It’s still incredibly hard to be a lesbian

The rainbow festival scene is finally out in full force. Something about the calendar hitting June feels like a gay stat-boost. (Well, maybe not for the Christian Walkers and the Caitlyn Jenners of the world, but certainly for the rest of us!) Grab your sunscreen, your three-inch inseam shorts, and your almost-ironic handfan; it’s time to dance! This is the weekly bop roundup.As if queer girl group Muna recording for the Fire Island soundtrack weren’t a slay enough concept, they decided to make their entry a throwback cover of seminal classic “Sometimes” by Britney Spears.

NFL team have stood up to Twitter trolls who objected to the Patriots’ stadium displaying an electronic version of the rainbow flag for Pride Month.The team Wednesday tweeted a photo of the display at Gillette Stadium near Boston, and it was met with some hateful comments. Commenters wondered if the Patriots would hold a “straight month,” said the team should “stick to football,” and reported they were renouncing their fandom. Some got even worse.

Views expressed in The Advocate’s opinion articles are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the views of The Advocate or our parent company, Pride Media.“For the first time in the history of our country, a majority of our people believe that the next five years will be worse than the past five years. Two-thirds of our people do not even vote.

The San Francisco-based National Center for Lesbian Rights, along with 90 national and regional LGBTQ organizations, has issued an open letter calling "on policymakers at all levels and in all branches of government to do everything in their power to protect access to abortion care."The letter was issued in advance of the expected U.S. Supreme Court decision this month or in early July in the case out of Mississippi, Dobbs v.

Gemma Collins took a dramatic tumble on-stage at her own Platinum Jubilee bash over the Bank Holiday weekend.The former TOWIE star, 41, has a long-history with public falls.In 2017, Gemma went viral after falling down a stage platform at the Radio 1 Teen Awards and in 2019, she memorably face-planted the rink during her short-lived Dancing on Ice stint.True to form, the Diva Forever star took yet another tumble at a party thrown at her lavish Essex mansion on Thursday in celebration of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.Posting to Instagram on Friday (June 3), Gemma shared a short video of the hilariously awkward moment.The six-second clip begins with Gemma sauntering across her garden towards an erected stage platform.She can be seen wearing a fringed green dress at the party, with her long blonde hair worn in a wavy half-down style.While stepping onto the stage, Gemma appears to slip on something and falls to the ground as her legs give way beneath her.Proving to be a good sport, the reality mogul captioned the amusing video: "True GC style yesterday."Quick to comment on the funny clip were Gemma's celebrity pals.Former Love Island star Amy Hart wrote: "Hahahah love you!"Pop legend Matt Goss commented: "Hope you're ok."Meanwhile, her fellow TOWIE alums Jess Wright and Amy Childs replied with cry-face emojis.Gemma's fans were also quick to share their amusement.

June is celebrated as Pride Month by LGBTQ communities around the world.Thai drag queens attend 'Rainbow Runway for Equality' to kick off Pride Month at Central World Mall on June 1, 2022 in Bangkok, Thailand. June is celebrated as Pride Month by LGBTQ communities around the world.Gallery staff pose with a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by artist Andy Warhol at Phillips auction house on June 1, in London, England.

The United States' LGBTQ expert, Jessica Stern, recently embarked on her first two international trips to Asia and Europe to meet with government and civil society leaders, the State Department announced. President Joe Biden appointed Stern, a lesbian, last June as the second U.S. special envoy for international LGBTQ rights. She assumed her new job at the State Department September 27. She previously served as executive director of OutRight Action International, a globally-focused LGBTQ human rights nonprofit organization based in New York City.Stern is currently traveling to Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Sweden, in a trip that began May 31 and ends June 8. She previously went to Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, May 21-27.During her European trip, Stern is engaging with local human rights defenders and civil society representatives regarding the human rights of LGBTQI+ persons globally, with a specific focus on LGBTQI+ refugees from Ukraine, according to the State Department.Stern is scheduled to speak in a panel discussion "Equality, Diversity, Inclusion: Transforming Challenges into Opportunities" and engage with youth at an informal Q&A session at Baltic Pride's Proud Cities Summit in Lithuania, according to the announcement.

June 1 marks the beginning of Pride month, when parades pop up in cities around the world and rainbows start appearing in ads for liquor, banks, makeup and big-box department stores. These events and campaigns are visible shows of support for the L.G.B.T.Q. community.

This article is part of Overlooked, a series of obituaries about remarkable people whose deaths, beginning in 1851, went unreported in The Times. LONDON — As a determined pioneer of women’s rights, Maureen Colquhoun boldly drew attention to the nascent campaign for feminist change in Britain’s male-dominated Parliament in the 1970s. Once, for instance, she took a group of sex workers with her to a committee room at the Houses of Parliament in her ground-breaking fight to secure for them a new status that would protect them from prosecution.

Lynda Carter is showing her support for the LGBTQ community, proving to be one the most iconic queer legends on and off the screen. The actress took a moment to share some sweet words for her fans, just in time to celebrate pride month, revealing why she is an inspiration and a beacon of light, following her portrayal of Wonder Woman.However some online users had a different opinion and the actress was quick to respond.

QAnon congresswoman Lauren Boebert kicked off Pride season this year by blasting LGBTQ equality, accusing Democrats of being “groomers”, and getting into a fight with Randy Rainbow on Twitter. Now, on day three of Pride month 2022, she’s continuing her campaign of hate by rage-tweeting about queer kids.Related: Lauren Boebert kicks off Pride month by picking a fight with Randy Rainbow, fails spectacularly“The same Democrats who think 18-year-olds can serve in the military but are too immature to buy guns also want 16-year-olds to vote and 6-years-old to be able to identify as the opposite gender.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer“Framing Agnes,” a hybrid narrative and documentary feature film that explores trans lives and history, has sold North American distribution rights to Kino Lorber.Directed by Chase Joynt, the film closely and accurately depicts the journey of trans people past and present through reenactments of transcripts from a notable 1960s UCLA gender study. Based on a short by Joynt which premiered and nabbed awards at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, the project features a cast of trans performers and academics that includes Jules Gill-Peterson, Angelica Ross, Jen Richards, Zackary Drucker, Max Wolf Valerio, Silas Howard and Stephen Ira.The film will make its New York premiere at NewFest on June 5, followed by a theatrical release from Kino Lorber in December. Joynt and Morgan M.

ruling Thursday in the case of Lange v. Houston County.

gayest doll, she still ticked a lot of boxes. As The Cut noted, she wore a lot of argyle, was an athlete, and was notably fixated on a female teacher in her stories.

And just like that… the drama between former Sex And The City co-stars Sarah Jessica Parker and Kim Cattrall gets a little thornier. But is it all just a bunch of hocus pocus?The actors’ long-standing beef—the reason Samantha Jones is MIA from SATC sequel series And Just Like That…—was in the headlines again this week after Parker guested on The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast to speak her piece about all the gossip around her fizzled friendship with Cattrall.Downplaying what’s been depicted by the media as a “catfight,” Parker was quick to point out she’s not made any public comments disparaging Cattrall, saying, “I’ve never uttered fighting words in my life about anybody that I’ve worked with ever.

The Perfectionists was canceled after one season.

HB 1557, otherwise known as the “Don’t Say gay” bill. Now passed into law, it bans the discussion of LGBTQ topics in schools. It also limits discussion when “not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students”.For Jones, the issue was personal.

Jasmine Crockett

Wilson Chapman editorNetflix is giving a first taste of its upcoming vampire lesbian love story “First Kill.” The streamer released a trailer for the new young adult series, which is set to debut June 10.Based on a short story from horror writer V. E.

When a popular podcast host in Indonesia invited two men onto his show who were married to each other, they had a polite on-air conversation about gay life and identity. But in a Muslim-majority nation where gay rights are under threat, the show provoked an intense backlash from conservative fans and religious authorities.

Organizations are in the midst of planning activities for Pride Month in June, including the return of a Pink Saturday dance party in the Castro and an event in Golden Gate Park timed with the observance of Juneteenth.Longtime San Francisco Pride celebration enthusiasts will be glad to hear that an official Pink Saturday is returning to the Castro this year, after an absence of nearly six years. The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence stepped away from producing the event in 2015, after saying they could no longer guarantee the safety of visitors.

Heartstopper, then look no further.The show, based on the web comic by Alice Oseman, became one of the best queer shows ever through its authentic and wonderful representation of LGBTQ+ teens and has left many people hungry for more (myself included).From other comics to TV shows, films, and novels, this list has a bit of everything for everyone.For those looking for more gay graphic novel excellence, look no further than Check, Please! Cut from the same cloth, this Tumblr comic from Ngozi Ukazumade waves during its release, and its success lead to two physical novels that you can usually find right alongside Heartstopper.Check, Please! is the story of Eric Bittle, a gay skater who ends up getting on a college hockey team and falling for the captain.

Coronation Street favourite Kimberly-Hart Simpson dazzled in an elegant black gown on the red carpet at the Pride of Manchester Awards. The actress and seamstress, who is known for reworkingand upcycling charity shop bargains into stunning outfits, certainly didn't disappoint at the glittering ceremony on Tuesday night.

A post shared by Hey Qween (@heyqweentv) There’s a new reality TV competition due to hit screens this Friday.GoGo For The Gold comes from the makers of Hey Qween! The show, hosted by comedian and singer Jonny McGovern, features 12 go-go boys from around the country. They will be judged by a panel of “Gogo Gods”, as they compete for a $10k prize and the title of “America’s #1 Champion Gogo Superstar Star.”Related: Fubar had the hottest go-go dancers in LA. Let’s keep it that way.Going by the trailer, which dropped yesterday, the format looks pretty similar to RuPaul’s Drag Race, but with go-go dancers.

Disney is understood to have rebuffed a request from Saudi Arabian authorities to cut "LGBTQ references" from the latest film in the Marvel franchise.Before 'Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness 'can be shown in cinemas in the ultraconservative Kingdom, a scene of "barely 12 seconds" would need to be excised, the country's head of film classification Nawaf al-Sabhan told AFP.The scene in question sees lesbian superheroine America Chavez refer to her "two moms". "It's just LGBTQ references," Al-Sabhan said.

EastEnders icon Pat Butcher for 25 years before hanging up her earrings.The actress, who turns 80 today (May 11), last appeared in the BBC soap for a few minutes in an episode back in 2016.Pat went on to become one of the soap's most iconic and longest-serving characters, first appearing in June 1986 until the character was killed off in January 2012.She returned to the show as ghost four years later for Barbara Windsor's final scenes as Peggy Mitchell.Since leaving Albert Square, Pam has made a number of television appearances and has done a lot of charity. As the soap legend celebrates her milestone birthday, Daily Star has taken a look inside Pam's life.Pam has worked extensively on the stage, in films and on television for almost 50 years.Shortly after her birth in 1942.

Léa Seydoux delved into her 'insane' filming experiences on her controversial erotic film Blue Is The Warmest Color in a newHollywood Reporterprofile published Tuesday.The acclaimed 36-year-old French actress how she and her costarAdèle Exarchopoulos were forced to spend 10 days filming 100 takes of what would become a seven-minute lesbian sex scene in the final film.Seydoux said that even an intimacy coordinator — a now-standard position in the wake of the #MeToo movement — couldn't have helped make the production more comfortable because its directorAbdellatif Kechiche was 'just nuts.' Difficult experience: Léa Seydoux, 36, opened up to the Hollywood Reporter about spending 10 days filming a seven-minute sex scene with 100 takes on 2013's Blue Is The Warmest Color; seen March 10 in ParisBlue Is The Warmest Color was a magnet for controversy from its premiere at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, where the festival jury broke precedent to award its highest honor, the Palme d'Or to Seydoux, Exarchopoulos andKechiche, instead of just the director, as it customary.Several critics and viewers accused the film of objectifying and overly sexualizing its stars with its lengthy and sex scenes, which included copious full-frontal nudity, though it was mostly acclaimed by reviewers. After it's premiere, crew members accused Kechiche of harassing behavior and claimed their were labor violations on the production, and both lead actresses said they would not work with the director again.In her new profile, Seydoux seemed to balance her distaste for the filming process with how the movie's acclaim elevated her career.'It took a year of my life and I gave everything for that film.

EASTENDERS' first lesbian couple Binnie and Della look completely different 27 years after their groundbreaking storyline. Played by actors Sophie Langham and Michelle Joseph, they were introduced to fans in 1994 in the soap's first all-female romance.

, The Twisted Soul Cookbook: Modern Soul Food with Global Flavors, came out in 2021 and garnered great reviews. And the Atlanta Food and Wine Festival declared her Chef of the Year.“The release of my first cookbook was huge, both personally and professionally,” VanTrece says. “Everything that went into it has paid off because it has been a tremendous success.”That success was anything but foreordained.

Pope Francis has stated that the most important thing LGBTQ+ people should know about God is that “he does not disown any of his children.”

LONDON: I keep on being told that it’s time I took crypto seriously. Crypto, goes the refrain, has “gone mainstream” – from BlackRock to UBS, every major investor is at the very least “exploring” it these days, while the big firms have tens of millions of retail investors each.

HOMEWOOD, Ala. — Since a brand-new charter school opened its doors in a suburb of Birmingham, Ala., last fall, there have been a few disturbances along the periphery. Some cars slowly passed by, with indecipherable shouts from rolled-down windows.

Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) was fairly slow in introducing LGBTQ+ characters —though seeing as even the most chaste representations of queer love get the films banned in some countries, you can see why they would be reticent.Doctor Strange and The Multiverse of Madness actually breaks the record for the most lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and/or queer characters in an MCU property with three. However, seeing as two of them do not talk, and one never mentions their sexuality out loud, clearly there is still some work to be done when it comes to LGBTQ+ representation.The MCU is of course fairly sexless in general, but any mentions of queer sexualities have tended to be very brief, the better to allow Disney to easily cut out these scenes in more homophobic markets.

Metro.co.uk: ‘Fate always brings you back. I’m lucky he’s very supportive because I have got such a busy career and you need a man with confidence really, that can understand my life. ‘It is a lot sometimes, I’m not gonna lie but I have to juggle that home balance, you know, because when you’re a single girl you can just get up and go.

Jeopardy!, but now it has come to an end.Roach, a lesbian and one of several stellar out contestants the show has had recently, saw her winning streak end in the episode that aired Friday. She lost by a single dollar to challenger Danielle Maurer.Maurer, a digital marketing manager from Peachtree Corners, Ga., finished in first place with $15,600 while Roach, a tutor from Toronto, came in second with $15,599.Roach was in the lead with $19,200 heading into Final Jeopardy!, wagered $3,601, and did not respond correctly, while Maurer, who had $11,400 going into the round, wagered $4,200 and did provide the correct response.The category was USA, and the clue was “These two mayors gave their names to a facility built on the site of an old racetrack owned by Coca-Cola magnate Asa Candler.” The correct response was “Who are William Hartsfield and Maynard Jackson?” Both were mayors of Atlanta, and the facility is Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.But Roach’s run on Jeopardy! was a great one.

Just Like Us, people across the UK have postponed coming out due to ‘harmful’ stereotypes, with 68% of lesbians delaying coming out due to stereotypes about being ‘man-hating’, ‘unattractive’ and even ‘anti-trans’.But why is it so hard for lesbians to come out as lesbians? What exactly is wrong with the L word? Why was I so scared of it, and why nearly 10 years after I finally used the word to proudly describe myself, are so many people still scared to use it?Over the last few months, I’ve been an assistant producer on the Channel 4 documentary ‘Where Have All The Lesbians Gone?’ where we tried to answer these questions.

Jack Harlow is calling out the music industry for its attitude towards Lil Nas X.

We will not sugarcoat this: the leak this week of a Supreme Court majority opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, a ruling that would eliminate the constitutional right to abortion, is extremely alarming. 

A new view of New York City from The Summit at One Vanderbilt. (Photo by Heather Cassell)

CDC, one in four LGBTQ+ teens attempted suicide in the first half of 2021.Whether your child is queer, straight, cis or trans, all moms should be outraged at anyone, especially elected leaders, who stoop so low as to use children as cudgels for their own political gain.As these anti-LGBTQ+ politicians seek to normalize legislation that targets our kids' rights and safety, we cannot leave it up to the moms of queer and trans youth alone to fight back. Whether you are a part of the LGBTQ+ community or not, all moms have a stake in keeping childhood off-limits from nefarious politicking.

Bridgerton star Golda Rosheuvel has revealed that she was urged to stay in the closet by a lesbian director at the beginning of her career, who felt her being openly gay would cause irreparable damage.The Dune star said that she was told in no uncertain terms that it would ‘ruin your career as an actor’.The actress, who plays Queen Charlotte in the hit Netflix series, said the advice, given to her as it was by a fellow member of the LGBTQ community, ‘blew my mind’.‘We were talking about being out and proud and representation and whether I should say I was gay in interviews,” she recalled.‘It was an absolute no: “You absolutely shouldn’t do that. It could or it would ruin your career as an actor.”’The 52-year-old was baffled by the advice.Speaking to the Just For Variety podcast, she added: ‘I would rather lose a job than not be true to who I am.

The White House announced Thursday that Karine Jean-Pierre has been promoted to be assistant to the president and White House press secretary, becoming both the first Black and lesbian person in that position.Jean-Pierre will replace current press secretary Jen Psaki, who will depart from the White House May 13."I am proud to announce that Karine Jean-Pierre will serve as the next White House press secretary, President Joe Biden said in the statement released May 5."Karine not only brings the experience, talent and integrity needed for this difficult job, but she will continue to lead the way in communicating about the work of the Biden-Harris Administration on behalf of the American people," Biden stated. "Jill and I have known and respected Karine a long time and she will be a strong voice speaking for me and this administration."Jen Psaki has set the standard for returning decency, respect and decorum to the White House Briefing Room.

Rick Earl Stokes, famously "the other gay candidate" who ran against Harvey Milk for San Francisco supervisor in 1977, died May 3. He was 87.Mr. Stokes died in San Francisco after a brief battle with congestive heart failure, according to an obituary prepared by Curtis Jensen, director of marketing and graphics for Steamworks, the gay bathhouse location in Berkeley of which Mr.

Related: How strongly does President Biden support LGBTQ rights? We asked the man who knows best.During the 2020 presidential campaign, Jean-Pierre served as Kamala Harris’s chief of staff, making her the first Black person to serve as chief of staff to a vice-presidential candidate and one of the highest-ranking LGBTQ people in the Biden/Harris campaign.She currently serves as Deputy Press Secretary under Jen Psaki. Jean-Pierre will replace Psaki, who had announced she would vacate the role after a year in the role for a job with MSNBC.

What If?—it also features a stunning cast of fresh talent, from William Gao’s heartbreakingly earnest portrayal of straight, lonely teen Tao Xu to Corinna Brown’s take on out-teen lesbian Tara Jones. But at the center of it all are Joe Locke and Kit Connor as the will they-won’t they (they will) couple Charlie and Nick. When Charlie, fresh off of a romantic disappointment with a Rugby player, starts falling for Nick, he’s convinced that his love interest is straight.

The Supreme Court of South Korea has tossed out the military court conviction of two gay soldiers for having consensual sex outside of military facilities.The court's panel of 13 justices ruled April 21 the military's case stretched the country's military sodomy law and sent the case back to the High Court for Armed Forces.Chief Justice Kim Myeong-su said the justices concluded that the widely criticized 1962 Military Criminal Act's Article 92-6 law should not be applied to consensual sex between male service members outside of military facilities during off-duty hours, reported the Associated Press.The law prohibits members of the military from engaging in same-sex conduct in the country's predominantly male military and carries a two-year prison sentence.Homosexuality is decriminalized in South Korea for civilians.The case wasn't the first time the high court had received complaints about the law.

Anti-LGBTQ Rep. Madison Cawthorn has been trending all day on Twitter after a leaked video showing him naked, in bed, with his male cousin began circulating online.Cawthorn appears to be reenacting some sort of rape fantasy by thrusting his groin in the cousin’s face while another person films the encounter encouraging him to “Stick it in his face!”The disturbing video was first shared by American Muckrakers PAC, a political group that runs the Fire Madison Cawthorn website.Related: Madison Cawthorn groped by male staffer in leaked video and the Internet has a lot to sayNow, openly gay Democratic Party power player Jon Cooper, co-founder of the Democratic Coalition, has posed an interesting question about the whole thing to his nearly 1 million Twitter followers.“Is anyone else wondering who released yesterday’s video of Madison Cawthorn humping his cousin?” Cooper tweeted.

Just Like Us found 68% of those surveyed feared they would be perceived as ‘man-hating’, ‘over-sexualised’ or ‘anti-trans’.Around 30% feared being viewed as ‘cringey or awkward’ while 25% worried they would be viewed as ‘wrong’.Some responders worried they would be seen as ‘taboo’, ‘masculine or butch’ or ‘unattractive’.And over-sexualisation of lesbians was found to be the biggest barrier for young lesbians age 18 to 24 (36%).Overall, one in 20 lesbians delayed coming out because they could be seen as ‘anti-trans’. This reason was cited by many in the 25-34 age category.One respondent, Niamh, explained coming out to both schoolmates and family was ’embarrassing’ at the time.She added: ‘At school it was already a rumour, and I knew people would gossip about it, and they did.