June always fills my heart with joy and wonder because of the very real achievements of LGBTQIA activists and the rest of us who simply live our lives as out gay people. I’m celebrating hard-won victories this month. For instance, when Walter and I decided to get married, we had Read more…
Dear Friends, The Fourth of July—following closely on Pride Month—always reminds me how fragile our liberties are. And never have I had a keener sense of our fragilities then I do today. But it seems to me that the Constitution is still reasonably intact, and that wisdom and justice still Read more…
Dear Friends, You haven’t heard from me lately because in mid-April, when I was rushing across Eighth Avenue to meet a cousin for an early supper after her matinee, I took a spill and managed to bust my right shoulder and right kneecap. The shoulder surgery that followed was but Read more…
Dear Friends, With all the horrible things going on in the world, I must say that what I find most disturbing are the attempts by state legislators (with help from the Supreme Court?) to strip LGBTQ citizens of their civil rights. Of course, some of these rights were mere glimmers Read more…
Dear Friends, OutRight has launched a fundraising campaign to channel funds to LGBTIQ groups in Ukraine for shelter and support in nearby countries. 100% of the funds raised for OutRight’s Ukraine fund will go to local organizations in Ukraine or neighboring countries that are supporting queer & trans people impacted Read more…
Dear Friends, Like the rest of us, I’ve been swept up in the drama unfolding in Eastern Europe this week. Will he or won’t he? Can he take down the democratically elected government of Ukraine, or will he find himself back on his heels? Will the world rise up against Read more…
Dear Friends, With all the hatred swirling around us—homophobia, anti-Semitism, racism, and other forms of bigotry—we need all the information we can get to keep ourselves safe. The current state of mainstream public media sources adds to the confusion and fear. All of that came to mind this week when Read more…
Dear Reader, Book launches are always exciting. As I celebrate the release of Volume 2 of my Tolerance Trilogy, IT’S THEIR WAY, I wanted to offer readers a special value. The print editions are available now—both paperback and hardcover—at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. So if you purchase a print Read more…
Dear Reader It has been such a different Pride month, and yet we’ve all found not just opportunities to celebrate our own journey—our own victories and defeats—but also those of our siblings who share marginalized status in this great nation we call home. The unity, the activism, the sacrifice is Read more…
Dear Reader, The Supreme Court is full of surprises. Just when we thought that the rights of all minorities were likely to be gutted—in time—the court released a 6-3 decision to affirm the rights of all lgbtq workers to be protected from discrimination and firing by employers, based on Title Read more…