MILWAUKEE — Log Cabin Republicans President Charles Moran outlined his organization’s position on divisive LGBTQ issues during the organization’s Big Tent Event offsite from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Wednesday.

“As conservative members of the LGBT community, we’re extremely concerned” that a “radical gender theory” is “being advanced in the name of LGBT equality,” Moran said in a video address following his remarks at the event.

“The last three years have been a real watershed moment for these radical leftists working in conjunction with woke corporations, out of sync academics, and cultural elitists who want to hijack our hard-earned civil rights movement to advance an extremist agenda,” he said.

The problem, Moran said, is that “Americans are seriously reconsidering their support for LGBT equality as a result” as evidenced by a Gallup poll last year which found for the first time that general and broad support for LGBTQ inclusion was in decline.

“The left’s war on our traditional values is starting to take a toll on the overall amount of acceptance and tolerance for average gays and lesbians in this country,” Moran said.

The Log Cabin president then explained how his organization had worked with Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican state legislature on the controversial Parental Rights in Education (“Don’t Say Gay”) law, which “prevented mandated curriculum from being instructed on sexual orientation and gender identity from age three to grade three.”

Moran characterized the legislation as policy driven by a “common sense” approach, noting, however, that “in 2023, when the presidential primary races started kicking into high gear, we saw a broad push across the nation with legislation that was an overreaction and poorly thought out.”

“That next year, the reintroduction of that same Florida bill took the prohibition on those conversations all the way up from age three to age 18 in Florida schools, which was not practical nor needed, and thus we opposed that new version of the bill,” Moran said. “It just wasn’t smart public policy.”

Broadly, “average Americans see themselves as tolerant and inclusive — and we when we present a message that smacks of homophobia, anger, vitriol, and exclusion, they will vote against us every time,” he said.

“Eighty percent of this country supports equality and inclusion for the Ls, the Gs, the Bs, and the Ts,” added Moran, “but this comes with some guardrails concerning specific policy debates.”

“This is indicative of a very serious messaging problem. This is where we at Log Cabin Republicans need to step in to help the Republican Party steer through these issues with precision,” he said.

In practical terms, Moran said this will mean, “One, fight back against leftist extremists and cultural Marxists who are trying to undo strong cultural mores in society that are hijacking our civil rights movement and two, fight back against hardline social conservatives who never accepted the real evolution and acceptance of LGBT equality in the first place from dragging the Republican Party back into the middle of a gay marriage fight that has long been settled.”

With respect to specific policy debates, he highlighted “one, the protection and integrity of women’s spaces, two, support the preservation of women’s sports and Title IX, three, strong parental consent at every level in our schools, and four, no permanent gender transition under the age of 18.”

Taking the stage before Moran was former U.S. Ambassador to Germany Ric Grenell, who also served as acting director of national intelligence during the Trump administration.

The diplomat and conservative political operative celebrated the Republican Party’s issuance of a new platform this year that, for the first time, does not express opposition to same-sex marriage.

The two-page document does, however, call for banning transgender girls and women from competing in girls and women’s sports, as well as a proposal to cut federal funding for “any school pushing critical race theory, radical gender ideology, and other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content on our children.”

“I couldn’t be more proud to have this platform under Donald Trump,” Grenell said. “After the platform was passed, President Trump called me and he said, ‘did you see what we did?’ I said, ‘Yes, sir, I did and it’s amazing. You know, I want you to know that we’re gonna stay quiet until it really gets into the fabric and we’ll give it a little time. And you know, I know it’s gonna be a little hard for some people. So, we’ll give it a little time before we talk about it.’ He goes, ‘No, we won! Start talking about it.’ He’s all in. He’s all in with us.”

“In 2016, when Donald Trump came to run this party, I never once worried that he would somehow use us politically,” Grenell said. “You’ll notice he doesn’t. He absolutely believes that we are part of the American society. And he thinks it’s really weird if you don’t.”

At the same time, however, he stressed that Trump expects “us to police our own community to make sure we call out the radical left” and told the audience they “should be very upfront about rejecting the crazy radical gay left” who “don’t speak for us.”

“Now, the gay left is going to constantly tell you that you need special protections because they like to keep us in a box and take us out six months before elections and parade us around,” Grenell said. “We don’t do that. We want to be included at the front.”

He added that “I got in the most trouble for when I said that the State Department should cut all of its DEI programs out. We don’t need a special office down the way that has glitter and rainbows. We want to be at the table of substance. When you do the African policy, we want to be in the room. When you develop European policy, we want to be in the room.”

MILWAUKEE — Former President Donald Trump voiced his support for banning transgender women and girls from competing on girls and women’s athletics teams during his speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday.

The proposal was included in the Republican Party’s official platform, along with plans to cut federal funding for “any school pushing critical race theory, radical gender ideology, and other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content on our children.”

Trump had a major hand in shaping the two-page document, though apart from the sports ban his remarks closing out the RNC did not otherwise address LGBTQ matters.

Nor did the Republican presidential nominee mention Project 2025, the 900-page governing blueprint for a second Trump term that would radically reshape American government including by advancing a Christian nationalist anti-LGBTQ, anti-choice policy agenda.

In a statement following Trump’s speech, Biden-Harris 2024 Campaign Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon pointed out that the former president also neglected to discuss “how he had inflicted pain and cruelty on the women of America by overturning Roe v Wade” or “his plan to take over the civil service and to pardon the Jan. 6th insurrectionists.”

MILWAUKEE — Woody’s Milwaukee owner Alan Kettering is no fan of Donald Trump, but when the former president was in town for the Republican National Convention this week, he told the Washington Blade it was “a bit of a nothing burger” as far as he and his gay bar were concerned.

“There isn’t a lot I can say about the RNC,” he said, except to the extent that “there was just a little bump [in business] over the weekend from people that didn’t want to, you know, go anywhere near downtown.”

Kettering suspects many of his LGBTQ patrons were deliberately avoiding getting close to the perimeter around Fiserv Forum, which contained hundreds of elected Republicans, thousands of Republican delegates, and tens of thousands of conservatives all gathered to rally around their nominee.

Asked whether any RNC attendees made their way to Woody’s this week, Kettering said there was one man who made a bit of a scene. “He claimed he was a representative of some sort” from Massachusetts, possibly a Republican delegate.

When the patron left with two men, Kettering said he worried for them because the Republican “just seemed a little unstable” but thankfully they returned to Woody’s unharmed. “I talked to them afterwards and they basically said they took an Uber down to Cathedral Square and the guy got out and ran away.”

Running a gay bar in a swing state during an election year at a particularly polarized time in the U.S. has sometimes meant having to police discussions about politics, Kettering said. “I try to quell it as much as I can, because I am very politically motivated, and I have to bite my tongue 90 percent of the time,” he said.

“And the vast majority of gay people are Democratic, the vast majority, but we do have a few that are very, very vocal, you know, in support of the current challenger,” Kettering said. “But I try very hard to limit the amount of political discussion because there is no winning.”

“You’re not going to convince me and I’m sure I’m not going to convince you. So have a drink and be mellow.”

Asked to share his thoughts about the upcoming election, Kettering was quick to relay his concerns about Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s governing blueprint for a second Trump administration, which would impose radical governmental reforms while advancing an anti-LGBTQ, anti-choice Christian nationalist agenda.

“If any of that Project 2025 is true — I mean, if any of its true — these people are nuts,” he said.

“They’re trying to roll back all kinds of freedoms. They’re trying to establish an ordained religion, and it has to be Christianity. And, you know, if you’re going to be anybody who’s worthwhile, you have to be heterosexual, married, with kids, of course.”

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation and LGBT+ Public Policy Institute of Argentina last week released their third annual report on the inclusion of LGBTQ people in the country’s workplaces.

The Global Workplace Equity Program: Equidad AR evaluates major Argentine and multinational companies and policies for their LGBTQ employees.

The total number of participating companies in this year’s survey increased from 76 to 82, which reflects a growing commitment to creating LGBTQ-inclusive policies and practices in Argentine workplaces. The report also notes 224,649 queer employees, which is a 120 percent increase over last year.

The HRC Foundation’s AR Equity Program is based on the HRC Corporate Equity Index, the leading survey that assesses LGBTQ workplace in the U.S. Companies that lead the way in LGBTQ inclusion and equity earn the HRC Foundation’s “Best Places to Work LGBT+ 2024” designation.

Fifty-five of the 82 participating companies in Argentina earned this certification this year. They represent 26 different business sectors.

“As we’ve seen countless times, when organizations implement LGBT+ policies, everyone wins: Workers are better able to reach their full potential and employers reaffirm their commitment to treating all people with dignity and respect,” said RaShawn Hawkins, senior director of the HRC Foundation’s Workplace Equality Program. “We are very proud of our partners for the work they have done to advance LGBT+ equality in their workplaces and look forward to continuing to work with them as partners in this fight.”

The commitment to LGBTQ-inclusive policies and practicies is significant in a different way for the community in Argentina this year.

HRC indicated “recent public administrative changes focused on the LGBT+ community motivated the private sector to generate more opportunities to grow and develop its diverse workforce through business.”

President Javier Milei and his government have faced criticism over the closure of the National Institute against Discrimination and the Ministry of Women, Gender, and Diversity. 

“The complex context that Argentina is experiencing of difficulties, hostility, and refusal of the national government to sustain many of the public policies that were carried out in recent years, puts the private sector at the center, which clearly has all the conditions to make an important contribution and become a decisive factor to support from another place different from the one we have been used to because the State has run away,” gay Congressman Esteban Paulón told the Washington Blade.

The congressman added “the private sector, and from the cooperation between the public sector and the private sector, can work and sustain many of the achievements that have been achieved in these years.” Paulón said they include implementation of a labor quota for transgender people that Milei’s government is no longer implementing, but “could be sustained” with a “firm commitment” from the private sector.

Onax Cirlini, HRC’s AR Equity implementing partner, said that “beyond the institutional efforts highlighted in this report, we see the dynamics generated by activism organized by employee resource groups (ERGs)/business resource groups (BRGs) or affinity groups.” 

“This internal momentum, often led by people in the community itself, enhances institutional equality efforts by providing continuity and persistence,” said Cirlini.

Dolores Covacevich, another HRC AR Equity implementing partner, stressed the group recognizes “the importance of every role within companies and organizations as they work toward the integration of diversity, equity and inclusion policies, and the commitment to LGBT+ inclusion efforts.”

“We know that none of this work would be possible without inclusive leadership that promotes these processes,” said Covacevich.

HRC has worked with groups in Mexico, Chile, and Brazil to implement similar indexes in their respective countries.

MILWAUKEE — Log Cabin Republicans, the conservative LGBTQ group, hosted a Big Tent Event on Wednesday offsite from the Republican National Convention, atop the Discovery World Science and Technology Museum with panoramic views of Lake Michigan.

Before the luncheon began — with remarks from GOP members of Congress and the organization’s leadership, along with former U.S. Ambassador to Germany Ric Grenell, who formerly served as acting director of national intelligence — the Washington Blade spoke with a Republican delegate, Weymouth, Mass., Mayor Bob Hedlund.

“I bumped into, this morning, a former colleague of mine,” he said, referring to LCR Board Chair Richard Tisei, who served in the Massachusetts Senate with Hedlund and invited him to the event.

Several of the speakers would later tout the 2024 Republican party platform’s omission of references to same-sex marriage, a departure from the party’s longstanding position of opposing marriage equality. And Hedlund recalled how heated the debates were in 2004 when Massachusetts became the first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.

“I was in the Senate when that debate went on and the court decision and multiple votes, so we were kind of at the forefront of that at the time,” he said. “It was a vote I struggled with. I probably received more pressure on that issue than anything else in my 21 years in the legislature. I had neighbors that never talked politics with me grabbing me and stopping my car one morning on the week of the vote and voicing their opinion. That was a difficult time.”

Hedlund explained that while his hometown of Weymouth was the bluest in his Senate district, the community is, and was, blue collar with a heavy Irish-Italian-Catholic bent. Twenty years ago, the town had five Catholic parishes, he said, “so there was a lot of opposition to [same-sex marriage] at the time.”

More than the volte-face on gay marriage, what stood out to the mayor about the GOP platform — the party’s first since 2016 — was how “quiet” the fight was, in contrast with the heated battles through which previous iterations were produced.

As LCR President Charles Moran previously told the Blade, Hedlund said the language of the new document, concise as it is, is a clear reflection of the values and priorities of the party’s 2024 nominee, former President Donald Trump.

“I think they can smell victory and they want to just get across the finish line,” Hedlund said, referring to the officials involved in drafting the platform.

While the document does not take a position against same-sex marriage, it does call for banning transgender girls and women from competing in girls and women’s sports, as well as a proposal to cut federal funding for “any school pushing critical race theory, radical gender ideology, and other inappropriate racial, sexual, or political content on our children.”

Addressing the proposed sports ban, Hedlund said “I think you don’t have any consensus in the populace over how you handle that issue. I mean, I think that’s a jump ball.”

He added that if residents in Weymouth were polled on the issue, or if it came up in a referendum, he imagines they would favor a ban. Neighboring towns have experienced controversies involving trans athletes, he said.

Personally, Hedlund said he believes there should be rules for participation in athletics that are drawn based on “some defining line as to when someone may be transitioning” and in the meantime “it’s hard to pigeonhole a party or an entity on that [issue] because people are still grappling with it.”

“I don’t know how you deal with it if someone’s fully transitioned,” the mayor said, because in that case “I think that’s a different story” and a ban might not be necessary or appropriate.

Compared to the platform, Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s governing agenda for a second Trump administration, contains far more policies sought by the conservative Christian wing of the Republican Party, including restrictions on abortion and pornography as well as LGBTQ rights.

“I didn’t know anything about Project 2025 until about a week before Trump said he didn’t know anything about it,” Hedlund said. “Honestly.”

“I’ve been aware of the Heritage Foundation for 40 years and read some of the newsletters in the past,” he said. “And I’m way more informed than the average citizen. And I’m probably way more informed than most delegates.”

While the former president has sought to distance himself from the document as it has increasingly earned blowback, CNN notes that “six of his former Cabinet secretaries helped write or collaborated on the 900-page playbook” while “four individuals Trump nominated as ambassadors were also involved, along with several enforcers of his controversial immigration crackdown. And about 20 pages are credited to his first deputy chief of staff.”

“At least 140 people who worked in the Trump administration had a hand in Project 2025,” according to a CNN review, “including more than half of the people listed as authors, editors, and contributors to ‘Mandate for Leadership,’ the project’s extensive manifesto for overhauling the executive branch.”

Asked whether he expects Project 2025 or the party platform would be a more accurate guide to a second Trump term, Hedlund said he was not sure — but added the focus on Project 2025 is misguided because “you’ve got organizations, advocacy groups, think tanks on the left, same thing on the right, that publish policy papers.”

“When those on the left complain about Project 2025, I’d like to see the media ask the same questions, ‘what are the policy papers coming out of the Council on Foreign Relations? Or out of George Soros’s foundation? And how much of the Democratic Party is adopting those policy papers or initiatives?”

Hedlund added, “I don’t know if Trump knew about it or didn’t know about it, but it’s not the Republican Party platform. It’s a separate entity.”

“Are they going to have people involved in the Trump administration that are going to be influential?” he asked. “Yes. But if you look at some of the things in Project 2025, [many require] legislative legislative action” and looking at Trump’s “first term, I mean, what did he do, really, administratively or through executive action or by fiat that was so radical?”

Ruby Corado, the founder and executive director of the now-defunct LGBTQ community services organization Casa Ruby, pleaded guilty Wednesday to a single charge of wire fraud as part of a plea bargain deal offered by prosecutors with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.

The charge to which she pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for D.C. says she diverted at least $150,000 “in taxpayer-backed emergency COVID relief funds to private off-shore bank accounts for her personal use,” according to a statement released by the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Court records show that U.S. District Court Judge Trevor N. McFadden, who is presiding over the case, has scheduled a sentencing hearing for Jan. 10, 2025.

Corado’s guilty plea came a little over six weeks after prosecutors on May 31 filed a one-count criminal information charge of wire fraud against her that replaced an earlier criminal complaint charging her with bank fraud, money laundering, monetary transactions in criminally derived proceeds, and failure to file a required report of a foreign bank account.

The earlier complaint was filed at the time the FBI arrested Corado on March 5 of this year at a hotel in Laurel, Md., shortly after she returned to the U.S. from El Salvador. The initial complaint, like the new criminal information that replaced it, accused Corado of diverting at least $150,000 of federal pandemic relief funds to her own bank accounts in El Salvador. The charges say the funds were intended for use by Casa Ruby to support indigent LGBTQ clients in need of housing and other support services.

At the request of Corado’s court-appointed attorney and against the wishes of federal prosecutors, who said Corado would be a flight risk, another judge agreed to release Corado into the custody of her niece in Rockville, Md., under a home detention order. The release order came seven days after Corado had been held in jail since the time of her arrest on March 5.

In addition to a prison sentence, the charge of wire fraud also includes a possible penalty of financial forfeiture for which Corado could be required to pay restitution to the government. The plea agreement filed in court includes this statement to Corado’s attorney: “Specifically, your client agrees to the entry of a forfeiture money judgment in an amount ordered by the court, which is equal to the value of any property which constitutes or is derived from proceeds traceable to the offense in Count One of the Information in which your client is pleading guilty.”

However, legal observers have said that under a plea agreement like the one offered to Corado, prosecutors most likely will ask the judge for a lesser sentence. Corado’s attorney is also expected to point out that this is a nonviolent, first-time offense for Corado, which merits a lesser sentence.

Corado has denied wrongdoing in her operation of Casa Ruby in response to a separate civil complaint filed against her and Casa Ruby by the Office of the D.C. Attorney General. That complaint is still pending in D.C. Superior Court.

In its July 17 statement the U.S. Attorney’s office refers to court documents showing that Corado, “on behalf of Casa Ruby, received more than $1.3 million from the Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program.” The statement adds, “Instead of using the funds as she promised, Corado stole at least $150,000 by transferring the money to bank accounts in El Salvador, which she hid from the IRS.”

The statement says that in 2022, “when financial irregularities at Casa Ruby became public, Corado sold her home in Prince George’s County and fled to El Salvador.” It says FBI agents arrested her at the hotel in Laurel, Md. on March 5 “after she unexpectedly returned to the United States.”

U.S. Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Burbank), the leading candidate for U.S. Senate in California, has formally called for President Joe Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race.

Schiff, who is heavily favored to win his Senate race, made his statement exclusively to the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday.

While praising Biden’s accomplishments, calling him “one of the most consequential presidents in our nation’s history,” Schiff expressed “serious concerns” about Biden’s ability to defeat Trump in November. He urged the president to “pass the torch” and allow another Democrat to secure the party’s nomination, arguing that this would help “secure his legacy of leadership.”

The move comes amid growing concern within the Democratic Party about Biden’s age and mental fitness, particularly in light of his recent debate performance against former President Donald Trump.

Anxiety within the Democratic Party has also risen exponentially since the Trump assassination attempt, which occurred just as the Republican National Convention began.

Though polling has shown little change in support nationally for Biden since his disastrous debate performance, there has been a pronounced increase in support for Trump in many of the swing states. CNN’s John King on Wednesday revealed that Trump’s support in seven of the eight swing states has surged dramatically and that the Electoral College now favors Trump.

The congressman’s call for Biden to step aside is particularly significant given his prominent role in the party and his history as a vocal critic of Trump. 

Schiff played a key role in the congressional efforts to impeach the former president and notably led the House inquiry on the Trump-led Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol. His involvement in these high-profile investigations has made him a well-known figure in national politics.

Recent polling suggests that nearly two-thirds of Democrats believe the 81-year-old Biden should step aside and allow the party to nominate someone else. This sentiment has been growing since Biden’s widely criticized debate performance last month, where he at times appeared confused and struggled to articulate his positions clearly.

Adding to the complexity of the situation, the Democratic National Committee recently announced plans for a virtual roll-call vote in early August to formally nominate Biden as the party’s candidate. This decision was reportedly made to comply with a candidate certification deadline in Ohio on Aug. 7. However, the move has been met with resistance from some party members who are calling for an open convention instead.

The controversy surrounding the nomination process has exposed divisions within the party. 

DNC Chair Jaime Harrison has defended the decision, stating that the party “will have this vote by Aug. 5.” However, some Democrats have criticized the move as a “terrible idea,” arguing that forcing through an early vote while discussions about replacing Biden continue could undermine party unity and morale.

In a significant development, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) have reportedly pushed for a delay in the nominating process. This information, coming from multiple sources speaking to ABC News, suggests that even top party leadership may be reconsidering Biden’s candidacy. Schumer’s recent private meeting with Biden in Rehoboth Beach, Del., which the Senate leader only described as a “good meeting,” has further fueled speculation about the party’s plans.

ABC News reported Wednesday night, July 17, that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer privately urged President Joe Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race. According to ABC’s Jonathan Karl, reporting from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Schumer made a compelling argument that Biden’s exit would benefit not only the president himself but also the Democratic Party and the nation as a whole.

Karl noted that Schumer’s office has not denied the report. Instead, they issued a statement saying, “Leader Schumer conveyed the views of his caucus.” This response suggests that Schumer’s position may reflect broader sentiments within the Democratic Senate leadership.

The reported conversation between Schumer and Biden adds to growing speculation about the president’s political future and the Democrats’ strategy for the upcoming election.

The growing calls for Biden’s withdrawal have not been limited to party insiders. 

Moderate House Democrats have expressed frustration with the president’s campaign strategy and performance. In a recent call between Biden and a group of moderate House Democrats, participants described the president as “defensive” and “rambling” in his answers. Colorado Democrat Jason Crow went so far as to say on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that there is now a “high risk” Democrats will lose the election “unless there is a major change.”

Biden, however, has continued to defend his record and mental acuity.

In a Monday interview with NBC News, he stated, “I’ve gotten more done than any president has in a long, long time in three and a half years. So I’m willing to be judged on that.” The president has also resumed campaigning in battleground states like Nevada, joined by some of his top defenders, including U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) and the chairs of the Congressional Black Caucus and Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

The growing calls for Biden’s withdrawal, including from prominent figures like Schiff, indicate significant uncertainty within the party about its presidential nominee at a time when GOP voters have rallied more strongly than ever to support Trump.

Schiff is recognized as a key ally to the LGBTQ community and served as one of the vice chairs of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus, a status that is likely to fuel LGBTQ politicos concern about Biden’s chances for success.

There is a growing sense of fear among Biden’s LGBTQ supporters as second Trump presidency could lead to significant setbacks for the community: The rollback of LGBTQ protections in areas like healthcare, employment, and housing; the appointment of conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices who might weaken or overturn LGBTQ rights decisions; further restrictions on transgender rights; expanded religious exemptions allowing discrimination; cuts to HIV/AIDS programs; removal of LGBTQ-inclusive materials from schools; reduced global advocacy for LGBTQ rights; discrimination in adoption and foster care; elimination of LGBTQ demographic questions in federal surveys; and a general worsening of the social climate for LGBTQ people. 

When schools in India’s Kerala state reopened on June 3 after a long summer break, students walked into classrooms with the usual excitement. This year, however, they were greeted with a surprising and groundbreaking change. The textbooks they received were unlike any they had seen before — filled with gender-neutral images and instructions.

The initiative, driven by the state’s commitment to fostering equality from a young age, aimed to break down traditional gender roles and promote inclusivity. Students found pictures of boys and girls engaging in various activities without gender-specific expectations.

One of the images showed the father grating coconut in the kitchen while his wife cooked food. Another picture showed the father cooking food for his daughter.

In an unprecedented move, some schools in Kerala have committed to gender neutrality beyond textbooks, introducing gender-neutral uniforms. This change marks a significant departure from the traditional Indian school uniform, where boys typically wear shirts and pants, and girls don skirts, often in different colors. Many schools in Kerala have introduced the same school uniform for all students including shirts and knee-length pants.

More than 12 schools in Kerala have shifted to gender-neutral dresses so far. While there are a total of 4,504 government-run schools in Kerala, the Kerala Child Rights Commission last year decided to remove the use of words like “sir” and “madam” for teachers and instead encouraged to use of universal terms like “teacher” on school premises, but the Department of General Education, a state government body that overseas education in schools, refrained from any changes.

The National Council of Education Research and Training, a government-autonomous body of India’s Education Ministry, in 2023 introduced a manual that directs schools to implement transgender-inclusive curricula, safe washrooms, and gender-neutral dress for students to prevent gender-based discrimination and violence.

The Mumbai-based Aditya Birla World Academy, a private international school, in 2022 adopted gender-neutral uniforms and language in its 138 branches across the country. The school replaced “ladies” and “gentlemen” and other gender-specific words with “dear guests” or “hello everyone.” The school sent an email to parents that told them how to reduce gender differentiation in uniforms so students of various genders and those who are gender non-conforming or questioning their gender can feel safe discovering and expressing themselves at the school.

The Aditya Birla World Academy has also established the Rainbow Club, an LGBTQ support group led by students and guided by teachers, to create an environment of activism in the classroom, shifted to allow students to choose the length of their hair as long as it is neatly tied up, along with other activities that include workshops with teachers and parents under the initiative of “move away from the cis heteronormative environment in the education world.”

While talking to the Washington Blade, Harish Iyer, an equal rights activist, said children should be allowed to dress the way they want. He also said the idea of uniforms in schools is that a student should feel included, regardless of what strata of society to which they belong.

“Adding gender-neutrality to uniforms would only extend the whole purpose of the uniforms,” said Iyer. “It should be appreciated by all as there is no question of any debate here. What should be debated is that some people are forced to wear what is not part of their gender identity.”

Iyer told the Blade there should not be any gender assigned to clothes. He said uniforms should be based on comfort and not based on gender.

Indrani Chakraborty, a mother of a trans child and an LGBTQ activist based in northeast India, told the Blade the Kerala government’s decision to implement gender-neutral uniforms is welcome. She said her organization, Annajoree, is also trying to sensitize people on the same issue in Assam state.

“We are promoting safe-spaces in schools in Assam so that kids can complete their basic education without any mental harassment at school,” said Chakraborty. “Kerala is doing great work, it’s a great initiative and everyone should come forward to support it. It should be everywhere in our country.”

She also told the Blade that schools not sensitized to LGBTQ issues creates a fear of bullying. Students, according to Chakraborty, in particular face bullying and they are not allowed to join classes in their preferred uniforms and do not have access to gender-neutral bathrooms. 

She has started an initiative called the “No More Holding Pee Initiative” in schools.

Ankush Kumar is a reporter who has covered many stories for Washington and Los Angeles Blades from Iran, India, and Singapore. He recently reported for the Daily Beast. He can be reached at [email protected]. He is on Twitter at @mohitkopinion. 

MILWAUKEE — Taking the stage at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Tuesday were a handful of anti-LGBTQ GOP Senate candidates whose remarks centered largely around immigration.

“Biden, with his border czar Vice President Harris, opened our Southern border allowing criminals and terrorists to enter our country,” said Eric Hovde, a real estate and banking tycoon who will face off against U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) in November.

Like the other speakers, Hovde sought to link President Joe Biden’s immigration policies to the scourge of fentanyl “killing over 100,000 Americans every year” while his own campaign has been marred by accusations of transphobia.

The Human Rights Campaign, for instance, notes that Hovde once said that being transgender is “insanity.”

Appearing on a right-wing talk radio show earlier this year, Hovde said about Baldwin, “She actually earmarked, in the last budget, $400,000 for a transgender-affirming clinic that doesn’t even tell parents that they’re doing that, with their own kids.”

Baldwin’s office said the funds could not be used for that program and instead would go entirely to cover counseling and to provide a social worker for kids experiencing homelessness. 

Additionally, former President Donald Trump’s administration gave $350,000 to the same clinic.

Baldwin became the first openly gay member to serve in the Senate in 2012, and she is considered a trailblazer as one of the country’s first out elected leaders dating back to her time in the Wisconsin General Assembly in the 1990s.

“The American dream that I live is under attack with Joe Biden and his enablers in the Senate, like Sherrod Brown who encouraged millions of illegals to invade America,” said Bernie Moreno, a GOP candidate who is challenging the senior senator from Ohio.

(The state’s junior senator, JD Vance, was tapped by Trump to join the 2024 GOP ticket.)

“Joe Biden’s border czar Kamala Harris and a Democrat Senate have put the welfare of illegals ahead of our own citizens,” said Moreno.

LGBTQ issues have loomed large in his race, too.

Leading up to the 2024 Republican primary election, the Associated Press reported that an account linked to Moreno’s email was set up on Adult FriendFinder seeking “men for 1-on-1 sex,” though the candidate’s lawyer said a former intern claimed credit for the “aborted prank.”

Moreno’s companies sponsored Cleveland and Akron’s hosting of the 2014 Gay Games and were on record in support of an LGBTQ-inclusive non-discrimination law in 2020. The businessman also shared that his eldest son is gay during an interview in 2016.

However, the AP notes, “he began to distance himself from his past activism, professing to be unfamiliar with the anti-discrimination legislation” during his first Senate run in 2021, and “during his current Senate campaign, Moreno has accused advocates for LGBTQ rights of advancing a “radical” agenda of “indoctrination.”

“I have never seen anything like the Biden-Harris open border policy,” said Mike Rogers, who is running for the Senate seat that will be vacated by the retirement of U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.).

“They are rolling out the red carpet for violent gangs, fentanyl, Chinese spies, [and] individuals on the terrorist watch list,” he said.

In 2014, Equality Alabama and the Alabama Association of Realtors accused Rogers, who then represented Michigan’s 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, of making homophobic comments.

Equality Alabama Chairman Ben Cooper wrote in an open letter to the congressman, “when you marginalize our community, we will not be silent.”

“You allegedly joked about how nice it was to be called ‘Honey’ and ‘Sweetie’ by a woman at an Alabama restaurant rather than a D.C. men’s room,” Cooper wrote. “And you went on to mock our nation’s capital as a ‘cross between Detroit and San Francisco’ — an obvious reference to Detroit’s racial makeup and San Francisco’s vibrant gay culture. Comments like these are racist, homophobic, and hurtful, and they will not be tolerated.”

Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1955 on Monday, banning forced outings in California schools after facing fierce opposition.

The signature comes after Newsom faced pressure to sign, leaving many to question his stance on LGBTQ issues after vetoing a bill that would have considered parents’ acceptance of a child’s identity or orientation in legal custody battles.

The bill, proposed by Assemblymember Chris Ward (D-San Diego) earlier this year, bans schools from creating or enacting policies that would out students to their parents about their gender, pronouns, name change, or sexual orientation.

“This comes from a growing national attack on LGBTQ+ people and in particular transgender individuals, with several California school districts and other states enacting policies that explicitly compel teachers to tell parents that their child identifies as transgender,” said Ward during a hearing last month.

“Forced outing policies harm everyone: Parents, families, and school staff by unnecessarily compelling the staff to involve themselves in family matters and removing the opportunity for families to build trust and have conversations on their own terms.”

The introduction of the bill follows a string of policies requiring counselors, administrators, teachers, school staff, and anyone else at the school to notify parents about their child’s transition or change of pronouns.

AB 1955 supports the Support Academic Futures and Educators for Today’s Youth Act (SAFETY Act) in preventing schools from enforcing or enacting forced outing policies.

“As a nonbinary educator working at a middle school, I definitely feel relieved to have some solid protection at the state level, and I feel empowered to continue advocating for my LGBTQ+ students,” said Amanda Estrada, a middle school teacher at Los Nietos Unified School District.

Lawmakers were discordant last month at a hearing that erupted in emotions over the issue. Following the hearing, legislators sent the bill to Newsom to stop these policies against LGBTQ students, families, and educators who felt passionately about the issue.

Last summer, Chino Valley Unified School District began enforcing the policy notifying parents of any requests “to change any information contained in a student’s official or unofficial records.” The policy was later blocked in court, sparking a civil rights lawsuit from California, bringing in Attorney General Rob Bonta to advocate against the policy.

Earlier this year, the school district revamped the policy, leaving out terms like gender, biological sex, and bathrooms but continues to push for outing students based on any changes they may request.

Existing law regarding the polarizing issue requires the State Department of Education to develop school-based resources and update previous resources that aim to support LGBTQ students. The new law now requires the State Department of Education to develop community-based resources for LGBTQ students and their families as well.

Existing law also prohibits discrimination against students participating in any program or activity conducted that receives or benefits from state-level funding. The new law will now include “any governing body or body of those educational entities from enacting or enforcing policy, rule, or administrative regulation that requires an employee or a contractor to disclose any information related to a pupil’s consent unless otherwise required by law.”

The law also states that students should feel “safe, supported, and affirmed for who they are at school.” This requires allowing them to choose when and how they want to make their new identities or orientation public and making resources available for them and their families.

This legislative push for laws and policies that protect LGBTQ youth will continue to face opposition as transition and gender identity continues to be a heavily polarizing and political issue among families.

The proposed bill cites research by the Trevor Project, stating that affirming school environments significantly lower the odds of transgender and LGBTQ youth attempting suicide.

Further findings also suggest that educators often face harassment and retaliation attempts because of their lawful efforts to uphold student privacy and protect them from discrimination.

“Over the past couple of years, I started to worry more about the creep of homophobic and transphobic rhetoric across the state, mostly through small districts like mine,” said Estrada. “Now that we have this law in place, I’ve got some peace of mind, and hopefully going forward, my students will too.”