National
Cain ignites firestorm with remarks on gays
Surging in polls, pizza magnate says homosexuality a choice

Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain made headlines this week, after saying that homosexuality is a choice, just as a new poll showed him moving into a tie for second place for the GOP nomination.
Cain, former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, came under fire from LGBT advocates for indicating on Tuesday he believes people can choose their sexual orientation.
During an appearance on ABC’s “The View,” when asked by host Joy Behar whether he believes being gay is a choice, Cain replied, “Yes.”
“Well, you show me the science that it’s not and I’ll be persuaded,” Cain said. “Right now it’s my opinion against the opinions of others who feel differently. That’s just a difference of opinions.”
Cain’s remarks ignited a firestorm among many LGBT groups who called on the presidential hopeful — as well as other GOP candidates — to repudiate his remarks.
Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement that Cain’s remarks are “frankly, jaw-dropping and certainly unbecoming of a presidential hopeful.”
“Leading medical organizations, including the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association and the American Psychiatric Association, all speak with a loud and clear voice — implying that someone’s sexual orientation can be chosen or changed is dangerous,” Solmonese said.
Solmonese said HRC is eager to connect Cain with medical professionals at these association to guide him through the basic science he said he seeks.
Jack Drescher, a distinguished fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and a member of the DSM-5 Workgroup on sexual and gender identity disorders, said he’s willing to meet with Cain to talk about the medical aspects of the issue.
“Herman Cain’s opinion that being gay is a choice has no basis in current scientific thinking,” Drescher said. “Not only is homosexuality ‘not a choice,’ as most efforts to try and change a person’s sexual orientation fail, but some attempts to change can cause harm and damage to an individual’s well-being.”
LGBT groups representing conservative and Republican interests had different takes on Cain’s remarks.
R. Clarke Cooper, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans, also criticized Cain and said the organization would be happy to show him the science proving sexual orientation isn’t a choice.
“An individual’s orientation is no more a choice than the color of his skin or whether he is left-handed, and too many people have been hurt because of failed attempts to change the way they were born,” Cooper said.
But Chris Barron, chair of GOProud, defended Cain and said his remarks don’t reflect the candidate’s true position on LGBT issues.
“The attacks levied by the gay left and their allies at Log Cabin against Mr. Cain are despicable,” Cain said. “My partner and I have sat down with Herman Cain and talked with him about issues that are important to gay people, and I can tell you first hand that anyone or any organization that claims that Herman Cain is anti-gay is simply lying or doesn’t know the man at all.”
The attacks on Cain come as a new Washington Post/ABC News poll published Tuesday finds him gaining ground among the GOP candidates, with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney once again at the head of the pack.
Among responders who leaned Republican, Romney led the pack with 21 points and Cain was tied with Texas Gov. Rick Perry at 14 points. Among all registered voters, Romney led with 20 points while Cain and Perry both had 15 points.
Once the front-runner upon his entry into the race, Perry is now tied for second-place with Cain. The Washington Post reported Perry’s slide comes after “several uneven performances” in presidential debates and in response to renewed media emphasis on immigration policies in his state. In Texas, colleges allow the children of illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition rates.
Sean Theriault, a gay political scientist at the University of Texas, Austin, dismissed a reading of the poll as showing new strength for Romney.
Theriault noted Romney’s numbers hadn’t changed since earlier polling and the Massachusetts governor is only ahead now because of falling numbers for Perry.
“Perry is not doomed,” Theriault said. “Quite the contrary. A strong debate performance, a couple of good weeks of positive news and he’d be back on top. Romney’s numbers have been at 25 since the day he dropped out of the Republican primary in 2008. That’s a pretty strong ceiling effect.”
In related news, two high-profile Republicans who were thought to be possible entries in the presidential race officially announced they wouldn’t seek the nomination in 2012.
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the GOP vice-presidential nominee in 2008, announced in a letter to supporters on Wednesday that she wouldn’t seek the nomination for the White House in 2012.
“I believe that at this time I can be more effective in a decisive role to help elect other true public servants to office from the nation’s governors to congressional seats and the presidency,” Palin said.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie also announced this week that he wouldn’t join the pack of Republican candidates seeking to oust President Obama from the White House.
“Now is not my time,” said Christie at a news conference in Trenton, N.J., adding, “New Jersey, whether you like it or not, you’re stuck with me.”
Christie is reviled by many LGBT rights supporters for having pledged to veto any legislation that would legalize same-sex marriage in New Jersey.
But in January, Christie signed into law one of the nation’s strongest anti-bullying bills. The law was inspired by the death of Rutgers University student Tyler Clementi, who committed suicide after his roommate secretly recorded a sexual encounter he had with another man.
U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court to consider bans on trans athletes in school sports
27 states have passed laws limiting participation in athletics programs

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear two cases involving transgender youth challenging bans prohibiting them from participating in school sports.
In Little v. Hecox, plaintiffs represented by the ACLU, Legal Voice, and the law firm Cooley are challenging Idaho’s 2020 ban, which requires sex testing to adjudicate questions of an athlete’s eligibility.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals described the process in a 2023 decision halting the policy’s enforcement pending an outcome in the litigation. The “sex dispute verification process, whereby any individual can ‘dispute’ the sex of any female student athlete in the state of Idaho,” the court wrote, would “require her to undergo intrusive medical procedures to verify her sex, including gynecological exams.”
In West Virginia v. B.P.J., Lambda Legal, the ACLU, the ACLU of West Virginia, and Cooley are representing a trans middle school student challenging the Mountain State’s 2021 ban on trans athletes.
The plaintiff was participating in cross country when the law was passed, taking puberty blockers that would have significantly reduced the chances that she could have a physiological advantage over cisgender peers.
“Like any other educational program, school athletic programs should be accessible for everyone regardless of their sex or transgender status,” said Joshua Block, senior counsel for the ACLU’s LGBTQ and HIV Project. “Trans kids play sports for the same reasons their peers do — to learn perseverance, dedication, teamwork, and to simply have fun with their friends,” Block said.
He added, “Categorically excluding kids from school sports just because they are transgender will only make our schools less safe and more hurtful places for all youth. We believe the lower courts were right to block these discriminatory laws, and we will continue to defend the freedom of all kids to play.”
“Our client just wants to play sports with her friends and peers,” said Lambda Legal Senior Counsel Tara Borelli. “Everyone understands the value of participating in team athletics, for fitness, leadership, socialization, and myriad other benefits.”
Borelli continued, “The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit last April issued a thoughtful and thorough ruling allowing B.P.J. to continue participating in track events. That well-reasoned decision should stand the test of time, and we stand ready to defend it.”
Shortly after taking control of both legislative chambers, Republican members of Congress tried — unsuccessfully — to pass a national ban like those now enforced in 27 states since 2020.
Federal Government
UPenn erases Lia Thomas’s records as part of settlement with White House
University agreed to ban trans women from women’s sports teams

In a settlement with the Trump-Vance administration announced on Tuesday, the University of Pennsylvania will ban transgender athletes from competing and erase swimming records set by transgender former student Lia Thomas.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights found the university in violation of Title IX, the federal rights law barring sex based discrimination in educational institutions, by “permitting males to compete in women’s intercollegiate athletics and to occupy women-only intimate facilities.”
The statement issued by University of Pennsylvania President J. Larry Jameson highlighted how the law’s interpretation was changed substantially under President Donald Trump’s second term.
“The Department of Education OCR investigated the participation of one transgender athlete on the women’s swimming team three years ago, during the 2021-2022 swim season,” he wrote. “At that time, Penn was in compliance with NCAA eligibility rules and Title IX as then interpreted.”
Jameson continued, “Penn has always followed — and continues to follow — Title IX and the applicable policy of the NCAA regarding transgender athletes. NCAA eligibility rules changed in February 2025 with Executive Orders 14168 and 14201 and Penn will continue to adhere to these new rules.”
Writing that “we acknowledge that some student-athletes were disadvantaged by these rules” in place while Thomas was allowed to compete, the university president added, “We recognize this and will apologize to those who experienced a competitive disadvantage or experienced anxiety because of the policies in effect at the time.”
“Today’s resolution agreement with UPenn is yet another example of the Trump effect in action,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, UPenn has agreed both to apologize for its past Title IX violations and to ensure that women’s sports are protected at the university for future generations of female athletes.”
Under former President Joe Biden, the department’s Office of Civil Rights sought to protect against anti-LGBTQ discrimination in education, bringing investigations and enforcement actions in cases where school officials might, for example, require trans students to use restrooms and facilities consistent with their birth sex or fail to respond to peer harassment over their gender identity.
Much of the legal reasoning behind the Biden-Harris administration’s positions extended from the 2020 U.S. Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County, which found that sex-based discrimination includes that which is based on sexual orientation or gender identity under Title VII rules covering employment practices.
The Trump-Vance administration last week put the state of California on notice that its trans athlete policies were, or once were, in violation of Title IX, which comes amid the ongoing battle with Maine over the same issue.
New York
Two teens shot steps from Stonewall Inn after NYC Pride parade
One of the victims remains in critical condition

On Sunday night, following the annual NYC Pride March, two girls were shot in Sheridan Square, feet away from the historic Stonewall Inn.
According to an NYPD report, the two girls, aged 16 and 17, were shot around 10:15 p.m. as Pride festivities began to wind down. The 16-year-old was struck in the head and, according to police sources, is said to be in critical condition, while the 17-year-old was said to be in stable condition.
The Washington Blade confirmed with the NYPD the details from the police reports and learned no arrests had been made as of noon Monday.
The shooting took place in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, mere feet away from the most famous gay bar in the city — if not the world — the Stonewall Inn. Earlier that day, hundreds of thousands of people marched down Christopher Street to celebrate 55 years of LGBTQ people standing up for their rights.
In June 1969, after police raided the Stonewall Inn, members of the LGBTQ community pushed back, sparking what became known as the Stonewall riots. Over the course of two days, LGBTQ New Yorkers protested the discriminatory policing of queer spaces across the city and mobilized to speak out — and throw bottles if need be — at officers attempting to suppress their existence.
The following year, LGBTQ people returned to the Stonewall Inn and marched through the same streets where queer New Yorkers had been arrested, marking the first “Gay Pride March” in history and declaring that LGBTQ people were not going anywhere.
New York State Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, whose district includes Greenwich Village, took to social media to comment on the shooting.
“After decades of peaceful Pride celebrations — this year gun fire and two people shot near the Stonewall Inn is a reminder that gun violence is everywhere,” the lesbian lawmaker said on X. “Guns are a problem despite the NRA BS.”
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