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Trump’s vow to invoke national emergency powers and use military force for mass deportations roils LA

Fearing loss of constitutional rights, executive overreach, and military involvement in civil law enforcement, immigration community scrambles

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2 months ago

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Donald Trump has made clear his intention to begin mass deportations immediately upon taking office on January 20, 2025, a promise he made repeatedly during his 2024 presidential campaign.

“On Day 1, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history to get the criminals out,” he declared during a rally at Madison Square Garden in the final days of the presidential race. “I will rescue every city and town that has been invaded and conquered, and we will put these vicious and bloodthirsty criminals in jail, then kick them the hell out of our country as fast as possible.”

This week, for the first time, Trump vowed to invoke national emergency powers to execute this plan and, particularly troubling, will use the Armed Services to do so.

National emergency declarations have long been used by U.S. presidents to access extraordinary powers, often bypassing congressional oversight. The National Emergencies Act (NEA) of 1976 was designed to prevent unchecked executive authority, but its provisions have failed to effectively curb presidential overreach. While the act sets guidelines for declaring national emergencies, presidents have frequently invoked this power to justify wide-ranging actions, from military interventions (abroad) to surveillance programs (domestically and abroad).

For example, in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, President George W. Bush invoked national emergency powers to pass the Patriot Act, which allowed for sweeping surveillance and counterterrorism measures with minimal congressional oversight. This precedent establishes a concerning foundation for Trump’s proposed use of emergency powers in the realm of immigration enforcement.

Trump’s pledge to invoke emergency powers to detain, round up, and deport over 11 million undocumented immigrants would result in a domestic military operation of unprecedented scale.

He vows to build “vast holding facilities that would function as staging centers” for immigrants as their cases progressed and they waited to be flown to other countries. While large-scale deportation efforts have been attempted in the past—most recently President Eisenhower’s “Operation Wetback” in the 1950s, which deported 1.1 million people—today’s proposed numbers are far greater. Even the Obama administration, which deported 1.8 million people during its tenure, faced significant legal and logistical hurdles that made large-scale deportations difficult to carry out quickly and without consequence.

Many hurdles exist.

Legal challenges are almost certain to engulf Trump’s administration should it pursue such a plan. These challenges will include key issues such as whether the president can lawfully bypass Congress to enforce mass deportations. There will also be significant legal disputes surrounding the treatment of detained immigrants, particularly their Due Process rights under the U.S. Constitution. 

The 2018 Supreme Court case Jennings v Rodriguez, reaffirmed that due process protections apply to all individuals on U.S. soil, regardless of immigration status, guaranteeing them rights such as bond hearings and access to counsel. 

Any attempt to bypass these rights would invite immediate and substantial legal challenges, further complicating Trump’s efforts.

In addition to these legal complexities, the logistical challenges of executing such a massive operation would be immense. Deporting millions of individuals would require extensive resources for transportation, housing, medical care, and sustenance.  Some estimate the price tag could exceed $300 billion dollars.

The U.S. government would need to significantly expand detention facilities and infrastructure to accommodate such a large influx of detainees. 

Historical attempts to increase detention capacity, such as the family detention centers under Obama, faced severe criticism for overcrowding, inhumane conditions and the violation of human rights.

Legal objections are likely to arise concerning the use of armed military personnel in civilian spaces. Deploying military forces for domestic law enforcement operations could violate the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts the use of military personnel in civilian law enforcement activities. Previous efforts to militarize U.S. immigration enforcement—such as the use of the National Guard at the U.S.-Mexico border—faced constitutional challenges and public backlash. 

If Trump proceeds with using the military for mass deportations, it would almost certainly prompt immediate legal challenges based on this law.

Trump has long expressed disdain for the traditional system of checks and balances, viewing even basic constitutional arguments as an obstacle to his leadership. 

He has shown that he will not hesitate to bypass Congress and other governmental processes for key appointments. For example, during his first term, Trump repeatedly sought to circumvent the Senate confirmation process, such as with his appointments to the Department of Justice and Health and Human Services, where he clashed with Senate Democrats over key nominations.

Trump is not shy about his broader desire to centralize power within the executive branch, diminishing the role of both the legislative and judicial branches. His antagonism toward agencies like the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council—which he has accused of undermining his administration—further underscores his aim to weaken institutional checks on executive power. If unchecked, we could see a presidency where unilateral decisions by the executive become the norm, with minimal oversight from Congress or the courts.

Already, Trump has signaled his intent to appoint loyalists to key agencies, many of which he clashed with or feels have hindered his agenda. Examples include his controversial Pentagon appointments, as well as his selection of Director of National Intelligence and Health and Human Services leaders, who have been seen as part of his push to exert more control over agencies he perceives as obstructionist or hostile. He has already assigned a Border Czar, Tom Homan, who separated thousands of families at the border during Trump’s first term; that policy resulted in children never again being found.

Seizing emergency powers would allow Trump to bypass some, but not all, political and legal barriers to implementing his deportation plan. 

To make it more feasible, he would likely need to suspend aspects of Due Process protections, militarize public spaces and bypass rules surrounding the detention of individuals without adequate hearings or access to credible legal counsel. This would create a system where any individual could be detained, processed and deported with no actual regard for constitutional protections.

In short, a frustrated Trump—empowered by a Republican-majority Congress and a potentially willing DOJ and Supreme Court—might attempt to suspend the constitution.

This is not without precedent. 

Over 120,000 people of Japanese descent were interned in camps throught out the US during World War II, including 20,000 at Los Angeles County’s Santa Anita Assembly Center. (Photo: PBS)

In 1862, President Lincoln issued Presidential Proclamation 94 which suspended the writ of habeas corpus. (Photo from National Archives education division)

During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln suspended habeas corpus to suppress dissent, and during World War II, Franklin D. Roosevelt’s internment of Japanese Americans involved the suspension of their constitutional rights in the name of national security. 

While these actions were taken during times of war, they set dangerous precedents for the suspension of civil liberties in the face of perceived national crises. Trump has called the immigration an ‘invasion’ and has referred to migrants and their protectors as the ‘enemy within.’

Though few are publicly contemplating this possibility, we must acknowledge that we are on a trajectory toward some form of civil rights suspension, and certainly, we are witnessing a potential for widespread executive overreach.

At the local level, cities and states have vowed to resist Trump’s immigration plans. 

The Los Angeles City Council has declared itself a Sanctuary City, and Mayor Karen Bass has pledged that no city resources or personnel will support deportation efforts. 

Similarly, Governor Gavin Newsom of California has made declarations on behalf of the state. 

However, these measures do not prevent the federal government from taking action on the ground. 

In fact, Trump and Congress have the authority to terminate federal funding to uncooperative states and local governments. 

In 2021, for example, California received over $150 billion in federal funding, which could be withheld as political leverage at every turn to force compliance with federal immigration policies.

Most immigration rights advocates, attorneys and others want to point out that there is every reason to remain hopeful and that Due Process rights, good judges and justice minded citizens will work to protect most people from unjust treatment and deportation.

However, it’s not clear what Due Process or advocacy might look like if Trump militarizes the process and suspends the Constitution.

There are currently several immigration violations that could lead to the deportation of individuals attempting to remain in the U.S. and people who entered the country without authorization are often a focus of immigration enforcement, particularly under the Trump administration. 

However, the specifics of deportation policies can vary and it’s important to note that many individuals who entered the U.S. improperly have remained in the country for years, blending into communities. 

Some of these individuals have applied for asylum or are in the process of adjusting their status through other legal avenues, such as family-based petitions or employment-based green card applications. 

The process for detaining and deporting these individuals can depend on several factors, including whether they have a criminal record, whether they are in removal proceedings or their current legal status.

Ally Bolour, a well-known immigration attorney based in Los Angeles, says he has faith in Due Process but is “concerned that the process may become much more restrictive and that due process may be minimal and not applied fairly.”

Bolour has since 1996 worked with individuals facing deportation and specializes in cases involving people who have entered the U.S. without authorization and those seeking asylum.

Ally Bolour.

“Sensitivity to the queer minority is going to be minimal,” under Trump’s immigration system, he says.. “They won’t care. It’s literally a fact that, if you are a gay person fleeing the Islamic Republic, you’re fleeing because they’re gonna hang you. Credible fear. But after January 20, as I see it,chances of a gay Iranian being able to and pass the credible fear becomes more difficult than it is today.” 

Los Angeles Blade spoke with Bolour about 23 year old Jesus, one of the more than 200,000 LGBTQ immigrants who have made their way to California in the past few years. 

His immigration situation as an asylum seeker today illustrates the impact a growing maze of intentional legal and bureaucratic hurdles has on immigrants’ ability to advance their cases.

Jesus made his way to the U.S. seeking refuge from the violence and instability that defined his life in Venezuela. 

Born in Caracas, Jesus’ childhood was marked by the unraveling of his family’s middle-class life as Venezuela descended into political and economic chaos. His father, once a government worker loyal to Hugo Chávez, witnessed the system’s collapse from within. He refused to comply with orders from high-ranking officials like Diosdado Cabello, resulting in the family’s swift downfall. 

Jesus’ early years were defined by loss, as their possessions and status vanished, leaving them targets of a ruthless government.

Venezuela’s economic collapse, particularly between 2013 and 2023, created unimaginable hardship. Hyperinflation and a crumbling economy made basic necessities unattainable, and survival became a daily struggle. But for Jesus, being gay in a country that became increasingly hostile to LGBTQ people added another layer of peril. 

“In Venezuela, being gay isn’t just a social challenge—it’s a potential death sentence,” he explains, recalling countless friends lost to violence or suicide. The societal rejection and threats, he says, were constant.

Faced with this brutal reality, Jesus made the decision to flee Venezuela. “It wasn’t impulsive; it was a matter of survival” he says. Part of a larger wave of over 7 million Venezuelans fleeing the country, Jesus traveled to Mexico City, then to Tijuana, before crossing the U.S. border on foot near San Diego. He chose to surrender to U.S. border authorities, a decision that led to his detention across various facilities in the Southwestern and Southeastern U.S.

During his six months in detention, Jesus faced COVID-19, potential deportation, and constant uncertainty. Yet, even in these grim circumstances, he found a sense of community among other LGBTQ detainees. “We watched out for each other,” he recalls. Eventually, a friend bailed him out.

Today, Jesus works and lives in California, grateful for his newfound safety but now facing the prospect of having his American journey crushed by Donald Trump.

Jesus mingles in the crowd at a recent Washington DC Pride celebration. (Photo by Los Angeles Blade)

Because he crossed the U.S. border illegally, his designation remains “Entered Without Inspection” (EWI)—a status that may pose a significant threat to his ability to remain in the country.

Trump’s immigration round up plan appears to target individuals with EWI status no matter how long they have been in the country or where they are in the process of becoming a visa holder (witness his determination to remove even American-born adult children of elderly immigrants in this status).

In an effort to strengthen Jesus’ case, his attorney has suggested a bold and complicated strategy: leave the U.S. and re-enter through legal channels. 

Attorney Bolour says he would advise against this strategy for someone like Jesus. 

“For those with pending asylum applications and an expired TPS, it is very difficult to obtain Advanced Parole,” he says. “There are significant risks involved.” He recommends that people in this situation “do not travel until they have some form of approved status, such as TPS.” 

Bolour notes that “every case is different” and it is imperative that people “consult with counsel before making any firm decisions.”

In the case of Jesus, if he was able to wipe the EWI status from his record, it might help him avoid the First Country Rule.

This rule mandates asylum seekers apply for asylum in the first country they reach after fleeing their home country, and for Jesus, that country was Mexico. If he were able to reset his immigration record, this rule might potentially no longer apply to him.

However, his ability to exit the US and reenter is made risky because his Temporary Protected Status , which had allowed him to stay in the U.S. without fear of deportation, expired in March 2024. Since then, he has been waiting for his renewal application to be processed. 

TPS was set for automatic renewal but the system has conveniently failed to renew status for thousands of people.

Without a valid TPS, Jesus cannot legally leave the U.S., as doing so would trigger an automatic ban on his re-entry.

To leave the country legally, he would need to apply for Advanced Parole, a document that permits individuals to travel abroad temporarily without risking their legal status. 

But obtaining Advanced Parole is no simple feat. The application process can take months and even if expedited, there is no guarantee of timely approval. It’s impossible, however, without an active TPS.

The intersection of expired TPS, bureaucratic delays and the looming threat of U.S. military lead deportation and harsh immigration policies leaves Jesus in a state of perpetual uncertainty.

Bolour says everyone “must be prepared for the worst possible outcome: a systematic erosion of civil rights, aggressive federal action, and a significant legal, human rights, and constitutional crisis.”

To that end, Bolour says the most important thing any person facing immigration challenges should have, is a plan:

  1. Remain Calm:
    • Stay calm and do not physically resist. Immigration agents have the authority to detain you, but resisting can lead to additional charges or complications.
    • NOTE:  If agents appear at your door with a warrant for your arrest, do not let them in unless the warrant has been signed by a judge.
  2. Know Your Rights:
    • You have the right to remain silent and not answer questions about your immigration status. You also have the right to ask for a lawyer. Remember, anything you say can be used against you in the future.
  3. Request to Contact an Attorney:
    • Ask to speak with an immigration attorney immediately. You have the right to legal counsel, and an attorney can guide you through the process and ensure your rights are protected.
  4. Do Not Sign Any Documents Without Legal Advice:
    • Do not sign anything without understanding what it means. Immigration officials may ask you to sign forms or waivers, which could impact your case. Consult with an attorney before signing any documents.
  5. Provide Only Basic Information:
    • Only provide your name, address, and date of birth. Avoid answering other questions or providing more personal information without a lawyer present.
  6. Limit Social Media posts:
    • Do not post private information or photos and restrict your interactions to known participants. If your page is public, set to friends only and do not share your location.
  7. Document the Detention:
    • If possible, have a trusted friend or family member document your detention, including the time, location, and agents involved. This information can be important for legal proceedings or for advocacy groups that may assist in your case.
  8. Exercise Your Right to Make a Phone Call:
    • You have the right to make a phone call to family, friends, or your attorney. Immigration authorities should allow you to call a lawyer, though this may vary by location.
  9. Request a Hearing:
    • You have the right to request a hearing in front of an immigration judge. Your attorney can help you with this process and inform you of any options for contesting your detention.
  10. Avoid Talking About Your Case:
    • Do not discuss your case with other detainees, as it may be used against you. Stick to speaking with your lawyer or trusted individuals.
  11. Stay in Contact with Support Networks:
    • Keep your family, friends, and advocacy organizations informed about your situation so they can assist with legal or practical needs during the detention process.
  12. Create an emergency notification group:
    • If you are detained or face any urgent situation, inform a trusted core group of family and friends who can collaborate to assist you.

By following such steps, Bolour says, you can help ensure that your legal rights are respected and that you have the best chance of navigating the immigration detention process effectively.

“It is affecting my health and I don’t know what my real options are,” says Jesus. “They keep adding rules and conditions and slowing my ability to keep the case up to date. It’s like a game of musical chairs where you run out of time to get to the right place before Trump stops the music.”

“But,” adds Jesus, “I am not going to give up. I can’t. Even though I don’t know what’s next.”

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Cameroon

Prominent Cameroonian activist faces terrorism charges

Alice Nkom ordered to appear before National Gendarmerie

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2 hours ago

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January 10, 2025

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Alice Nkom (Photo courtesy of Nkom's Facebook page)

A prominent LGBTQ+ activist in Cameroon is facing terrorism charges.

Alice Nkom, a human rights lawyer and board president of Réseau des Défenseurs des Droits Humains en Afrique Centrale, a group known by the acronym Redhac that translates to Human Rights Defenders Network in Central Africa, on Jan. 2 received a summons from Cameroon’s National Gendarmerie, or national military intelligence.

The summons follows a complaint that Lilian Engoulou, general coordinator of the Observatory for Societal Development, filed.

Engoulou has accused Nkom of attempting to endanger state security, financing terrorism, and funding separatist groups in the northwest and southwest regions of the country that are fighting for independence from Cameroon.

Nkom in recent months has been vocal over the human rights situation in the country, including LGBTQ+ rights.

Territorial Administration Minister Paul Atanga Nji last month suspended Redhac and sealed the organization’s offices for alleged illegal and exorbitant funding and lack of compliance with government regulations on how NGOs should be run.

Nkom, however, removed the seals. This action prompted authorities in Littoral province where Redhoc’s offices are located to issue the summons on Dec. 19 after she did not appear.

Nkom has described the summons as a political witch hunt, stating she doesn’t acknowledge the Observatory for Societal Development. Nkom added she broke the seals because authorities placed them illegally.

“At the beginning of the year, a new summons, this time issued by the police, at the request of the military court, with accusations of financing terrorism, following the complaint of an association that I ignore from its existence, its leaders, or even the date of its creation,” she said.

“Human rights defenders are small, fragile but courageous, against the authoritarian and totalitarian drift of a state,” added Nkom. “Like the dikes facing the rising tide of injustice, they stand there firm, despite their vulnerability. I am an advocate, a human rights defender, a humanist. Humanity cannot be divided into categories. We are one, all connected by the same dignity.”

Maurice Kamto, a fierce critic of President Paul Biya who is a lawyer and leads the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement political party, said Nkom should not face judicial and political harassment. Kamto offered to represent her pro bono.

“She is an eminent figure in the public life of our country,” said Kamto. “She is fighting many battles. We do not share all these battles, and it is not all her battles that are at issue today.”

Kamto further described Nkom as “an important voice in the public arena of our country.”

“It is therefore, unacceptable that she should be the object of the judicial and political harassment that the authorities are currently inflicting on her,” said Kamto. “We cannot stand by and watch this happen.”

Consensual same-sex sexual relations are criminalized under Section 347 of Cameroon’s penal code with up to five years in prison. A 2010 law states whoever uses electronic communication devices to make “a sexual proposal to a person of the same sex” faces up to two years in prison.

A number of Cameroonians in recent years have been arrested — and tortured — for engaging in same-sex sexual relations.

A Human Rights Watch report notes Cameroonian security forces between February and April 2021 arrested at least 27 people, including a child, for alleged consensual same-sex conduct or gender nonconformity. Some of those arrested were beaten.

Biya’s daughter, Brenda Biya, last year posted an image to her Instagram page of her kissing her ex-girlfriend, Layyons Valença, and saying her wish was for them to live in peace as a couple. Brenda Biya deleted the post after it sparked controversy in Cameroon.

Nkom is expected to appear before the National Gendarmerie on Jan. 14, which is also her 80th Birthday.

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National

New Meta guidelines include carveout to allow anti-LGBTQ+ speech on Facebook, Instagram

Zuckerberg cozying up to Trump ahead of second term

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1 day ago

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January 9, 2025

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Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Meta (Screen capture via Bloomberg Television/YouTube)

New content moderation policies governing hate speech on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads that were enacted by parent company Meta on Wednesday contain a carveout that allows users to call LGBTQ+ people mentally ill.

According to the guidelines, which otherwise prohibit use of such insults on the online platforms, “We do allow allegations of mental illness or abnormality when based on gender or sexual orientation, given political and religious discourse about transgenderism and homosexuality and common non-serious usage of words like ‘weird.’”

Meta also removed rules that forbid insults about a person’s appearance based on race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, religious affiliation, caste, sexual orientation, sex, gender identity, and serious disease while withdrawing policies that prohibited expressions of hate against a person or a group on the basis of their protected class and references to transgender or nonbinary people as “it.”

In a video on Tuesday, Mark Zuckerberg, the company’s co-founder, chairman, and CEO, said the platforms’ “restrictions on topics like immigration and gender” were now “out of touch with mainstream discourse.” 

“What started as a movement to be more inclusive has increasingly been used to shut down opinions and shut out people with different ideas, and it’s gone too far,” he added.

In a statement to the Washington Blade, Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said “Everyone should be able to engage and learn online without fear of being targeted or harassed. While we understand the difficulties in enforcing content moderation, we have grave concerns that the changes announced by Meta will put the LGBTQ+ community in danger both online and off.”

“What’s left of Meta’s hateful conduct policy expressly allows users to bully LGBTQ+ people based on their gender identity or sexual orientation and even permits calls for the exclusion of LGBTQ+ people from public spaces,” she said. “We can expect increased anti-LGBTQ+ harassment, further suppression of LGBTQ+ content, and drastic chilling effects on LGBTQ+ users’ expression.”

Robinson added, “While we recognize the immense harms and dangers of these new policies, we ALL have a role to play in lifting up our stories, pushing back on misinformation and hate, and supporting each other in online spaces. We need everyone engaged now more than ever. HRC isn’t going anywhere, and we will always be here for you.”

As attacks against LGBTQ+ and especially transgender Americans have ramped up over the past few years in legislative chambers and courtrooms throughout the country, bias-motivated crimes including acts of violence are also on the rise along with homophobic and transphobic hate speech, misinformation, and conspiracy theories that are spread farther and faster thanks to the massive reach of social media platforms and the policies and practices by which the companies moderate user content and design their algorithms.

However ascendant certain homophobic and transphobic ideas might be on social media and in the broader realm of “political and religious discourse,” homosexuality and gender variance are not considered mental illnesses in the mainstream study or clinical practice of psychiatry.

The American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its internationally recognized Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders more than 50 years ago and more than 30 years ago erased “transsexualism” to use “gender identity disorder” instead before switching to “gender dysphoria” in 2013. These changes were meant to clarify the distinction between the patient’s identity as trans and the ego-dystonic distress experienced in many cases when one’s birth sex differs from one’s gender identity.

Research has consistently shown the efficacy of treating gender dysphoria with gender-affirming health interventions — the psychiatric, medical, and surgical care that can bring patients’ brains and bodies into closer alignment with their self-concept while reducing the incidence of severe depression, anxiety, self-harm behavior, and suicide.

Just like slandering LGBTQ+ people as sick or sexually deviant, the pathologization of homosexuality and gender variance as disordered (or linked to different mental illnesses that are actually listed in the DSM) is not new, but rather a revival of a coarser homophobia and transphobia that until the recent past was largely relegated to a time well before queer people had secured any meaningful progress toward legal, social, and political equality.

Wednesday’s announcement by Meta marked just the latest move that seems meant to ingratiate the tech giant with President-elect Donald Trump and curry favor with his incoming administration, which in turn could smooth tensions with conservative lawmakers who have often been at odds with either Facebook, Instagram, and Zuckerberg — who had enjoyed a close relationship with the Obama White House and over the years has occasionally championed progressive policies like opposing mass deportations.

Public signs of reconciliation with Trump began this summer, when Meta removed restrictions on his Facebook and Instagram accounts that were enacted following the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

In the months since, the company has continued cozying up to Trump and Republican leaders in Washington, including with Tuesday’s announcement that Meta platforms will no longer use professional fact checking, among other policy changes that mirror those enacted by Elon Musk after he took over Twitter in 2022, changed its name to X, and created conditions that have allowed hate and misinformation to proliferate far more than ever before.

In recent months, Musk, the world’s richest man, has emerged as one of the president-elect’s fiercest allies, spending a reported $277 million to support his presidential campaign and using his platform and influence to champion many of the incoming administration’s policy priorities, including efforts to target the trans community.

Last month, Zuckerberg and Apple CEO Tim Cook each donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural committee, with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and OpenAI’s Sam Altman each reportedly pledging matching contributions.

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Honduras

Detienen a Romeo Vásquez por asesinato de Isy Obed: ¿cuándo pagará por Vicky Hernández?

Líder trans fue asesinada durante el golpe de estado de 2019

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2 days ago

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January 8, 2025

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(Imagen cortesía de Reportar sin Miedo)

Reportar sin Miedo es el socio mediático del Los Angeles Blade en Honduras. Esta nota salió en su sitio web el 5 de enero.

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Casi 16 años después del asesinato de la líder trans Vicky Hernández, el general retirado Romeo Vásquez Velásquez fue capturado hoy como supuesto responsable de la muerte violenta de Isy Obed Murillo durante el golpe de Estado de 2009. 

Tras el arresto, la opinión pública ha exigido justicia para Isy Murillo y la activista trans. Ambos fueron las primeras víctimas mortales del toque de queda encabezado por Vásquez Velásquez tras el golpe de Estado contra Manuel Zelaya Rosales en 2009.

La opinión pública se pregunta si de este modo se está allanando el camino para que los responsables paguen por el asesinato de Vicky Hernández e Isy Obed. 

Junto con el general en retiro, las autoridades capturaron a otros jerarcas de las Fuerzas Armadas. 

Estos arrestos, según el Ministerio Público, se deben a que estos militares comandaron y lideraron el operativo en que soldados abrieron fuego contra manifestantes opuestos al golpe de Estado, el 5 de julio de 2009.

Ese día, cientos de hondureños se aglomeraron cerca del aeropuerto Toncontín, en Tegucigalpa, para manifestarse y recibir al presidente Manuel Zelaya Rosales, quien iba a regresar en avión a Honduras. 

Sin embargo, el ejército impidió la entrada de Zelaya en una acción en la cual mató de un balazo en la cabeza al joven Isy Obed Murillo. 

«No solo incumplieron su deber de supervisar y controlar a sus subordinados, sino que, con pleno conocimiento de los hechos, permitieron y facilitaron estas atrocidades», dijo el MP en un comunicado. 

A través de sus redes sociales, Romeo Vásquez respondió que la acusación en su contra es un intento del Gobierno de «callarlo a cualquier costo».

¿Pagará Romeo por el asesinato de Vicky?

Con la captura de Romeo Vásquez, el gobierno de Xiomara Castro parece haber dado un paso firme en busca de justicia para las víctimas del golpe de Estado de 2009. 

Sin embargo, los arrestos de hoy han recibido también las críticas de grupos de la oposición y críticos de la administración de la presidenta Castro.

Por otro lado, la ciudadanía espera que no solo se haga justicia en el caso de Isy Obed Murillo, sino también en el de centenares de víctimas durante el mandato del general Romeo Vásquez bajo el gobierno de facto de Roberto Micheletti. 

Por sobre todo, urge que las capturas de hoy abran la puerta para que las poblaciones LGBTQ+ victimizadas durante el golpe de Estado de hace 16 años reciban por fin una justicia largamente esperada.

Así, defensoras de los derechos de las diversidades esperan que las acciones de hoy sirvan para reivindicar a activistas como Vicky Hernández, asesinada entre el 28 y 29 de julio de 2009. 

“¿Cuándo pagará Romeo Vásquez por el asesinato de Vicky Hernández?” es la pregunta que se hacen las organizaciones defensoras de derechos humanos de las poblaciones de la diversidad sexual en Honduras.

Según la sentencia de Vicky Hernández vs Honduras, la muerte de Vicky fue una ejecución extrajudicial cometida entre el 28 de junio y la madrugada del 29 de junio en San Pedro Sula, norte de Honduras. 

El asesinato de la líder trans se dio en el marco del toque de queda y el golpe de Estado ejecutado por Roberto Micheletti contra Manuel “Mel” Zelaya a través del jefe de las Fuerzas Armadas, Romeo Vásquez Velásquez. 

“Como representantes de las víctimas, exigimos justicia y no olvidar los asesinatos de personas LGBTI+ en el marco del golpe de Estado”, afirmó Indyra Mendoza de la Red Lésbica Cattrachas.

Asimismo, la Red Lésbica Cattrachas pidió al Ministerio Público que no olvide la sentencia de la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (Corte IDH) del caso “Vicky Hernández vs Honduras”, donde se especifica que el asesinato de la líder trans fue una ejecución extrajudicial.

En su sentencia, la Corte constató indicios de participación de agentes estatales en la violación del derecho a la vida de Vicky Hernández en un contexto de violencia anti-LGBTQ+.

El Estado reconoció en parte su responsabilidad internacional, ya que las autoridades no investigaron con diligencia el homicidio de Vicky. De hecho, según la Corte, las autoridades no consideraron el contexto de discriminación y violencia policial contra las personas LGBTQ+ y las mujeres trans trabajadoras sexuales. 

Asimismo, el Tribunal determinó que, al haber sido asesinada y por el marco jurídico general de discriminación, se vulneraron los derechos a no discriminación y a la identidad de género de Vicky. A su vez, el Tribunal encontró que las familiares de Vicky Hernández resultaron afectadas por el sufrimiento que les causó su muerte, la permanente discriminación contra ella y la impunidad del homicidio.

En razón de estas violaciones, la Corte ordenó diversas medidas de reparación al Estado. Entre estas demandas está promover y continuar las investigaciones sobre el homicidio de Vicky Hernández.

Así reaccionan al arresto de Romeo  

Minutos después de la captura del general retirado Romeo Vásquez para deducirle responsabilidades por la muerte violenta de Isy Obed Murillo, personalidades del ambiente político y social de Honduras salieron a dar declaraciones al respecto en medios y redes sociales.

El padre Ismael Moreno se halla entre quienes manifestaron su satisfacción por las capturas que hacen vislumbrar un rayo de esperanza a las familiares de las víctimas del golpe de 2009. En sus redes sociales, el padre Melo señaló que no es posible dejar “en el olvido” crímenes como el cometido contra Murillo.

“Que la justicia actúe con firmeza y conforme a debido proceso ante un militar que simboliza unas FF. AA. comprometidas con la impunidad. Ningún hecho de violación a derechos humanos y crímenes que vinculan al Estado contra inocentes prescriben ni pueden quedar en el olvido”, escribió Melo. 

De manera parecida se expresó David Murillo, padre del joven asesinado en 2009. «No es persecución política, ¡él mató a mi hijo, él es el culpable!», afirmó el padre de Isy.

Del mismo modo, el abogado Joaquín Mejía recomendó, por su parte, consultar el informe de la Comisión de la Verdad y la Reconciliación “que establece la responsabilidad de [Vásquez] en las graves violaciones a derechos humanos cometidas en el contexto del golpe de Estado”.

“Según la Comisión, la ‘responsabilidad del general […] está estrechamente ligada a la de Micheletti’”, publicó Mejía en sus redes. Además, afirmó que no debe olvidarse la responsabilidad del resto del Estado Mayor Conjunto.

Mientras tanto, la activista Berta Oliva ofreció un testimonio personal al recordar la manera como acompañó el dolor “de la madre y el padre de Isy Obed Murillo en su exilio en Argentina y en su romería interminable en Honduras”.

Para Oliva, la familia de Murillo ha recibido una “ofensa brutal” con “los años de silencio” alrededor del asesinato.  

Entretanto, Gabriela Castellanos, del Consejo Hondureño Anticorrupción (CNA), volvió a mostrar por qué la consideran una de las críticas más duras del gobierno de Xiomara Castro.

“La persecución, la tortura y el asesinato de manera sistematizada de personas por motivos políticos en el marco del golpe de Estado en 2009, son hechos indiscutibles que hoy se disfrazan en nombre de la ‘justicia’”, aseguró Castellanos en X. 

Otro crítico de la acción de hoy del Ministerio Público, el analista político Olban Valladares, afirmó que la captura de Romeo Vásquez significa que el Ministerio Público “está cumpliendo instrucciones políticas de los que el pueblo ha identificado como los mandamases”. 

Según Valladares, no es posible requerir a Vásquez porque “no se le ha probado ser ni el hechor material ni el intelectual” de la muerte violenta de Isy Murillo. Además criticó que Romeo “forma parte de un Estado Mayor Conjunto, una junta de comandantes, y se enfilan los cañones contra una sola persona”.

Entretanto, para el precandidato del Partido Liberal, Salvador Nasralla, medidas como el arresto del exjerarca militar Romeo Vásquez “sirven para asustar a la oposición”. 

“En el caso de Romeo, lo que tienen que presentar son las pruebas por los que ellos creen que cometió”, agregó el presentador de televisión.

A las voces de la oposición que se alzaron contra la decisión del MP se unió el Partido Liberal, el cual declaró que está preocupado por la detención de Vásquez, “curiosamente avalada por funcionarios del Gobierno”. 

Además, demandó al Ministerio Público que respete los derechos de Vásquez y pidió “no permitir por ningún motivo que se instale en nuestro país una nueva Venezuela”.

El Partido Nacional, por su parte, exigió «justicia plena, imparcial» y no usar las instituciones para vengarse.

La esposa de Romeo Vásquez, Lisbeth Zelaya, declaró que hace días habían amenazado a su esposo con encarcelarlo y que lo capturaron “sin pruebas”. 

Para finalizar, las Fuerzas Armadas de Honduras se manifestaron la noche de hoy por medio de un comunicado sobre “la captura de tres exmiembros de esta institución”.

A continuación, la institución armada afirmó en el boletín que condena “todo golpe de Estado” y que rechaza “cualquier acción que implique la violación de los derechos humanos y las garantías constitucionales”.

Asimismo, las FF. AA. garantizó “que no habrá más golpes de Estado” y que “por ningún motivo las armas confiadas a nuestra institución serán utilizadas para afectar a nuestro pueblo”.

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National

As Jimmy Carter is eulogized at the Capitol, his daughter Amy wears a Pride pin

The 39th president supported LGBTQ+ rights

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January 8, 2025

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Amy Carter, youngest child of the late former President Jimmy Carter, at the lying in state ceremony at the U.S. Capitol. (Screen capture via PBS News/YouTube)

Amy Carter, the youngest child of former President Jimmy Carter, wore a pin with the rainbow LGBTQ+ Pride flag during the lying-in-state ceremony for her father at the U.S. Capitol building on Tuesday.

Vice President Kamala Harris, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) each delivered remarks and laid wreaths during the service.

Distinguished guests also included U.S. Supreme Court justices, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, dozens of other members of the Carter family, and members of the Biden Cabinet and former Carter administration.

President Joe Biden will eulogize the 39th president during the funeral on Thursday at the Washington National Cathedral with President-elect Donald Trump and former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama also in attendance.

Carter, who died on Dec. 29 at the age of 100, supported LGBTQ+ rights at a time when the community’s struggle for social, political, and legal equality was in its infancy, promising during his 1976 presidential campaign to support a gay civil rights bill because “I don’t think it’s right to single out homosexuals for abuse or special harassment.”

Two months after his inauguration the following year, the White House hosted a first-of-its- kind meeting at the White House with 14 gay rights leaders.

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National

McDonald’s becomes latest major company to roll back DEI efforts

‘Pauses’ HRC’s CEI survey as group reports record participation in 2025

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January 8, 2025

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McDonald's Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski (Screen capture via CNBC/YouTube)

McDonald’s on Monday became the latest company to roll back certain diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, announcing plans to sunset “aspirational representation goals” and DEI requirements for suppliers while “pausing” participation in external surveys like the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index.

In an email, leadership said the changes come amid “the shifting legal landscape” following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the 2023 affirmative action case Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard and after benchmarking with “other companies who are also re-evaluating their own programs.”

Among these are Ford Motor Company, Harley-Davidson, Molson Coors, Lowe’s, and Tractor Supply, each announcing plans within the last year to curb investments in DEI programs, including those focused on LGBTQ+ employees and communities.

Conservative activist Robby Starbuck has claimed credit for these decisions, though the nature and extent of the influence exerted by his campaigns targeting individual corporations’ DEI activities is not clear.

HRC’s Corporate Equality Index is a national benchmarking tool used to assess “corporate policies, practices, and benefits pertinent to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer employees,” according to six major metrics: “Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in U.S. Nondiscrimination Policy,” “Spousal and Domestic Partner Benefits,” “Transgender-Inclusive Benefits,” “Transgender Workplace Best Practices,” “Outreach and Engagement to the LGBTQ Community,” and “Corporate Social Responsibility.”

Releasing the 2025 CEI report on Tuesday, HRC said that “Despite anti-LGBTQ+ attacks on businesses, 72 companies joined the CEI for the first time – up almost five percent over last year,” totaling 1,449 businesses.

The organization notes that 765 earned a perfect score of 100 this year, with businesses demonstrating “substantial increases in inclusive practices and access to equitable benefits for all LGTBQ+ employees.”

“At its core, the work of the CEI is about making businesses stronger. Since the start of this work 22 years ago, we’ve seen drastic shifts in corporate America toward more equitable and inclusive working conditions, family formation and healthcare benefits, and non-discrimination protections,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a press release.

“At times, progress meets backlash, but companies continue to dedicate the time and resources to reinforcing workplace inclusion,” she said. “As a result, they are more competitive and more creative while attracting and retaining top talent and widening their consumer base. Our door is open for companies looking to learn more about supporting every single employee so they can bring their best to work.” 

In a statement to the Advocate, RaShawn Hawkins, senior director of the HRC Foundation’s Workplace Equality Program, said “When companies are transparent and open about their commitment to workplace inclusion policies, it only helps to attract and retain top talent – which is why the 2025 CEI has record participation from more than 1,400 companies.”

Hawkins added,”There’s no changing the fact that with 30 percent of Gen Z identifying as LGBTQ+ and the community holding $1.4 trillion in spending power, commitments to inclusion are directly tied to long-term business growth. Those who abandon these commitments are shirking their responsibility to their employees, consumers, and shareholders.”

At the same time, as Republicans take control of both chambers of Congress along with the White House, right-wing opposition to corporate DEI, including LGBTQ+ inclusive policies and programs, is expected to accelerate well beyond the calls for boycotts and online pressure campaigns seen in recent years.

Last month, Reuters reported that after he takes office, President-elect Donald Trump plans to use the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division to challenge DEI programs at companies and universities.

The news agency noted that the division’s mandate in Trump’s second term would mean enforcers will be tasked with investigating policies that are designed to benefit the very same groups, like Black and other marginalized communities, that the division was established to protect with Congress’s passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957.

Per OCR’s website, the division “works to uphold the civil and constitutional rights of all persons in the United States, particularly some of the most vulnerable members of our society” enforcing “federal statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), disability, religion, familial status, national origin, and citizenship status.”

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State Department

Tammy Bruce to become next State Department spokesperson

Lesbian Fox News contributor has made anti-trans comments

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January 7, 2025

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Tammy Bruce speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference in 2015. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

President-elect Donald Trump has announced Tammy Bruce will become the next State Department spokesperson.

Bruce is a Fox News contributor who has described herself as a “gay woman” on the network. A GLAAD spokesperson on Monday pointed out to the Washington Blade that Bruce has also made anti-transgender comments.

“Tammy is a highly respected political analyst who understood the power of importance of ‘MAGA’ early on,” said Trump in a Jan. 3 Truth Social post that announced her appointment. “She received her bachelor’s degree in political science at the University of Southern California and, after being a liberal activist in the 1990s, saw the lies and fraud of the Radical Left, and quickly became one of the strongest Conservative voices on radio and television.”

Trump has nominated U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) to succeed Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Ned Price in 2021 became the State Department’s first openly gay spokesperson. He stepped down in March 2023.

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Canada

Justin Trudeau resigns as party leader

Announcement sets stage for national elections

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January 7, 2025

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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Photo by shganti777/Bigstock)

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday announced he will resign as the leader of his Liberal Party.

The announcement, which came against the backdrop of growing calls for the embattled prime minister to resign that increased after Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, who was the country’s deputy prime minister, stepped down from the government last month, will set the stage for national elections that must take place before Oct. 20.

CNN notes polls show the Liberal Party would lose to the Conservative Party of which anti-LGBTQ+ MP Pierre Poilievre is the leader.

Trudeau became prime minister in 2015 when he defeated then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Trudeau’s father, Pierre Trudeau, was Canada’s prime minister from 1968-1979 and from 1980-1984.

The younger Trudeau is the first Canadian prime minister to have marched in a Pride parade.

Canada in 2022 banned so-called conversion therapy, which Justin Trudeau described as a “hateful and harmful practice.” Justin Trudeau in 2017 also formally apologized to Canadians who suffered persecution and discrimination under the country’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws — including those convicted of “gross indecency” before Canada decriminalized consensual same-sex sexual relations — and policies

“We have failed to (protect) LGBTQ2 communities, individuals time and time again,” he said. “It is with shame and sorrow and deep regret that the things we have done that I stand here today and say we were wrong, we apologize. I am sorry. We are sorry.”

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World

Out in the World: LGBTQ+ news from Europe, Asia, and Australia

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ winner The Vivienne has died at 32

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January 6, 2025

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The Vivienne (Photo courtesy of The Vivienne's' Facebook page)

UNITED KINGDOM

“RuPaul’s Drag Race UK” winner The Vivienne, born James Lee Williams, has passed away at age 32, their representative Simon Jones says.

In a post on Instagram, Jones announced the star’s passing and requested privacy for Williams’s family.

“It is with immense sadness that we let you know our beloved James Lee Williams — The Vivienne, has passed away this weekend. James was an incredibly loved, warm-hearted and amazing person. Their family are heartbroken at the loss of their son, brother, and uncle. They are so proud of the wonderful things James achieved in their life and career,” Jones says.

“We will not be releasing any further details,” the statement says.

Williams was born in Wales but grew up in Liverpool, where they started their drag career in the late 2000s. In 2015, RuPaul appointed them “UK Drag Ambassador,” leading to them competing in and winning the first season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race UK” in 2019. She returned to the franchise in 2022 for the seventh season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars,” tying for seventh place. 

The Vivienne also appeared on several other reality competition shows, including the 15th season of ITV’s “Dancing on Ice” and the Christmas edition of “The Great British Sewing Bee.” Their final TV appearance was last month on the Christmas edition of the UK game show “Blankety Blank.”

Beyond the screen, they released their EP “Bitch on Heels” in 2022, and toured as the Wicked Witch in the 2024 West End revival of “The Wizard of Oz.”

Tributes to The Vivienne poured in on social media in the wake of the announcement.”

“Heartbreaking 💔 I don’t know how to say how I feel,” wrote “Drag Race” judge Michelle Visage on Instagram. “My darling @thevivienne_ we go back to when I started coming over here to the UK. You were always there, always laughing, always giving, always on point. Your laughter, your wit, your talent, your drag. I loved all of it but I loved your friendship most of all. You were a beacon to so many.”

The death has come as a shock to many.

RUSSIA

Russian clubgoers have been fined for dressing “too gay” as part of the country’s ongoing crackdown on LGBTQ+ people and expression.

At least seven people were ordered to pay the fines after a raid on a nightclub in Tula, about 120 miles south of Moscow, in February 2024, according to independent Russian media outlet Verstka, which reviewed court documents and video footage of the raid.

Those fined were charged with “trying to arouse interest in non-traditional sexual relations,” which is a crime under Russia’s so-called “LGBT propaganda” laws. They included a man who wore “crosses of black tape glued to his nipples” and a “women’s style corset,” and another man who wore “pink socks” and “an unbuttoned kimono.”

Other offending wardrobe on men included a crop top, black leather shorts, and fishnet stockings.

A judge ruled their clothing was “’inconsistent with the image of a man with traditional sexual orientation,” and fined the men.

Two of the men were ordered to pay fines of 50,000 rubles (approximately $450). That’s a little more than the average monthly salary in Tula, according to Russia’s official statistics agency, Rosstat.

Russia’s crackdown on LGBTQ+ people has expanded dramatically over the last several years. The initial propaganda law targeted only expression that could be seen by children, but it was expanded in 2022 to criminalize all forms of LGBTQ+ organization and expression. In 2023, the Russian Supreme Court declared the “international LGBT movement” to be an “extremist” organization, which was backed up the following year with a decision labeling the “movement” to be “terrorist.”

Verstka reports that at least 131 cases of “LGBT propaganda” charges were brought to Russian courts in 2024, with fines ranging up to 200,000 rubles (approximately $1,850.) 

SINGAPORE

LGBTQ+ activists are crying foul after the Singapore government introduced the island’s first workplace nondiscrimination bill without any protections for queer workers. The are calling on the government to amend the bill to add prohibitions on discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity before it passes into law.

A coalition of activists called SAFE (Supporting, Affirming and Empowering our LGBTQ+ friends and families) published a statement on its Facebook page calling on the government to rethink the bill.

“SAFE and our community partners who have co-signed this statement are resolutely against the bill’s exclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity as protected characteristics under the bill. We deem it as extremely discriminatory, which runs counter to the objective of the bill which is to address discrimination in the workplace in the first place,” the statement reads. “Often when parents share with us their fears for their children who have come out to them, discrimination against their queer or trans children rank high on the list. It is thus distressing for our parent community that the exclusions may inadvertently encourage discriminatory and bullying actions towards their children who are LGBTQ+ persons.”

SAFE’s statement also notes that unfair workplace practices also compound the discrimination that LGBTQ+ people face in other aspects of life, including in housing and education, which contributes to economic precarity.

Singapore’s Manpower Ministry says the new Workplace Fairness Legislation codifies existing, non binding guidelines on fair employment practices that were introduced in 2007, including prohibiting discrimination based on age, nationality, sex, marital status, pregnancy status, caregiving responsibilities, race, religion, language, disability, and mental health conditions. But those guidelines were issued 15 years before Singapore finally decriminalized homosexuality in 2022.

Singapore is home to one of the largest and most visible LGBTQ+ communities in southeast Asia, and the annual Pink Dot festival attracts thousands of people to celebrate Pride and demand greater rights. 

AUSTRALIA

The Palace Hotel in Broken Hill has been officially recognized as an LGBTQ+ landmark for the role it plays in the iconic film “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.” 

In the 1994 film, a trio of drag queens stay at the hotel while driving their bus, the titular Priscilla, from Sydney to Alice Springs in the Outback. 

Fans of the film have long flocked to the Palace Hotel — famous for its many murals — and the hotel even offers guests the “Priscilla Suite” where the characters stayed in the film.

Palace Hill was already listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register, but this week Culture Minister Penny Sharpe announced that its listing would be amended to officially recognize the hotel’s significance to the queer community.

“The interior of the Palace Hotel, with its extensive murals, was a prominent filming location of ’The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert,’” the new listing reads. “[The film] introduced LGBTQIA+ themes to mainstream audiences in Australia and internationally. ‘Priscilla’ represented a monumental shift in cinema of the representation of gay and transgender people in Australia.”

“The Palace Hotel has been closely associated with the LGBTQIA+ community and Australian drag artistry since the film’s release.”

Sharpe says the new listing honors the hotel’s importance in queer history.

“Now we’re ensuring its significant role in the history of Australia’s LGBTQIA+ community is officially recognized and celebrated,” Sharpe wrote in a post on Instagram.

Last year, it was reported in Deadline that a sequel to Priscilla was in the development, with the director and cast attached to return. It’s not yet known what the plot of the sequel will be, or if the queens will return to the Palace Hotel.

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Congress

Mark Takano to lead Congressional Equality Caucus

LGBTQ+ caucus is among the largest in Congress

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January 5, 2025

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U.S. Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Gay U.S. Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) will chair the LGBTQ Congressional Equality Caucus in the newly seated 119th Congress, he told Axios on Friday.

“Over the next several years, we will see a constant barrage of attacks on the rights and dignity of the queer community — especially against our transgender siblings,” Takano said. “I will lead our coalition of openly-LGBTQI+ members and our allies in the fight to both defend the queer community and push equality forward, including by reintroducing the Equality Act.”

The caucus was founded in 2008 by then-U.S. Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), the latter going on to represent the Badger State in the U.S. Senate since 2013, when she became the first LGBTQ+ member to serve in the upper chamber.

Led in the last Congress by U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), the caucus’s chair and eight co-chairs are out and LGBTQ+. There are a couple dozen vice chairs and more than 160 other members, all Democrats.

In recent battles over must-pass appropriations bills, the caucus opposed House Republicans’ insistence on including anti-LGBTQ+ “poison pill” policy riders, meticulously chronicling their efforts to politicize government funding.

The caucus has also fought against and documented legislation proposed by House GOP members that takes aim at LGBTQ+ and especially transgender rights.

Takano’s tenure as chair will begin just as Republicans plan to push forward a bill that would prohibit trans women and girls from competing on women and girls’ sports teams, and just after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) enacted a new policy that would ban transgender people from bathrooms in the U.S. Capitol building.

“Our community will have a strong defender against Republicans’ incoming attacks with Representative Takano as our chair,” Pocan said.

First elected in 2013, the California congressman is the first gay Asian member to serve in either chamber. He is also the top Democrat on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.

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White House

Biden honors two LGBTQ+ advocates with Presidential Citizens Medal 

Evan Wolfson, Mary Bonauto among 20 awardees

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January 5, 2025

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President Joe Biden speaks at a World AIDS Day commemoration at the White House on Dec. 1, 2024. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

President Joe Biden awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal on Thursday to LGBTQ+ advocates Evan Wolfson, founder of Freedom to Marry, and Mary Bonauto, senior director of civil rights and legal strategies at GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders (GLAD Law).

They, along with 18 other awardees, were honored in the East Room of the White House with a ceremony celebrating their exemplary deeds of service to their country or fellow citizens.

In a statement, the White House said that, “By leading the marriage equality movement, Evan Wolfson helped millions of people in all 50 states win the fundamental right to love, marry, and be themselves,” while Bonauto, an attorney who argued the Obergefell case that made same-sex marriage the law of the land in 2015, “made millions of families whole and forged a more perfect union.”

“Together, you embody the central truth: We’re a great nation because we’re a good people,” the president said. “Our democracy begins and ends with the duties of citizenship. That’s our work for the ages, and it’s what all of you embody.”

Former Republican U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney (Wyo.) and Democratic U.S. Rep. Benny Thompson (Miss.) were honored on Thursday for their work leading the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, siege of the U.S. Capitol.

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