The Rainbow Kite Festival was held in Colombo by the LGBTQ+ community on June 24, 2023. Screenshot from YouTube video by Newsfirst Sri Lanka. Fair use. The first LGBTQ+ Pride event was held in Sri Lanka privately in 2005 and attended by around 300 people. Over the past decade, Sri Lanka has witnessed a growing movement for LGBTQ+ rights. The community supported by the non-profit organisation Equal Ground started to hold public Pride events in annual intervals and they received good responses despite some resistance. In last year's event, certain streets of the capital Colombo were painted in v…

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Los Angeles (AFP) – A 23-year-old who shot five people dead at an LGBTQ club in the US state of Colorado last year pleaded guilty on Monday and will face life in prison. Anderson Lee Aldrich, who identifies as non-binary, was facing more than 300 criminal counts for the November 19, 2022 rampage in Colorado Springs. Aldrich was charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, carrying out bias-motivated crimes and other offenses. The murder charges carry a life sentence in prison without the possibility of parole. The bearded and heavy-set Aldrich appeared in an El Paso County court on Mond…

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Vice-President Kamala Harris takes a stand against the controversial “Don't Say Gay” law in Florida and advocates for LGBTQ+ rights. In an exclusive interview with Advocate magazine, Vice-President Kamala Harris expressed her strong opposition to Florida's “Don't Say Gay” law, describing its consequences as “outrageous.” The law, known as the Parental Rights in Education law, restricts teachers' ability to discuss sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms.

The Impact of the Law

“You look in Florida, [the] ‘don't say gay' bill and what this has meant for LGBTQ teachers who are now afraid,” Harris said in the interview with Advocate​.

She provided an illustrative example of the fear that educators are experiencing: “I'm looking at some 20-something-year-old teacher in Florida who has dedicated [themselves] to one of the most noble professions, which is teaching our children their God-given capacity,” she said. “And that teacher who is in a loving relationship or marriage is afraid to put up a photograph of their family for fear that if the student in their classroom asks, ‘Who is that?' [that] it will raise a conversation about a same-sex relationship, and they could lose their job. Outrageous!”​.

Nationwide Concern

Harris also addressed the broader issue of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation across the U.S. “I hate bullies,” Harris said, adding, “I can't stand it when so-called powerful people intentionally try to strike fear in innocent people,”​.

She emphasized the importance of action in the face of these challenges: “We just have to make sure that this moment is motivating people to act and not motivating people to be afraid,” Harris stated​​.

United for Equality

In addition to discussing the “Don't Say Gay” law, Harris praised President Joe Biden for his commitment to LGBTQ+ rights. She highlighted the Respect for Marriage Act, signed into law by Biden in December 2022, which protects the rights of Americans to same-sex and interracial marriages.

Harris also urged Congress to pass the Equality Act to guarantee every LGBTQI+ American the right to live freely and openly. The Equality Act was recently reintroduced in Congress and is a crucial piece of legislation for the LGBTQ+ community.

Final Thoughts

Vice-President Harris's message is clear: Stand up against those who attempt to marginalize and intimidate others based on their identity. She called for unity and action to protect the rights and dignity of all individuals, particularly those in the LGBTQ+ community.

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A viral video has been circulating online that shows an individual in a green Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles costume jumping into the crowd and not getting caught by the audience. Some Twitter users believed the individual to be Sam Smith diving off the stage at their concert in Seattle, causing the pop singer to trend on the social media platform. Others body-shamed the person involved even after the rumor was debunked when a clip from a different angle was shared, revealing that it was not Smith. One fan explained that the video was of a man leaping into a Vanilla Ice crowd in Oregon that same…

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By Sachin Ravikumar GLASTONBURY, England (Reuters) -Elton John enthralled a massive Glastonbury crowd on Sunday night in possibly his last show in Britain, delighting loyal fans but disappointing others who had hoped for star guest appearances. The flamboyant British singer's performance followed two sun-drenched days at the famous music festival in southwest England, where tens of thousands of fans heard Guns N' Roses, the Arctic Monkeys, the Foo Fighters, Lizzo, Lewis Capaldi and others. “Oh wow. I never thought I'd ever play Glastonbury. And here I am,” John, who wore a glittery golden jack…

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Hello, hello, hello! Welcome to another week of news and updates from the Drag Race universe. This week, our top five All Stars became a top four with a design challenge that paid tribute to former All Star champions. We also welcomed a new set of queens into the international Drag Race family with the premiere of Drag Race Mexico. In addition, we have Ru-caps of last week’s acting challenge and Miss [insert title here] runway looks from some of your favorite Drag Race alums. We’ve also got new music from some OG queens (including the first to ever wear the crown) and a new Beatdown from Willa…

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Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong has faced some serious backlash after he recently commented about the discussion of “fairness” in sports when it comes to trans athletes competing in women's competitions, RadarOnline.com has learned. Armstrong tweeted, “Have we really come to a time and place where spirited debate is not only frowned upon, but feared? Where people's greatest concern is being fired, shamed or cancelled? As someone all too familiar with this phenomenon, I feel I'm uniquely positioned to have these conversations.” “Of all the controversial and polarizing subjects out there today…

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This article was originally published on Weedmaps and appears here with permission. Just like the LGBTQIA+ community, Pride contains multitudes, and cannathusiasm is definitely among them. Cannabis and Pride go way back, woven beside each other in a counterculture tapestry generations in the making. Now, the future of America is queer, proud, and stoned to the absolute bone. But big gay stoner or not, celebrating queer canna-culture is a way all cannasuiers can express allyship this month. Pride is celebration, but it’s foremost a protest. Maintain that energy by skipping the corporate rainbow…

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Mark Brandt, 26, and Wes Conkling, 30, got up at 7 a.m. CT to make it to Chicago from Aurora for Sunday’s Pride Parade. They sat on a corner waiting for the procession to start, holding hands. ”I love the oneness of it all,” said Brandt. “I come from a family that’s pretty homophobic, if I’m being honest. I haven’t always been able to be open with myself and who I am.” Brandt and Conkling said they are in a “throuple” but the third member of their relationship wasn’t there. Conkling met Brandt’s boyfriend on Tinder, and the three of them have been together since February. Conkling donned rainb…

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Mayor Matt Diaz of Baker City, Oregon, is facing backlash from citizens after comparing those who support LGBTQ+ pride to Nazis, Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) reports. The local leader recently shared Facebook post featuring “an image of four Pride flags positioned to look like a swastika,” along with the caption: “When you join four pride flags you become ultra pride.” Per OPB, Diaz's “post came only a few days before Baker City's third annual Pride Walk, an event meant to celebrate the local LGBTQ+ community,” which is led “by Baker County Safe Communities Coalition and New Directions Nor…

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Madonna has hailed her twin daughters “Kweens” at their elementary school graduation. The Queen of Pop, 64, marked 10-year-old Stella's and Estere's big day by sharing a photo of the pair on her Instagram stories showing them grinning and holding two bouquets of flowers. Madonna captioned the image of her girls wearing blue caps and gowns: “2 Kweens!!!! Happy Graduation!” Stella and Estere are the ‘Material Girl' singer's youngest children, who she adopted from Malawi six years ago. She also has daughters Lourdes, 26, and Chifundo, 17, and sons Rocco, 22, and 17-year-old David. Madonna adopted…

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Kesha and Dr. Luke have settled their long-running legal battle and released a joint statement about resolving the latter's defamation lawsuit. “Only God knows what happened that night,” Kesha's statement reads. “As I have always said, I cannot recount everything that happened. I am looking forward to closing the door on this chapter of my life and beginning a new one. I wish nothing but peace to all parties involved.” Luke adds, “While I appreciate Kesha again acknowledging that she cannot recount what happened that night in 2005, I am absolutely certain that nothing happened. I never drugged…

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By Jonathan Allen and Hannah Beier DOYLESTOWN, Pennsylvania (Reuters) – On May 12, the library coordinator for Pennsylvania's Central Bucks School District sent an email to colleagues that some conservative parents and Christian advocacy groups had long prayed to see. The email instructed school library staff to remove all copies of two books within 24 hours: “Gender Queer”, a graphic memoir by Maia Kobabe that includes cartoons of sexual encounters; and “This Book is Gay” by Juno Dawson, a guidebook with illustrations intended for LGBT students who feel overlooked by standard sex education cu…

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(Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a number of important rulings during its current term that began last October and is expected to decide its remaining cases by the end of June including disputes involving race-conscious college admissions practices, President Joe Biden's student debt forgiveness plan and LGBT rights.

Here is a look at some of the rulings issued by the court this term.

VOTING RIGHTS

The justices on June 8 handed a major victory to Black voters who challenged a Republican-drawn electoral map in Alabama, finding the state violated a landmark law prohibiting racial discrimination in voting and paving the way for a second U.S. House of Representatives district with a Black majority or close to it. The court elected not to further roll back protections contained in the Voting Rights Act as it had done in two major rulings in the past decade.

ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION

The court on May 25 further limited the regulatory reach of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, embracing a stringent new test for declaring wetlands protected under a landmark federal anti-pollution law in a ruling favoring an Idaho couple who challenged the EPA. The new test could leave wide swathes of sensitive wetlands and tributaries unprotected by the Clean Water Act, the landmark 1972 anti-pollution law.

IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT

The justices on June 23 gave the Biden administration the green light to move ahead with guidelines shifting immigration enforcement toward countering public safety threats, handing the Democratic president a victory in a legal battle with Texas and Louisiana. The guidelines reflected Biden's recalibration of U.S. immigration policy after the hardline approach taken by his Republican predecessor Donald Trump.

ENCOURAGING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

A federal law that makes it a crime for a person to encourage illegal immigration does not violate constitutional free speech protections, the court ruled on June 23, upholding the decades-old measure defended by the Biden administration. A lower court had ruled that the law was overly broad because it may criminalize speech protected by the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.

PROTECTIONS FOR INTERNET COMPANIES

The court on May 18 left legal protections for internet and social media companies unscathed and refused to clear a path for victims of attacks by militant groups to sue these businesses under an anti-terrorism law. In both cases, families of people killed by Islamist gunmen overseas had sued to try to hold internet companies liable because of the presence of militant groups on their platforms or for recommending their content.

NATIVE AMERICAN ADOPTION

The justices on June 15 upheld decades-old federal requirements that give preferences to Native Americans and tribal members in the adoption or foster care placements of Native American children. The court found that the plaintiffs, including the state of Texas, did not have legal standing to challenge parts of the law they claimed were racially biased against non-Native Americans.

LABOR UNIONS

The justices on June 1 made it easier for employers to sue over strikes that cause property destruction – handing another setback to organized labor – in a ruling siding with a concrete business in Washington state that sued the union representing its truck drivers after a work stoppage.

FEDERAL AGENCY POWER

The court on April 14 made it easier to challenge the regulatory power of federal agencies in rulings backing Axon Enterprise Inc's bid to sue the Federal Trade Commission and a Texas accountant's gripe with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

CORRUPTION PROSECUTIONS

The court on May 11 further restricted the ability of federal prosecutors to pursue corruption cases, overturning the bribery conviction of Joseph Percoco, an ex-aide to Democratic former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, and former construction company executive Louis Ciminelli.

ANDY WARHOL ARTWORK

Andy Warhol's estate lost its copyright fight with celebrity photographer Lynn Goldsmith when the court on May 18 faulted the famed pop artist's use of her photo of Prince in a silkscreen series depicting the charismatic rock star.

INTERSTATE COMMERCE

The justices preserved a California law banning the sale of pork in America's most-populous state from pigs kept in tightly confined spaces in a May 11 ruling that rejected an industry challenge.

PROPERTY TAXES

The court on May 25 curbed state and local governments from seizing and selling the homes of people with unpaid property taxes and keeping the proceeds beyond the amount owed, deeming the practice unconstitutional in a ruling in favor of a 94-year-old woman who battled tax authorities in Minnesota.

(Compiled by Andrew Chung and John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham)

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By Danni Button Oakland, California resident Roscoe Rike has been picking up his prescriptions from the Walgreens on Telegraph Avenue for the last three years — including his HRT medication, short for “hormone replacement therapy,” usually taken by transgender men. So when a pharmacist he didn't recognize asked him what the medication was for, he said, in a now-deleted Reddit post, a red flag went up in his mind. “I told him I was pretty sure that it wasn't any of his business,” Rike relayed to the local news network KRON. He says that the pharmacist responded, saying he would be unable to gi…

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Yosemite National Park became the latest target of boycott threats after hosting a Pride parade for park staff. Here's what happened. Popular drag queen and environmentalist Pattie Gonia posted a TikTok showing a Pride parade for park staff on June 8 that quickly went viral. “Hello, in case you didn't know, gay people are literally taking over the National Park System,” they say in the video, which shows participants hiking through the park with pride flags and attire. Pattie Gonia then describes how they helped throw Pride at Yosemite for the third year in a row. “As you can see, there are li…

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ORLANDO, Fla. — A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked a Florida law that he says is aimed at limiting the rights of drag performers. U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell of Orlando wrote in his order that “this statute is specifically designed to suppress the speech of drag queen performers.” “In the words of the bill's sponsor in the House, State Representative Randy Fine: “ … HB 1423 … will protect our children by ending the gateway propaganda to this evil — ‘Drag Queen Story Time,'” Presnell's ruling said. Fine, a Republican from Brevard County, declined to comment. The court ba…

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — An unofficial but near-complete print archive of a pioneering LGBT newspaper from Sacramento is spread between two libraries in the region. The paper, Mom Guess What was founded Nov. 1, 1978 by Linda Birner and published until around the end of 2009. Birner approached the Center for Sacramento History around late 2021 to donate some copies of her publication and other items, telling staff not long thereafter that file cabinets with voluminous copies of the paper had been taken and destroyed. The center followed up on her claim by seeking to rebuild the archive for Mom Gue…

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Sir Elton John is adamant he won't do another American residency. The 76-year-old singer won't give up performing completely when his three-year ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road' tour comes to an end this summer because he's interested in being based at one venue, but he's vowed when the time comes, he won't be in the US. He told Radio Times magazine: “I said when I announced the farewell tour that maybe I would do a residency like Kate Bush did at Hammersmith [in 2014]. But not in America. I will not do it in America. “But that's in the long term. I don't want to think about the stage – I've been …

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MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Hundreds of same-sex couples and transgender people in Mexico City celebrated weddings and the completion of administrative processes to change their gender on Friday, in a mass ceremony a day before the city's annual gay pride march. Some 120 couples met the requirements to get married under the slogan “Hand in hand, we march with pride,” the city government said in a statement. Marriage helps to regularize a couple's civil status and provides them with legal benefits. Keila Espinoza, a 38-year-old who married her partner Vaneza Garcia, said it was very emotional to th…

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Carly Rae Jepsen has always been attracted to “the quieter person in the room”. The 37-year-old singer has opened up about the inspiration behind her single ‘Shy Boy', which centres on her attraction to men whose secrets remain “hidden behind closed doors”. She told the BBC: “I've always been attracted to the quieter person in the room. “The one who has all the secrets that are hidden behind closed doors and, as you get to know them, they become more fascinating. Unlike, say, the loudest person at the party.” Carly has likened ‘Shy Boy' to some of her early pop hits. The ‘Call Me Maybe' hitmak…

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By Jeffrey Quiggle When country music legend Garth Brooks weighed in on the Anheuser-Busch (BUD) – Get Free Report turmoil, he was bound to get some reaction to his remarks. The beer brand has been the subject of controversy ever since it partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in a social media advertising campaign in early April. DON'T MISS: Garth Brooks Answers Bud Light Fallout With ‘Woke' Message Critics of transgender advocacy erupted in anger, staging a massive boycott of Bud Light. From a business perspective, the boycott has been successful, impacting its sales. In fact, …

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Natasha Lyonne thinks her fame and success is “tenuous”. The 44-year-old actress has enjoyed significant success during her career, starring in movies such as ‘The United States vs. Billie Holiday’ and the ‘American Pie’ franchise – but Natasha believes that her recent run of success remains very fragile. Speaking to The Independent, the actress explained: “I can no longer claim outsider status. I claimed it for so long, but reality is reality, you know … that’s over now. “I know how special all of this is, but having been on the other side of it, I also know how tenuous it is, too. “In the …

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Kim Petras goes on dates “every now and then” in order to “stay sane”. The 30-year-old singer insists she's happily single – but Kim still thinks it's good for her to go on dates from time to time. She told PEOPLE: “I try to find boys that like me and go on dates and all of that, but that is such a backseat priority for me right now. “I mean, I'm very happy, but I've got to go on a date every now and then to stay sane.” Kim is currently focused on her pop career and insists she's “never been this busy”. The singer became the first openly transgender solo artist to reach the number one spot in …

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Randy Rainbow has released his latest parody video, his third in as many weeks. “Donald in the John With Boxes” takes on President Trump's second set of federal indictments, this time for the classified documents.

He's “interviewed” Trump many times and has mastered the form  “welcoming” the former President as  “twice indicted Republican front-runner fresh off his latest arrest,” diving right in to the discovery of classified documents at Mar-A-Lago, with Trump of course claiming they were just “newspaper stories and magazine articles.”

Doesn't Take Much to Make Trump a Parody

Rainbow is ready with the incriminating tapes and “confronts” the ageing TV reality show star with his own taped boasts about  having classified documents.  “Look at me, I have classified documents, these are definitely not declassified, look at me, look at me, I'm a big boy, Daddy please love me.” 

It's All About the Lyrics

And then we're into the parody of “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds,” as always making it seem as if these were the original lyrics and those others were just hacks making mediocre personal versions.

“Picture his ass in a bright orange jumpsuit,

Bangin' on bars with a rusty tin cup.\

Thought he'd be cute and just take what he wanted, but looks like it's time to pay up.”

It's not all bathroom humor, but he is reading those documents like “old golf magazines” and is “just within reach of his diapers and Pepsi.”

Duller DeSantis

“Welcome to DeSantis!  is set to the tune of “Welcome to the 60s” from the musical Hairspray.

De Santis is introduced as  “the worst thing to happen to Disney since the ‘It's a Small World' ride and the most boring Governor Ron DeSantis.”

Rainbow asks if DeSantis has ever met a gay person before.

 “I deal better with regular people.”

Nicknames for Ron Desantis

 Rainbow lists many of the candidate's nicknames, including “Rhonda Sanctimonious,” “Meatball Ron,” “Dull-as-Dishwater DeSantis,” and “Trump Lite” and then counters with a clip of DeSantis incredibly saying “You can call me whatever you want, just as long as you also call me a winner.”

Right.

The lyrics nail it, focused on DeSantis' retro focus on a time that never existed but is pegged to around 70 years ago,  “Hey MAGA, y'all take note, he's the Trump alternate if he wants your vote,” and “Let's go retrogress to 1953, last call for all your bodily autonomy.”

Randy Rainbow for President

In a Third Video, Rainbow tosses his hat in the Ring… confiding that it's for the “likes” and to promote his tour. And why not?

“You don't need another breeder.

What you need's a solid leader who can lip-sync for his life.”

And tickets for his tour — October – February events at 

Tickets for the Randy Rainbow for President Tour   Use code presale code: RALLY.

DENVER, CO — October 11

PHOENIX, AZ — October 12

TUCSON, AZ — October 13

SAN DIEGO, CA — October 14

RIDGEFIELD, CT — October 19

WASHINGTON, DC — October 20

MEDFORD, MA — October 21

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ — October 27

STORRS, CT — October 28

TORONTO, ON — November 3

ANN ARBOR, MI — November 4

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — December 1

ATLANTA, GA — December 2

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL — December 3

DAYTON, OH — December 8

MILWAUKEE, WI — December 9

NEW YORK, NY — December 29

LOS ANGELES, CA — January 19

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — January 20

SANTA ROSA, CA — January 21

LAS VEGAS, NV— January 26

CHICAGO, IL — January 27

PORTLAND, OR — February 2

SEATTLE, WA — February 3

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