National
With Washington, advocates anticipate sweep
All four states voting on same-sex marriage measures rejected anti-gay arguments election night
Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire (photo public domain)
Early Wednesday morning, only 61 percent of Washington state votes were in, according to Reuters. Nonetheless, the Associated Press predicted that voters were on track to have approved a measure extending marriage rights to same-sex couples, bringing the number of victories to four out of four contests on the question of same-sex marriage.
But in the all mail-in ballot system, some are predicting a vote count that may stretch throughout the day and even beyond, though approval of same-sex marriage has remained consistently ahead of ballots rejecting as the tallies have ticked slowly up.
In a historic turn of the political tide, Washington voters have likely joined electorates in Maryland and Maine in choosing to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples, with Minnesota voters narrowly choosing to reject a constitutional amendment barring same-sex marriage.
Supporters of Referendum 74 expressed cautious optimism leading up to election day, but few LGBT activists had predicted that election night would be so successful for efforts to either expand marriage rights, or halt efforts to curtail possibilities of extending those rights.
Washington State passed Referendum 71 in 2009, extending most of the rights of marriage to same-sex couples who applied to be recognized as domestic partners. Earlier this year, Governor Christine Gregoire signed a measure passed by the legislature erasing any gender requirements for marriage. Washington was one of three states whose legislature passed such laws in 2012. Only New Jersey Governor Chris Christie vetoed his state’s law.
If Washington, Maryland and Maine’s votes are certified, the number of states extending marriage to same-sex couples will jump from six to nine, plus the District of Columbia. Currently 11 percent or 35,258,372 Americans live in jurisdictions where same-sex marriage is legal. If approval is certified in all three, these states will expand that number to 49,244,887, or 15.6 percent of Americans.
On the same night, Washington State voters also approved a measure that would legalize recreational use of marijuana in that state, according to the Associated Press.
National
Queen Jean is Tony’s first transgender winner
Designer/activist wins for work on ‘Cats: The Jellicle Ball’
It was a historic night at the 79th annual Tony Awards on Sunday as Queen Jean won the award for Best Costume Design of a Musical, making her the first out transgender person to win a Tony.
“This experience has been monumental. We are here for the legacy of queer people, trans people,” she said. “We are taking up space in ways we have to take up space. We have to shift the paradigm. So I just want to say, thank you all so much for this incredible honor. The world right now is deeply, deeply combating so many ailments, and we know as a society that when we come together, we can make real, permanent change.”
She won the award for her work on “Cats: The Jellicle Ball” and was also nominated for best costume design of a play for “Liberation.”
In addition to her stage work, Queen Jean is the founder of Black Trans Liberation, an organization that supports trans and gender-nonconforming people in New York City.
National
Madonna turns Times Square into massive dance floor
Pop icon celebrates Pride month with surprise performance
Pop icon Madonna celebrated Pride month with a pop-up performance in New York City’s Times Square on Thursday to the delight of 50,000 fans.
She performed for about 15 minutes high above street level, including several songs from her new album “Confessions II” due on July 3, along with a trio of songs from the first “Confessions on a Dance Floor.”
In addition to the brand new “Love Sensation,” she performed “I Feel So Free” and “Bring Your Love,” plus “Hung Up,” “Get Together” and “I Love New York.” She wished the crowd a happy Pride season; the event was shared with audiences through Grindr’s first-ever livestream.
National
Gallup finds LGBTQ support among Americans is dropping
Marriage equality support lowest since 2016
Gallup, one of the leading organizations in public opinion polling, has found that LGBTQ support among Americans is dropping.
The poll, whose data was collected using Gallup’s annual Values and Beliefs survey, was conducted in May and was published on Wednesday. The data was collected through telephone interviews from a sample of more than 1,000 adults living in all 50 states and D.C. using random digit dialing.
It highlights declining attitudes surrounding LGBTQ issues in multiple areas — from support for same-sex marriage to views on gender identity and the morality of one’s sexuality.
One of the most striking findings was that support for marriage equality fell six points from its 2022-2023 high.
The survey also found that 62 percent of Americans view gay and lesbian relations as morally acceptable, the lowest level since 2016 just after same-sex marriage was legalized nationwide by the U.S. Supreme Court.
One newer question on the poll found that the perceived morality of changing one’s gender has dropped eight points since 2021, indicating the American public is less supportive of transgender people.
The data attributes much of the decline to shifting Republican views alongside the party itself. Conservative leaders have pushed back against diversity, equity, and inclusion programs that were intended to foster greater acceptance of LGBTQ people and other historically disadvantaged groups.
President Donald Trump has been a guiding force behind waves of anti-LGBTQ sentiment, particularly when it comes to trans rights. The president has enacted multiple executive orders, including Executive Order 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” which mandates that gender be defined by one’s sex assigned at birth. He also signed Executive Order 14183, “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” which barred qualified trans applicants from joining the military and led to the removal of trans service members already serving in the armed forces.
Additionally, he signed Executive Order 14201, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which prohibits trans female athletes from participating on women’s and girls’ sports teams.
In February, Gallup found that an estimated 9 percent of Americans identified as part of the LGBTQ community in some form.
The organization also found that 23 percent of adults under age 30 identify as LGBTQ, compared with 10 percent of those ages 30 to 49 and 3 percent or less among those ages 50 and older.
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