. “He knows better. There’s not a racist bone in my body; I’ve been involved in civil rights my whole career. Period. Period. Period.”
Harris said Biden’s remarks concerned her “deeply. If those men had their way, I wouldn’t be in the United States Senate and on this elevator right now,” she told Capitol Hill reporters.
It is unclear if Biden, the frontrunner in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, will lose support as some younger progressive politicos claim he is “out of touch” with current sensibilities around race, while older politicos try to explain his gaffe.
Several younger LGBT voters support South Bend, Ind. Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who smartly talks about the future. They think Buttigieg, a vet who served in Afghanistan, can take down the bully Trump and shame him for ducking the Vietnam War. Buttigieg has stepped off the campaign trail to deal with the shooting of a black man by a while police officer in South Bend, which has resurrected past racial complaints over a housing policy. But Buttigieg will be standing next to Biden during the second Democratic debate on June 27, a visual that screams generational divide.
Harris will be standing next to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.
California Attorney General candidate Kamala Harris with Equality California Executive Director Geoff Kors at an EQCA event (Photo by Karen Ocamb)
Harris will have a strong LGBT cheering section glued to TVs across California, including longtime friend Mark Leno, the first openly gay man elected to the State Senate who brought Harris to her first Human Rights Campaign gala in 1999 and Palm Springs City Councilmember Geoff Kors who, as executive director of Equality California, first introduced Harris to the broader LGBT community when she was the San Francisco DA running for attorney general.
Sen. Kamala Harris and Kate Kendell, Campaign Manager for
Take Back the Court, at a Pride event (Photo courtesy Kendell)
Kors and Kate Kendell, former executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, also worked closely with Harris when San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom decided to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples in 2004 and Harris was recruited to officiate at City Hall. They teamed up again to fight the anti-gay marriage Prop 8, which her 2010 opponent, Republican LA DA Steve Cooley supported.
Kris Perry, former plaintiff in the federal lawsuit against Prop 8, whose wedding to Sandy Stier Harris officiated when Prop 8 was defeated, tells the Los Angeles Blade she supports Harris “100%.” Perry’s son Spencer works on Harris’ presidential campaign.
Attorney General Harris officiating at the wedding of Kris Perry and Sandy Stier, with Elliot Perry looking on. (Photo courtesy Perry)
The documentary “The Case Against 8” shows the wedding and the moments before when fellow Prop 8 plaintiffs Paul Katami and Jeff Zarrillo in LA are being told to “step aside” to let straight couples get their licenses since the Los Angeles County Registrar/Clerk’s had not yet received official word from the state to go ahead after the Supreme Court decision. The couple is stunned but their legal team gets Harris on the phone—she’s celebrating with Perry & Stier, Chad Griffin, Cleve Jones and others in San Francisco—and Harris directs Clerk Dean Logan to start the marriages now. She tells him to “enjoy it.” Logan says he will—he’s a strong LGBT ally.
Interestingly, Harris confirms that she intentionally uses the couple in her book as an example of finding the commonality in people. In the chapter “Wedding Bells,” she talks about Prop 8 and officiating at their wedding—and then, in the same chapter, she talks about meeting, falling in love with and marrying white California attorney Doug Emhoff, who brings to the interracial marriage two adult step-children. Thought there is no blaring neon light signaling her intention, Harris uses her own personal story and a public exercise of her office to illustrate that a straight inter-racial couple and a lesbian couple, both with children folded into a blended family, have the experience of love in common.
Attorney General Harris at Equality California event (Photo by Karen Ocamb)
Indeed, while Harris works at finding commonality and building coalitions, she is herself the walking positive personification of intersectionality and an example of why identity politics still serve to combat invisibility and under-representation.
Her brilliant parents immigrated from Jamaica and India. She fought hard to become the first female, the first black and the first Asian-American district attorney in San Francisco. Then she fought to become California’s first female, black, and Asian-American attorney general. She then the second black woman in U.S. history to win a Senate seat.
“I grew up exposed to many cultures, and it certainly did teach me from birth about the fact that people have so much more in common than what separates them,” Harris tells the Los Angeles Blade. “I didn’t have to learn it from reading about it. I didn’t know the word ‘intersectionality’ but I’ve always known the commonality between people. A mother’s love for her child, a parent’s desire for their family to be healthy and safe. These are universal truths, regardless of the last name and how you spell it, or what your grandmother’s language is, or the God you pray to. That’s how I’ve always lived my life, which is knowing the commonality between people.”
It was a point she made in her Oct. 31, 2017 keynote HRC address in Washington DC.:
“I believe this is a moment when our country is witnessing an assault on our deepest values and ideals. Where people don’t trust our government, its institutions, or leaders.
So to restore that trust, HRC I believe we must speak truth.
Even when it makes people uncomfortable.
Even when others are silent.
And as the poet Audre Lorde reminds us, “there are so many silences to be broken.”
So let’s speak truth. From Charlotte to Charlottesville, we have been reminded racism in this country is real.
Sexism, anti-Semitism are real in this country.
Homophobia and transphobia are real in this country.
And we must speak that truth, so we can deal with it…..
And we need to speak another truth. That despite the forces of hate and division that are trying to tear us apart, Americans have so much more in common than what separates us. That is a truth.
I remember, for example, many years ago I was sent to go speak in the Castro to a group of young gay men. I was there – apparently you were too – I was there campaigning against a ballot measure that would have required young women to notify their parents before getting an abortion.
And so I was going to speak in this home in the Castro with a group of twenty, thirty year old men, and I remember scratching my head, thinking “Ok now what am I going to say to this group that for the most part has not had to deal with an unintended pregnancy?”
So I said to them, “I guess you guys are wondering what you could possibly have in common with a 16-year-old pregnant girl.” And as you can imagine, everyone laughed.
And then I asked them, “Well, when you were 16, did you want to speak with your parents about your sexuality?” And the room went silent.
Because they knew we have so much more in common than what separates us. And I think it’s what Bayard Rustin meant when he said, “You have to join every movement for the freedom of people.”
Sen. Kamala Harris at 2019 HRC/LA gala (Photo by Karen Ocamb)
Two years later, at the HRC/LA gala last April, Harris again underscored how the country is at an inflection point and each citizen has a responsibility to respond.
“These last two years and some months have certainly caused a lot of us to start talking to an inanimate object called a television and to shout at that thing,” Harris said, prompting agreeing chuckles from the crowd. “It has caused a lot of us to sign up for individual or group therapy, it has caused a lot of us to feel a lot of despair and depression and anxiety and fear. And I say, ‘Don’t let the bad guys win!’”
Harris also referenced poet Emma Lazarus’ famous quote “Until we are all free, we are none of us free.”
“Let’s pass the Equality Act in the U.S,” she said. “Until all of us are equal, none of us are equal.”
That these are not just “freedom” talking points pulled out for an LGBT gala is illustrated by a funny vignette in her memoir. Harris and her younger sister Maya were raised by her civil rights activist mother Shyamala. At one rally, when Harris was still in a stroller, she starting acting out, being fussy. When her mother asked her what she wanted, toddler Harris said, “Fweedom!”
In 2014, out legal eagle Chris Geidner reported on Harris the “progressive prosecutor” at a Center for American Progress’ Making Progress Policy Conference:
“If there’s a distrust of law enforcement — and, by extension, government — all of the systems break down, at least for certain populations,” she said. “When I charge a case … it’s in the name of the people and the premise there is that a crime against any of us is a crime against all of us. If there are specific communities that are not receiving the full benefit of the protections we created, it’s a problem for all of us.”
Asked about the history of distrust between the black community and law enforcement, Harris said, “It’s all of our responsibilities to acknowledge it and deal with it where it occurs. And it’s not just because it’s the morally right thing to do, I believe it’s in the best interest of public safety for everyone.”
A funny vignette in a lengthy profile of Harris in the May issue of The Atlantic suggests gay people are part of her everyday consciousness, not just called forth when required. It’s a vignette she later talked about on The Daily Show With Trevor Noah.
Screengrab from CNN reporter Maeve Reston’s tweet
Harris and her sister, followed by a slew of journalists, visited Styled by Naida, “a vintage-clothing store run by Naida Rutherford, who grew up in the foster-care system and was homeless before she steadied herself economically by hosting stylish garage sales,” Elizabeth Weil reported.
After picking out a hat and a black belt:
“Harris noticed a brightly colored sequined coat, a chessboard of turquoise, purple, yellow, green, and sky blue. The jacket was just about the furthest fashion choice imaginable from Harris’s standard dark blazer. Still, Rutherford, a good saleswoman, encouraged Harris, a good candidate, to try it on, and Harris did. She looked in the mirror, the horde of journalists to her back. “This really would be perfect for the Pride parade,” she said.
A nice, unguarded human moment. The jacket was way too big, and she’ll almost certainly never wear it anywhere but the parade. But you’d have to be a monster—and a tone-deaf politician—not to want to support Rutherford. Harris bought the coat.”
Kamala (comma-la) Harris was born on Oct. 20, 1964, five years before the Stonewall Rebellion, and never needed an epiphany to discover that LGBT people were OK.
“I grew up in a community and a culture where everyone was accepted for who they were, so there wasn’t a moment where it was like, ‘Okay, now let’s let this person in.’ Everyone was a part of everything. It was about community,” Harris says. “It was about coalition building. It was about equality, inclusion. I mean, I had an uncle who was gay. [But] there was no epiphany” about gay people.
In fact, with the exception of Buttigieg’s very presence, Harris is the only top-tier presidential candidate to constantly reference homophobia and transphobia in her speeches.
But some trans people are still angry over how Harris backed the Department of Corrections in its 2015 denial of gender reassignment surgery for then 51-year-old inmate Michelle-Lael Norsworthy.
The Washington Blade’s Chris Johnson asked Harris about the issue in January at Harris’ first news conference after announcing her 2020 presidential bid.
“I was, as you are rightly pointing out, the attorney general of California for two terms and I had a host of clients that I was obligated to defend and represent and I couldn’t fire my clients, and there are unfortunately situations that occurred where my clients took positions that were contrary to my beliefs,” Harris said.
“And it was an office with a lot of people who would do the work on a daily basis, and do I wish that sometimes they would have personally consulted me before they wrote the things that they wrote?” Harris said. “Yes, I do.”
“But the bottom line is the buck stops with me, and I take full responsibility for what my office did,” Harris said.
Harris confirmed to the Los Angeles Blade that she worked behind the scenes with the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation to establish a process enabling transgender inmates to receive transition-related care, including gender reassignment surgery, and she worked on getting Norsworthy paroled.
“I did it quietly, because I actually disagreed with my client initially, when they had the policy, and so I did it behind the scenes,” Harris tells the Los Angeles Blade. “I helped to resolve and change the policy. The issue for me was to make sure the right thing would happen.”
But Harris adds: “Let me just be very clear. I don’t want to take full credit for that, because I don’t deserve full credit for that. I don’t want what I said to be interpreted as that. There were a lot of people involved in that.”
But Harris’ responses have been so cerebral, some feel she doesn’t see the humanity in trans individuals.
“I understand not only their humanity, but I also understand the unfair challenges that they face in a society that still hasn’t come to appreciate their full humanity,” Harris tells the Los Angeles Blade. “And I know the hate that also has been targeted at our transgender friends, and I know that it resulted in lethal proportions. That’s why, when I was the vice president of the National District Attorneys Association, I led the national DAs in a training on the ways that we can get rid of the ‘gay panic defense,’ because I knew it was being used as justification for the killing of many people, including transgender people.”
Transphobia “is something I care deeply about. I have known many people who are transgender, and talked with them and really shared their pain around what their life experience has been like because of the ignorance that still exists about who they are and the challenges they face,” Harris says.
That includes all healthcare concerns.
On Thursday, June 20, Harris introduced the PrEP Access and Coverage Act, legislation to guarantee insurance coverage for PrEP and create a grant program to fund access for uninsured patients.
“PrEP is a critical advancement in the fight against HIV that can finally provide peace of mind to Americans who live in the shadow of the HIV epidemic. But for too many in our country, lack of insurance coverage and exorbitant costs have put PrEP out of reach—and that needs to change. We must truly commit ourselves to HIV prevention by finally requiring every health insurance plan—public and private—to cover PrEP and all of the required tests and follow-up doctors’ visits. We must also provide the resources necessary to help people without insurance access PrEP. Nearly four decades since the beginning of the HIV/AIDS crisis that took so many lives and caused countless others to live in fear, we can and will stop the spread of this disease,” said Harris in a statement.
Harris says that if elected president, she would sign an executive order to protect DREAMers and put them on a path to citizenship. The Los Angeles Blade asked if she would sign an executive order for the Equality Act, the LGBT civil rights bill that would prohibit discrimination against LGBT people in employment, housing and public accommodations.
At the recent Poor People’s Campaign forum on poverty, Harris noted her efforts to help LGBT homeless youth in San Francisco. But, other that the Campaign’s leader, Bishop William Barber, LGBT people are being left out of the discussions and debates over the economy, pay equity, and jobs. The last report with research from the Williams Institute, the Center for American Progress and the Movement Advancement Project was in 2015 under President Obama.
The report found that: “Due to discriminatory laws, America’s 5.1 million LGBT women face lower pay, frequent harassment, compromised access to health care, and heightened violence. Anti-LGBT laws, together with inequitable and outdated policies, mean that LGBT women’s economic security is compromised by reduced incomes and added costs ranging from health care to housing.”
“LGBT women face added challenges not solely because of their gender, but also because of who they are and whom they love. Discrimination and stigma, combined with the struggles faced by all women, make LGBT women and their families especially vulnerable,” said Ineke Mushovic, executive director of the Movement Advancement Project.
“Making matters worse, the burden falls most acutely on those who can least afford it: LGBT women raising children, older LGBT women, LGBT women of color, LGBT immigrants, and those LGBT women and families who are already living near or below the poverty line.”
The Equality Act, which has passed in the House, would help counter some of these issues. While Harris did not commit to issuing the legislation as an executive order, she did commit to making it a top priority as president.
“One of my first orders of business would be to get the Equality Act passed,” Harris says. “Listen, I believe in the words and the spirit behind the Constitution of the United States and all of its amendments and those words we spoke in 1776 at the founding of our nation—that we are all equal and should be treated that way. That’s why I fought against Prop 8. I don’t believe that it is reflective of our democracy or the spirit of our founding, that any person would be treated differently under the law.
“So it is for all of those reasons that the Equality Act would be a first order of business for me,” Harris continues, “and to do everything that I can within my power to make sure that we make that point about who we are as a nation. I often look at the words inscribed on that marble at the United States Supreme Court, and it says, ‘Equal Justice Under Law.’ I truly believe that. That is our goal. That is our ideal. That is part of who we are as a nation and we have to fight for that every day.”
Cover photo of Sen. Harris at 2018 Pride parade courtesy Harris’ 2020 presidential campaign.
Palm Springs
Here’s your Palm Springs look at Labor Day Weekend: Sep 4-7, 2026
Anita Bryant was waging war on our LGBTQ+ community in Dade County back in 1977 when Gloria Steinem came to Miami to help our cause. Throughout her 90 plus years, the feminist became a supporter of our causes, becoming one of the early supporters of the Human Rights Campaign.
Her death this week reminds us that we have allies in many corners of the world. Her views were sometimes controversial — and misunderstood — especially on transgender issues.
In a 2013 essay for The Advocate, she explained her views from 1977 which became a flashpoint to the trans community when she questioned whether society sometimes pressured people to change themselves rather than confront prejudice.
So now I want to be unequivocal in my words: I believe that transgender people, including those who have transitioned, are living out real, authentic lives. Those lives should be celebrated, not questioned.- – Gloria Steinem
And like Dolly Parton, Steinem stood up to criticism from her ‘fans and followers’ for supporting LGBTQ+ rights. She said that lesbians were “the most vulnerable group of women”. She advocated for ENDA, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
She didn’t live to see her memoir released – it’s due out September 22nd. But the stories contained in those chapters will illuminate a life well-lived and the document the many struggles that transpired in her lifetime. Her impact on social justice will live on.
In a Instagram post announcing her death, her family wrote, “Gloria has given the world with the hope they have ripple effects for generations to come. Gloria often quoted the adage: “The flap of a butterfly’s wing can change the weather hundreds of miles away.” Fitting that the symbol for our trans community is the butterfly and that Gloria’s flap has had a lasting impact across the entire LGBTQ+ community.
Brad Fuhr, your K-Gay Desert Guide
Here’s what’s ahead in sunny Palm Springs!
Greater Palm Springs Spa Month
Greater Palm Springs Spa Month unfolds across the Greater Palm Springs Area all month long, celebrating National Self‑Care Awareness Month with exclusive wellness experiences throughout all nine resort cities. This featured promotion invites guests to slow down, breathe deeply, and embrace self‑care their way—whether through a mineral spring soak, a rejuvenating facial, a deeply relaxing massage, a sound bath under the desert sky, or a full day dedicated entirely to restoration. Participating resort spas, day spas, and hot springs spas offer limited‑time treatments and special packages all September, making it easy to explore, book, and enjoy your perfect wellness escape. More info
Palm Springs Women’s Jazz Festival / 2026 Blues at the Woodstock
The Palm Springs Women’s Jazz Festival / 2026 Blues at the Woodstock takes the stage at Hotel Zoso on Friday, September 4 from 6:30–9 pm, kicking off a featured Labor Day weekend of powerhouse blues performances. The evening stars Miriah Avila, Kimberly Nichole, and Dr. Gail Jhonson’s Blues All‑Stars, celebrating independent female artists with bold voices and unforgettable musicianship. The festival continues through September 6 with concerts, Q&As, exhibitions, and more. Check our event listing for more details: More info
Burgers, Boys & Brews Sunday BBQ
Burgers, Boys & Brews Sunday BBQ fires up The Social Cafe & Lounge on Sunday, September 6 from 2:30–5 pm, serving grilled burgers, hot dogs, bottomless mimosas, bottomless draft beer, and a hot male performance show. This backyard‑style brunch party blends great food, cold drinks, music, and high‑energy entertainment for a new Sunday tradition. More info
Get Tix Now: KGAY BIG SPLASH Pool Party
Next weekend is about to make a BIG SPLASH — so here’s your early heads‑up! The KGAY BIG SPLASH Pool Party returns Friday, Sept. 11 from 7–10 pm at the Palm Springs Surf Club, bringing nighttime Lazy River access, River Island fun, beats by DJ Galaxy, poolside cocktails, giveaways, and a pre‑party Happy Hour from 5–7 pm. All proceeds support your station KGAY 103.1! Get tickets
P!nk Tribute Night
Get ready for a high-energy concert experience with PInk Tribute Night at The Social Cafe & Lounge on Friday, September 4 at 7 pm. After three consecutive sold-out seasons captivating audiences in Puerto Vallarta and the Bay Area, the sensational Eva makes her highly anticipated Palm Springs debut as part of the venue’s First Fridays live performance series. Channeling P!nk’s raw energy, Eva doesn’t just impersonate one of pop music’s most iconic performers—she delivers a full, unforgettable concert experience up close. More info
The Purple Room Season Opening Weekend
Purple Room Palm Springs heats up Labor Day weekend with David Burnham headlining Friday–Saturday, September 4–5, performing Burnham Sings Bublé at 8 pm (dinner at 6 pm). His brand‑new show celebrates the greatest hits of multi‑Grammy winner Michael Bublé with contemporary swing and powerhouse vocals. On Sunday, September 6, The Judy Show! returns as Michael Holmes brings his beloved madcap classic back to the stage. More info
NSFW – New Season of Work
NSFW – New Season of Work launches a month-long season-opening exhibition at Rubine Red Gallery through September 30. Featuring new work by Russ White, T. Young, Merick Reed, Don Fisher, and Terrence Payne, this showcase celebrates the start of the 2026–2027 Palm Springs Art Season with fresh perspectives and dynamic contemporary art from five standout creators. More info
The Temptations
The Temptations perform at The Show on Friday, September 4 at 8 pm, bringing their iconic harmonies, signature choreography, and decades of chart‑topping hits to the stage. With classics like “My Girl,” “Get Ready,” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone,” this legendary group continues to captivate audiences with stories and songs spanning generations. More info
WET + WILD | Rump & Bass
Presented by Eagle Cathedral City, WET + WILD: Rump & Bass ignites Labor Day Weekend with a two‑part, high‑energy celebration at The Sonoran. Friday’s WILD event on September 4 from 9 pm–2 am unleashes a late‑night dance party featuring Circle Jerk and the Palm Springs debut of NYC DJ duo MA’AM, delivering thick basslines and a wild crowd vibe. The weekend continues Sunday, September 6 from 2–7 pm with WET, a sun‑soaked pool party soundtracked by Marc Kelly and Bryan Hughes. More info
Unbuttoned, A Boylesque Social Experience
Unbuttoned, A Boylesque Social Experience brings the electrifying talent of Michael Silas to The Social Cafe & Lounge on Saturday, September 5 from 7 pm–8:30 pm. Silas blends dance, storytelling, and sharp comedic flair into an intimate boylesque evening shaped by decades of global performance experience. More info
ABBA L.A. – A Tribute to ABBA
ABBA L.A. lights up Agua Caliente Casino Cathedral City on Saturday, September 5 at 8 pm, celebrating the disco‑era magic of ABBA with favorites like “Dancing Queen,” “Mamma Mia,” “Take a Chance on Me,” and “Waterloo.” Expect soaring harmonies, glittering pop nostalgia, and a dance‑floor‑ready night. More info
The Great Backstage Blowout Sale
The Great Backstage Blowout Sale takes over Indio Performing Arts Center on Saturday–Sunday, September 5–6 from 8 am–4 pm, offering two huge days of indoor bargain hunting to benefit Desert TheatreWorks. Shoppers can explore costumes, props, set pieces, lighting and sound equipment, furniture, clothing, electronics, and more—many with real stage history. Every purchase supports DTW’s nonprofit mission, youth programming, and upcoming DTW Thrift Shop opening later this fall. More info
A Luncheon with Nancy Kerrigan
A Luncheon with Nancy Kerrigan invites guests to Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa Rancho Mirage on Saturday, September 5 from 11 am–1:30 pm for an elegant fundraising celebration hosted by The Desert Figure Skating Club. The event features a live on‑stage interview with Nancy Kerrigan, moderated by Olympian Randy Gardner, plus a book signing and silent auction supporting the club’s programs. More info
Drag Me To The Movies
Drag Me To The Movies screens four beloved drag‑themed classics at The Palm Springs Plaza Theatre on Saturday–Sunday, September 5–6 with showtimes at 2 pm, 7 pm, and 7:30 pm. Audiences can enjoy The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, The Birdcage, To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar, and Cabaret, celebrating resilience, self‑expression, and queer cinematic history all weekend long. More info
Tramway Holiday Hours + Maintenance Closure
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is offering extended Labor Day Weekend hours, making it an ideal last chance to ride before the annual maintenance closure on September 8. From September 5–7, trams start at 8 am each day, with late evening departures — last tram up at 9 pm and down at 10:30 pm on Saturday and Sunday, and last tram up at 8 pm and down at 9:30 pm on Monday. It’s a perfect time to enjoy cool mountain air, scenic hikes, or dining at Peaks Restaurant and Pines Café before the Tram temporarily shuts down.
- Singin’ & Swingin’ • Performers Tod Macofsky and Kari Kirkland celebrate jazz, swing, and timeless standards with a live band on Friday from 7–7:30 pm at Agua Caliente Casino Palm Springs.
- The Music of The Eagles • Tribute band Boys of Summer kicks off Labor Day weekend with a celebration of the Eagles’ timeless catalog of rock classics on Friday from 8–11 pm at Agua Caliente Casino Cathedral City.
- CCBC Pool Party Labor Day Weekend • Holiday celebrants can jump into the pool and enjoy a holiday gathering on Saturday from 12–4 pm at CCBC Resort, inviting friends and visitors to kick back and socialize during the festive Labor Day weekend.
- Night Swim at Palm Springs Surf Club • Lively DJs spin music for an after-hours pool party under the lights on Saturday from 6–10 pm at The Palm Springs Surf Club. Guests can swim in the Island Pool, float down the Lazy River, and enjoy cocktails at the Island Bar during this 21+ event.
- Dance Ranch / Country Dance Saturdays • Dance Ranch Palm Springs hosts a welcoming night of country western dancing on Saturday from 7–9:30 pm at Step by Step Dance Studio. Instructors Rob Ollander-Krane and Kyle Young will teach lessons in shadow and line dancing for dancers of all levels.
- The Rack Pack: Weekly Men’s (Chinese) Mahjong Meet-Up • The Rack Pack invites men of all skill levels to a relaxed afternoon of Chinese Mahjong on Sunday from 4–6 pm at ACE Hotel & Swim Club.
- A Queer Arcana: Art, Magic, and Spirit • Explore how magic, spirituality, and esoteric knowledge have shaped queer art and culture Thursday–Sunday at the Palm Springs Art Museum. The exhibition features works reflecting occultism, witchcraft, and mysticism to highlight alternative spiritual practices in LGBTQ+ liberation struggles.
Pentagon
Pentagon expands testosterone screening as trans troops face hormone therapy restrictions
Defense Department says updated guidelines to be issued shortly
The Pentagon has announced that new clinical guidance will be released establishing mandatory testosterone deficiency screening for active-duty and reserve cisgender male service members ages 30 and older, advancing a policy that expands hormone-related care for cisgender troops.
The Defense Department said the existing clinical guidelines, which are not currently available on the Defense Health Agency’s website, are being updated and that the final guidance will be issued shortly.
The announcement comes amid a wave of anti-transgender policies from both the DoD and the Trump-Vance administration, which continue to prohibit trans men from receiving the same treatment.
Under the forthcoming guidance, men ages 30 and older will be forced to undergo testosterone blood tests as part of their medical care. Younger male service members will be tested if they request screening or if clinicians identify warning signs of low testosterone.
The new guidelines formalize a screening program Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced in July, when he said the Pentagon would begin testing service members to ensure that “you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best.”
“Taking care of your long-term health means ensuring you remain strong, resilient, and capable — not just for your next deployment, but for the rest of your life, so you can thrive long after you take off the uniform,” Hegseth said at the time.
The Defense Health Agency’s clinical guidance says the program is intended to address “hormonal and energy-availability issues.” Hegseth said in July that testosterone replacement therapy would remain voluntary for service members if treatment is recommended.
The Food and Drug Administration is also scheduled to hold a meeting later this month with experts to discuss the medical use of testosterone.
The Pentagon’s push to routinely test testosterone levels runs counter to current medical guidance, which generally recommends considering testosterone therapy only for men who have symptoms consistent with low testosterone and have documented low hormone levels on two separate blood tests.
Testosterone is a sex hormone naturally produced by people of all sexes. It plays a role in regulating muscle mass, bone density, and sex drive. Testosterone levels in men naturally decline with age and have been associated with symptoms including erectile dysfunction, low libido, mood changes and weight gain, although experts continue to debate when testosterone therapy is medically appropriate.
The policy has drawn scrutiny from LGBTQ+ advocates because the Pentagon and Hegseth have simultaneously cited hormone therapy as part of the rationale for removing trans service members from the military.
Under President Donald Trump’s 2025 executive order, “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” the military has moved to bar trans people diagnosed with gender dysphoria from serving and has begun formal administrative separation proceedings against trans personnel.
The Pentagon continues to pursue implementation of the trans military ban as litigation over the policy proceeds. As a result, some trans service members have had their gender-affirming hormone therapy halted even as the Pentagon expands testosterone screening and potential treatment for cisgender service members.
SPARTA Pride, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization made up of trans service members, veterans and their allies, criticized the disparity to the Los Angeles Blade when Hegseth first announced the screening program.
“If hormone therapy helps warfighters perform at their best, then it cannot simultaneously be used as evidence that transgender service members are unfit to serve,” said Kara Corcoran, executive director of SPARTA Pride. “The same class of evidence-based medical treatment cannot be characterized as readiness-enhancing for one group and readiness-destroying for another.”
On June 1, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that trans service members already serving in the military could continue to do so while allowing the armed services to continue refusing to enlist new trans recruits.
The Blade reached out to the Pentagon when the testosterone screening program was first announced in July, asking why cisgender service members could receive testosterone therapy while transgender service members could not. The Pentagon did not respond.
Switzerland
Swiss government backs nationwide conversion therapy ban
Several cantons have already prohibited widely discredited practice
The Swiss government has said it supports a nationwide ban on so-called conversion therapy.
The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation on its website notes the government officially announced its position in a report it published on Wednesday.
Neuchâtel in 2023 became the first Swiss canton to ban conversion therapy.
Lawmakers in Valais and Vaud have also prohibited the widely discredited practice in their respective cantons. Bern and Geneva are among the other cantons in which lawmakers have considered similar prohibitions.
The European Commission earlier this year said all European Union countries should ban conversion therapy.
Switzerland is not a member of the EU, but lawmakers in neighboring Germany in 2020 passed a law that prohibits conversion therapy for minors and for adults who have not consented to undergoing the widely discredited practice.
Several EU countries — Belgium, Cyprus, France, Malta, Norway, Portugal, and Spain — have banned conversion therapy outright.
The Dutch Senate in June approved a bill that would ban conversion therapy in the Netherlands. The lower house of the country’s parliament approved the measure in September 2025.
Greece in 2022 banned conversion therapy for minors.
Politics
How gay nerds will shape the midterm elections
HeadCount and NerdsVote are fighting to get LGBTQ+ geeks to the polls!
The nerd community is certainly a fierce fellowship.
These are the people completely dedicated to certain franchises, who express their love for these IPs at any given opportunity and are ready to defend them against anyone who can’t fathom their greatness. Whether it’s anime, video games, comic books or more, they know what it means to be a ‘real’ fan today. And, as the thousands of conventions hosted across the U.S. each year show, this community is only growing both in size and in social power every single day. This growth hasn’t come without issue; like any large group, nerds have faced intense struggles with online bullying and in-group harassment over the years. But these folks are united by their geeky love! And, especially when it comes to the many LGBTQ+ individuals who use their fandoms as an escape, most understand that these projects are best when you’re celebrating them with others just as heartfelt as you.
Theirs is a beautiful sense of community, one that inspired nonprofits HeadCount and NerdsVote to partner and help nerds rally around one of the best things this country has to offer: the right to vote.
Both HeadCount and NerdsVote help individuals flex their right to vote, though in very different ways; HeadCount specializes in hosting voter registration drives at large-scale events, usually concerts and festivals. While NerdsVote also supports people in the polling box, they focus on digital campaigns with nerd culture’s many celebrities to foster voter registration online. These groups recently announced that they’d be officially partnering to bring their missions into nerdy gatherings across the country, ensuring that any con-goer can leave an event not only with their favorite merch, but the knowledge that they’re ready to vote in any upcoming election.
“Our expanded partnership with NerdsVote comes at an exciting time, both as we lead up to the midterm elections but also as the comic-con community is rapidly growing,” said Tappan Vickery, Vice President of Program and Strategy at Headcount. “We are thrilled to bring voter engagement into the space, and look forward to supporting this fan-focused community.”
It’s a demographic that is especially important when it comes to voting; despite what early Hollywood will have you believe, nerd communities are some of the most diverse groups that the U.S. has to offer. Gone are the nonstop portrayals of nerds as cisgender, straight, and white, an archetype popularized in movies like Revenge of the Nerds. While those community members do exist, today’s fandoms are filled with queer folks and other marginalized identities who finally feel welcomed in these spaces. It’s a promising shift for these groups, and it’s why, now more than ever, it’s important they can vote for policies that support their rights (and against the politicians who see them as political fodder).
“From our experience working in games and animation, attending comic cons, the fans and fellow nerds we’ve met tend to be a wildly diverse, empathetic, problem-solving, and creative community,” said JP Karliak, a renowned voice performer (known for their work as Morph in X-Men ‘97) and Co-Founder of NerdsVote. “Who wouldn’t want more of them involved in our democracy?”
This partnership will see these groups set up voter registration tables at comic-cons, gaming expos, and any other nerdy festival they can find. It will offer not only vital education to the people in attendance, but a direct civic outreach that these populations don’t often receive. And, in the ultimate mission of this new partnership, it will turn America’s nerd community into the most active group of voters at the upcoming midterm elections.
NerdsVote and HeadCount are hitting the ground running with this partnership, already having tables planned for the upcoming Animate! Convention in Philadelphia and Galaxycon in St. Louis. They’ve assured their many supporters that these are only the beginning and are currently organizing for the hundreds of other nerd events 2026 still has in store. It’s hard work, but in the words of Courtenay Taylor, NerdsVote President, “[This] moves us closer to achieving my big dream of having voter registration booths at every Comic-Con in the United States!”
Congress
Markey’s primary win deemed success for LGBTQ+ activists
Mass. lawmaker champions transgender rights
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) clinched the Democratic seat for his reelection campaign in Massachusetts’s primary election on Tuesday.
Markey won the deep-blue state with 64.8 percent of the vote, according to NBC News, triumphing over Marine Corps combat veteran and Congressman Seth Moulton, who received 35.2 percent of the vote.
Massachusetts’s primary election, which determined which Democratic candidate will head to the polls to face off against the Republican challenger in November, is being considered a victory for LGBTQ+-inclusive policy, as well as for a divisive pro-transgender rights candidate — both things Markey has become an outspoken champion of.
Markey has experience at multiple levels of government, from the state level, where he served three terms in the state House of Representatives, to his federal tenure, including 20 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and is now serving his second term as a senator. He has become a fixture of a changing Democratic Party in one of the most consistently blue places in the U.S.
This primary — and much of the national discussion surrounding the Senate seat — focused a lot of campaigning power on fighting the growing sentiment, led mostly by Republicans, that the frustration many Americans feel lends itself to an anti-establishment and anti-incumbent attitude.
Markey ran his campaign using his past as a reflection of his commitment to constantly putting his best foot forward for Bay Staters — particularly with apprehension for issues younger and more progressive democrats have been righting for — including Green New Deal and “Medicare for All” while Moulton — who was also elected to federal office prior to this run — campaigned on being younger than Markey, arguing that he was not the same type of established politician.
Moulton also faced backlash for negative comments about trans athletes, sparking criticism for those who did want younger candidate but want for trans rights to be protected.
Markey’s track record of supporting the LGBTQ+ community is one of the most clear in federal politics, one that has garnered a “100 percent lifetime voting record” on the Human Rights Campaign’s PAC politician review scorecard.
That list of Markey’s actions includes being a cosponsor of the Equality Act, driving landmark legislation to ensure federal protections for LGBTQ+ Americans, and being one of the most vocal proponents for trans rights in the federal government — specifically in multiple appropriations bills and in the National Defense Authorization Act. He was also the lead sponsor of the Transgender Health Care Access Act and the Transgender Bill of Rights resolution.
Markey first introduced the Transgender Bill of Rights in the Senate in 2023, where it ultimately failed to be brought to law. He reintroduced the legislation this year once again. This was a direct response to the attitude pushed by many conservatives after 2021, when the push to minimize trans rights started to become a key part of their cause and has been constantly propped up by the Trump-Vance administration.
“Massachusetts needs a senator who stands up and fights back, a senator who never forgets who they are fighting for,” Markey said during his victory speech. “That has been the mission of my life, and it always will be.”
Following the calling of the primary, a slew of LGBTQ+ organizations rallied behind Markey, many pushing his past as an asset that puts his money where his mouth is through advocating for legislation specifically protecting the LGBTQ+ community.
Tyler Hack, the executive director of the Christopher Street Project, an organization dedicated to pushing for legal protections for trans americans, released a statement following Markey’s win. Hack argued that putting forward such a staunchly pro-trans candidate is a win for the community, especially after endorsing him earlier this year.
“Tonight, anti-trans politics lost. Massachusetts rejected the idea that attacking transgender people is a shortcut to political power. Voters chose a different path: one where equality is not negotiable, cruelty is not courage, and transgender people do not have to disappear for Democrats to succeed.”
The Human Rights Campaign also endorsed him as a candidate earlier this year and issued a statement via its president, Kelley Robinson.
“Ed Markey has spent decades fighting for LGBTQ+ equality, for working people, and for a more livable world,” Robinson said. “He knows why equality matters. He’s stood with us no matter what. We were proud to endorse him this year, and when a pro-equality majority takes back the Senate this fall, we will continue to count on him as a champion for our community.”
Markey is running for reelection against Republican John Deaton in November, where he is expected to win.
Bulgaria
Top Bulgarian court rules government must legally recognize trans people
Decision caps off decade-long legal fight
Bulgaria’s top court has ruled the country’s government must allow transgender people to legally change their name and gender on ID documents.
A trans woman from Bulgaria who moved to Italy, had tried to change her gender and name on her Bulgarian ID documents, but courts in the country denied her requests for nearly a decade.
The Bulgarian Supreme Court of Cassation in a 2023 ruling essentially banned trans people from legally changing their name and gender on ID documents.
The EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg, which is the European Union’s highest court, in March ruled in the “Shipova” case that member states must allow trans people to legally change their name and gender on ID documents. The lead plaintiff in the “Shipova” case is among the four litigants in the Bulgarian Supreme Court of Cassation case.
Two Bulgarian advocacy groups — Bilitis and Deystvie — along with TGEU – Trans Europe and Central Asia and ILGA-Europe in a joint statement they issued on Tuesday noted the Bulgarian Supreme Court of Cassation’s July 22 decision “aligns Bulgarian practice with the Court of Justice of the EU, enabling changes to gender markers, names, and personal identification numbers.”
“The judges also concluded that EU law requires Bulgaria to establish a legal procedure for legal gender recognition, which is necessary so that Bulgarian trans citizens can travel and reside freely inside the EU,” they added.
Bulgaria has been a member of the EU since 2007.
The country borders Romania, Serbia, North Macedonia, Greece, and Turkey.
“We are very glad to see that the judges of the Supreme Court clearly stated that it is actually a matter of rule of law for Bulgaria to respect the universal equality and the dignity of all human beings, including trans people for whom human rights-based legal gender recognition procedures are an indispensable element,” said Denitsa Lyubenova, co-chair of Deystvie who represented the four plaintiffs in the Bulgarian courts and the lead litigant in the “Shipova” case at the EU Court of Justice. “The government needs to act swiftly now to put in place an LGR procedure that is fully in line with European human rights case law, which means without any conditions requiring proof of medical, surgical or hormonal treatment.”
The groups also urged the Bulgarian government to codify the ruling into law.
“While lower courts are expected to follow this ruling directly, a court decision is not a substitute for law,” they said. “Bulgaria still needs a fast, transparent, and accessible legal gender recognition procedure written into legislation, not left to case-by-case court precedent. TGEU – Trans Europe and Central Asia, Bilitis, Deystvie, and ILGA-Europe call on the Bulgarian government to start that legislative process now, with meaningful involvement from civil society.”
Politics
Out combat vet Cait Conley fights Trump flunkie for New York’s flippable 17th Congressional District
Conley on GOP’s big money: “Outspent. Not Outfought.”
Consider the timing. Two weeks before the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and two months before the midterm elections, top U.S. military leaders alert the public that Donald Trump and Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth’s bellicose incompetence is dangerously weakening national security.
On Sunday, Aug. 30, The Washington Post reported that the heads of the Army, Navy and Air Force and the four-star commanders overseeing U.S. operations throughout Europe, Asia and Latin America warned Hegseth directly that “prolonging large-scale operations against Iran is unsustainable and risks weakening their ability to confront threats elsewhere, including the U.S. homeland, according to people familiar with a recent assessment prepared for the Pentagon chief.”
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell responded on X, trying to discredit the reporting without disputing Hegseth’s plan to keep more than 50,000 U.S. troops in the Middle East through September, with some deployments possibly extended into 2027.
“Publishing highly classified assessments from the Secretary’s orders book is a crime,” he wrote. “We are in great shape around the world. This story isn’t about readiness. It’s TDS and PDS – they hate President Trump and Secretary Hegseth more than they love America.”
On Monday, Army Sec. Dan Driscoll resigned “amid reports of heightened discord with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth,” Military Times has learned, adding that “the Army is effectively leaderless. Hegseth fired Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George in April and has yet to nominate a replacement for the Army’s top uniformed post.”
The Post notably experienced government pushback 55 years ago when the Nixon administration tried but failed to stop or criminalize publication of the Pentagon Papers, the leaked “top secret” report on U.S. policymaking in Vietnam showing that two presidents promised victory while knowingly sending thousands of soldiers to fight an unwinnable war.
In 1971, the Supreme Court ruled against President Richard Nixon’s claim of executive authority, with Justice Hugo Black writing, “The press was to serve the governed, not the governors.” This Trump-loving Supreme Court, however, granted the convicted felon president broad immunity for official acts, which Trump has exploited with the complicity of a feckless Republican majority in Congress.
On Sunday, after a month’s respite in the six-month failed war against Iran, the U.S. military struck Iranian rocket launchers on the Strait of Hormuz that a U.S. Central Command spokesperson told the Associated Press were prepared to replace cleared sea mines in the international shipping routes. Iran retaliated for the “deadly attack.”
Five-time draft dodger Donald Trump may be “bored” with the war he started, but the rest of the world is scrambling. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is meeting with world finance ministers faced with aggressive tariffs on major allies. And then there’s the $40 trillion debt.
This is the “everything-all-at-once” existential crisis in which Americans must consider candidates for the Nov. 3 midterms. After the deep DOGE cuts of national and cybersecurity experts, conscientious voters should consider candidates with trustworthy, reality-based experience. Unfortunately, polls and donations are still considered the key barometers for victory.
Axios, for instance, recently reported that House Democrats are quietly helping Republican Rep. Mike Lawler’s re-election campaign against combat vet and national security expert Cait Conley by not fighting hard enough in New York’s 17th Congressional District, considered the most vulnerable House seat in the country.
The battleground seat in the Lower Hudson Valley area could decide which party controls the House next year. But it took the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee more than two weeks after Conley dusted her four opponents in the June primary, winning 51.4 percent of the vote, to include her in its “coveted” Red-to-Blue program.
The designation is “signaling that the DCCC is invested in providing Conley, a top-tier candidate, with the support needed to continue building a winning campaign as she runs for New York’s 17th Congressional District,” according to the committee.
The University of Virginia’s Center for Politics and the Cook Political Report subsequently shifted the race from “Leans Republican” to “Toss-up.”
However, the “Lawler campaign has a commanding advantage in available funds and booked media,” which includes “millions” from Elon Musk, according to the Conley campaign. Trump, Cabinet secretaries, and House leaders like House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) have campaigned for Lawler.
Democrats still seem soft. “If you’re going to have a Republican, it’s the kind of Republican we want in the Congress,” a Democratic source told Axios of Lawler.
“I don’t think Lawler is beatable,” a senior House Democrat told Axios.
When asked by The Hudson Independent about the money disparity, “The response by West Point graduate Conley: ‘Outspent. Not Outfought.’”
Conley says she lives by the Special Ops saying, “run to the sound of the guns.” But Lawler and his Republican friends think calling her “scaredy-cat” for “chickening out” by not meeting his challenge to debate on CNN or NBC makes him look strong.
Both are 39 years old, so consider how their life experiences may fit today’s needs.
Conley, a fourth-generation Hudson Valley native from a working-class family, was a junior at Pine Bush High School when the Twin Towers fell on 9/11. The next day, she began her application to West Point, where she graduated in the top 2% of her class. She later received advanced degrees from MIT and Harvard, accruing expertise in national security.
Conley served for more than 16 years as an active-duty Army officer, deploying six times to combat zones, including Iraq and Afghanistan, where she became one of the first women to serve in Special Operations leadership. She received three Bronze Stars and a stellar reputation for exceptional leadership under pressure.
Conley subsequently served as director for counterterrorism on the National Security Council at the White House. She transferred to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, where she helped safeguard critical infrastructure and election systems – always defending the integrity of the people and American democracy.
Lawler never served in the military nor worked to protect national security. According to his campaign website, he grew up in Rockland County, graduated from Suffern High School, and was valedictorian at Manhattan College in the Bronx, where he majored in finance and accounting.
Lawler served as deputy town supervisor of Orangetown, senior advisor to the Westchester County Executive, and executive director of the New York State Republican Party, and he founded a successful government affairs and public relations firm. He was then elected to the New York State Assembly. He touts his 2022 Congressional victory over the gay chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
In 2024, Lawler won a congressional district that Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris won. “In that race,” his website says, “he outperformed the presidential ballot by nearly 7 points, a testament to his bipartisan, pragmatic approach to governing and his broad appeal among Democrats and Independents.”
Lawler has voted five separate times to back Trump’s Iran war, about which, he told News Nation, he had privately been given information about an “imminent” nuclear threat. Six months later, he believes the war is “absolutely worth it,” though gas prices are above $4.15 per gallon.
Conley has an impressive list of endorsements – most of whom are local. So VoteVets launched a $1 million dollar ad buy for Conley, highlighting Lawler’s record of voting with Trump “100% of the time.”
The VoteVets ad, “Valley Home,” highlights Conley’s roots, her working-family background, her commitment to serve after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and her military leadership.
In an interview with Trudy Ring for LGBTQ+ Freedom Fighters, Conley likened her decision to challenge Lawler to her decision to join the military.
“The reason I’m in this fight to take back New York 17, flip it from red to blue, and get Mike Lawler out of here, and is the same reason that over 20 years ago I decided to serve this country after the terror attacks of 9/11,” she said. “It is love for this country and a feeling of responsibility to our community in this country to fight for it.”
“Washington has grown increasingly corrupt, especially under this administration, which has just set a whole new bar for a willingness to exploit the federal government for personal gain, to use the federal government as a weapon against political opposition, and the level of corruption that we are seeing from the White House and [Donald] Trump himself, his family making $2 billion while he’s in office, right?” she added.
“The shamelessness—it’s straight up un-American, and it has been enabled by cowards in Congress like Mike Lawler, and so we have to stop it, and that’s what this fight’s about. No one else is going to come in and save us. This is our fight, and that’s why I’m proud to take it on,” Conley said.
Lawler touts himself as a moderate, but he “has voted 100 percent of the time with Donald Trump,” Conley said. “What does that mean? Well, it means voting eight times for reckless tariffs that have jacked up the price of goods on everything from prescriptions to groceries in the middle of an affordability crisis. It has cost an average household $4,200 for the same goods because of these tariffs.”
“There is no line Mike Lawler will not cross for Donald Trump. When Donald Trump says jump, Mike Lawler’s response is ‘how high?’ People here in the Hudson Valley deserve a hell of a lot better.”
If elected, Conley’s priorities will include lowering costs of health care and other necessities, investing in education, addressing climate change by promoting clean energy, codifying reproductive rights, reforming the immigration system and reining in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), fighting cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, championing LGBTQ+ rights, and generally combating the policies of the Trump administration.
Caring about the military is also a priority.
Pete Hegseth is incompetent and should never have been confirmed as Secretary of Defense, Conley said. He’s depriving the military of talent by kicking out transgender service members, women, people of color, and those who simply disagree with him. Trans military members, she noted, “are men and women who have more courage in their big toe than Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth have combined.”
She has also decried the mistreatment of troops such as those who’ve been at sea on the USS Lincoln for nearly nine months, facing food shortages and generally horrific conditions that have led to mental health crises.
Asked about Trump’s recent decision to reduce joint military exercises with South Korea and to meet with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, Conley said, “I’m at a loss of words sometimes. … We should be standing by our allies like South Korea. We should be standing by our allies like NATO and Europe. We should be standing by our allies like Ukraine. But instead, because our president has this bizarre affinity for dictators,” he prefers countries that are our “strategic adversaries,” like North Korea and Russia.
Conley’s been called a war hero, but she doesn’t refer to herself that way.
“What I would say is I’ve proudly served,” she said, noting the personal sacrifice of serving in silence as a lesbian under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
“You saw brave service members who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for this country but had to live in fear,” she said. “That’s not America.”
Later, as director for counterterrorism on the National Security Council (NSC), she got banned from Russia, along with such big names as former President Obama and comedian Stephen Colbert, something of which she’s proud. Since the list was alphabetical in English, as a “huge fan,” Conley said it was “one of the coolest things” seeing her name listed after Colbert’s.
Immigration reform is another priority. “It has broken my heart, as someone who loves this country, to watch, on American streets, American federal agents … literally killing the very people they’re sworn to serve and protect, and there’s no accountability. That’s not a partisan issue. That’s a straight American issue.”
Conley’s district has the second-highest number of Haitian immigrants in the U.S., and Trump recently revoked their Temporary Protected Status (TPS), a status that meant they were legally cleared to work and wouldn’t be deported. Since many work in health care, deporting them would hurt the immigrants and the communities they serve. This is another example of the “cruelty and corruption” of the Trump administration, Conley said.
She also noted that 37,000 people in her district will lose health insurance due to Medicaid cuts and the revocation of certain tax credits for premiums on Affordable Care Act plans. She favors a public option for health insurance.
“I talk to families all across this district, and what I hear is people, regardless of political affiliation, are sick of the dysfunction and partisanship that is tearing communities and families apart, and they want to get back to doing what is right for our future and focusing on solving the very real problems,” Conley said.
If Conley is elected, it would be sweet revenge for the LGBTQ+ community; Lawler has previously beaten two gay candidates, five-term Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney and former Congressman Mondaire Jones.
“Third time’s the charm, and let me tell you, he has never had to face someone like me before,” Conley said. “Yes, absolutely a proud member of the LGBTQ community, but also a woman veteran… It’s about our future, and so folks are coming together. There’s a generation of us that are hungry to get in there and root out the corruption that I feel like has taken root in Washington, to root it out and to really deliver.”
This article is cross-posted from Karen Ocamb’s Substack LGBTQ+ Freedom Fighters.
Arizona
Shooting outside gay bar in Ariz. leaves three dead
Tucson police investigating double murder-suicide has hate crime
Three people were fatally shot outside a gay bar in Tucson, Ariz., early Monday morning, about a mile from the city’s nightlife district.
Police have said the shooting, which took place in the parking lot of Venture-N bar at 1239 N. 6th Ave., was likely a hate crime and a double murder-suicide following a verbal altercation.
The suspect, Ousman Ceesay, allegedly shot Vincent Anthony Siqueiros and Cameron Davis Capara while they were outside the club around 12:30 a.m. Monday.
Reports show Capara and Siqueiros were pronounced dead at the scene. Ceesay died after being taken to a local hospital with gunshot wounds.
Police have also said that Ceesay was carrying a list of LGBTQ+ businesses at the time of the shooting.
Arizona Public Media has said police are investigating the case as a hate crime because the suspect was carrying a note containing the names of multiple LGBTQ+-associated businesses.
“I am deeply saddened that another senseless loss of life has happened in our community,” Tucson Police Chief Monica Prieto said in a statement. “Bias-based crimes are especially heinous and have no place in our community.”
According to Prieto, there is no imminent threat to the community, and the Tucson Police Department is working to provide extra protection to various LGBTQ+ businesses across town.
Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva, who represents the area, issued a statement condemning the act of violence, which appears to have been at least in part motivated by homophobia.
“I am disgusted and deeply saddened to learn of a targeted act of hate and the cold-blooded murder of two members of our LGBTQIA+ community, Vincent Siqueiros and Cameron Capara, at the Venture-N bar in Tucson last night. This horrific attack is a painful reminder that even in welcoming communities like Tucson, hate and violence against the LGBTQIA+ community still exist.”
“When that hate is combined with easy access to firearms, the consequences can be deadly. I am sick and tired of Congress refusing to lift a finger to protect our communities while, every day, dozens of people are shot and killed across the country. It does not have to be this way. The House of Representatives is returning to session this week, and our first action should be passing common-sense gun safety reforms that we know can save lives.”
Other federal lawmakers also condemned the shooting.
The Congressional Equality Caucus, which is made up of federal legislators advancing LGBTQ interests, issued a statement after news broke.
“Our hearts are with the friends and loved ones of the victims of this devastating attack outside a Tucson gay bar and with the Tucson LGBTQI+ community,” it said on X. “No one should fear violence because of who they are — and we’re going to continue fighting to build a world where no one does.”
The Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBTQ+ organization in the country, released a statement following the shooting.
“We are heartbroken by the loss of Vincent Anthony Siqueiros and Cameron Davis Capara and our hearts are with their families, loved ones, and the entire Tucson LGBTQ+ community. Once again, we are reminded that gun violence robs people of their lives, destroys families, and devastates communities.”
A candlelight vigil honoring the victims is planned for Sept. 2 at 6:30 p.m. at Catalina Park in North Tucson.
France
Prominent French activist attacked outside Paris bar
Pierre Picavet hospitalized with internal bleeding, head injury
French prosecutors say a man shouted anti-gay slurs at a prominent activist before he attacked him in Paris on Saturday.
Media reports indicate Pierre Picavet, a police officer who is the president of FLAG!, a group within the French Justice and Interior Ministries that defends LGBTQ+ rights, was attacked as he left a bar in Paris’s Marais neighborhood.
The Marais since the 1980s has been center of the French capital’s LGBTQ+ community.
France 24 reported Picavet’s assailant struck him with a bottle. The attack left Picavet hospitalized with internal bleeding, a head wound, and other injuries.
“When I get better, when my wounds have healed, I will continue the fight,” Picavet told Radio France on Monday. “I am particularly shocked, but it tells me that there is still work to do.”
Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire is among those who condemned the attack.
STOP Homophobia (STOP homophobie), a French group that fights against anti-LGBTQ+ violence, on its social media pages published a picture of Picavet in the hospital.
“As a long-standing partner of FLAG!, STOP Homophobia wishes to express its solidarity with Pierre Picavet, his loved ones, and the entire association,” said the group. “STOP Homophobia condemns this assault in the strongest possible terms and reiterates that anti-LGBT violence remains a reality — even in spaces where everyone should be able to move freely and live out their sexual orientation or gender identity without fear of attack.”
STOP Homophobia also praised a bystander who came to Picavet’s aid after the attack, and the first responders and law enforcement personnel who responded.
“STOP Homophobia extends its full support to Pierre, his family, his loved ones, and the entire FLAG! team, and wishes him a full recovery,” said the group.
Reports indicate the assailant, who was born in 2006, was scheduled to appear in a Paris court on Monday at 1:30 p.m. local time.
Congress
HRC president campaigns for Chris Pappas in NH
Gay congressman running to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson on Sunday campaigned for U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) in New Hampshire.
Robinson traveled to Manchester, the state’s largest city, nine days before the Sept. 8 primary that will determine who will vie for retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)’s seat.
We’re hitting the pavement across New Hampshire to fight for a freer, fairer future for everyone.
Glad to have Human Rights Campaign President @KelleyJRobinson join us for a canvass launch in Manchester today. pic.twitter.com/XWCEaQxy4o
— Chris Pappas (@ChrisPappasNH) August 30, 2026
Former U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, who represented New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate from 2003-2009, will face off against former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, who represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate from 2010-2013, in the Republican primary.
Karishma Manzur is among the Democrats challenging Pappas.
A poll the University of New Hampshire Survey Center released on Aug. 26 shows Sununu is ahead of Brown. The same survey shows Pappas ahead of Manzur and his other Democratic challengers.
The UNH Survey Center poll shows Sununu ahead of Pappas by a 45-43 percent margin if they were to face off in the general election. The margin of error is +/-2.1 percent.
Pappas would become the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate if he were to win in November.
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LGBTQ+ friendly bar El Condor will close its doors after a decade of community
Gloria Steinem dies at 92
Leather and legacy: Hector S. Quintana-Smith’s journey to West Hollywood Leather 2026 and beyond
Naked Warrior Yoga is fighting to stay in the heart of West Hollywood
Top Bulgarian court rules government must legally recognize trans people
How gay nerds will shape the midterm elections
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Celebrity News3 days agoGloria Steinem dies at 92
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Leather community4 days agoLeather and legacy: Hector S. Quintana-Smith’s journey to West Hollywood Leather 2026 and beyond
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Fitness4 days agoNaked Warrior Yoga is fighting to stay in the heart of West Hollywood
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Bulgaria4 days agoTop Bulgarian court rules government must legally recognize trans people
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Politics3 days agoHow gay nerds will shape the midterm elections
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Congress4 days agoMarkey’s primary win deemed success for LGBTQ+ activists
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Switzerland2 days agoSwiss government backs nationwide conversion therapy ban
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Health4 days agoMedical information queer men should know
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Pentagon2 days agoPentagon expands testosterone screening as trans troops face hormone therapy restrictions
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a&e features3 days agoDefying convention (and physics): ‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey on identity and inclusion in pro-wrestling