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Gill Foundation pledges up to $250K to protect Stonewall Inn

LGBTQ landmark faces mounting bills amid coronavirus crisis

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Stonewall Inn, gay news, Washington Blade
The modern Stonewall Inn is about half the size of the original bar and was last sold in 2006. (Photo by Travis Wise via Flickr)

Amid concerns the iconic Stonewall Inn in New York City may close due the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the Gill Foundation announced on Sunday it will match contributions of up to $250,000 to protect the business from closure.

The news was timed for the 51st anniversary of the Stonewall riots, which started in 1969 at the Stonewall Inn in New York City and was considered the start of the modern LGBTQ movement.

Scott Miller and Tim Gill, co-chairs of the Gill Foundation, said in a statement “Stonewall is a cornerstone of LGBTQ history and it must be protected.”

“Queer people of color — including trans women of color like Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and Miss Major — led the uprisings against police brutality at Stonewall and in doing so helped spark the movement for LGBTQ equality,” Miller and Gill said. “We must preserve that history and the legacy of the activists who led the charge.”

According to a report in CNN, the Stonewall Inn, is faced with mounting bills and uncertainty around when it can reopen during the coronavirus crisis. As a consequence, it has started an online fundraiser to ensure the LGBTQ landmark won’t close for good.

The monthly rent for the Stonewall Inn is over $40,000 and although bar received some Paycheck Protection Program funds, it was significantly less than the owners had expected, CNN reported. The bar sits next to the Stonewall National Monument, which is a national park, but does not receive any federal funding, according to CNN.

The pledge of up to $250,000 from the Gill Foundation will be earmarked to support rent and utility costs.

Stacy Lentz and Kurt Kelly, co-owners of the Stonewall Inn, welcomed the commitment from the Gill Foundation in a statement.

“As the first and only LGBTQ National Monument, Stonewall is home not only to the history of our community, but also the history of our city and country,” Lentz and Kelly said. “We are beyond grateful for this generous pledge that will help us keep the history alive.”

In 2014, the Gill Foundation coordinated with the National Park Foundation to identify LGBTQ places and events of historical significance. As part of that effortThe Stonewall Inn was designated as a national monument in 2016, making it the first-ever LGBTQ National Monument.

According to the Gill Foundation, the ultimate goal for the Stonewall Inn is a permanent exhibition and visitors center near the Stonewall Inn to commemorate its important history.

The Gill Foundation announcement comes on the heels on news the Gill Foundation committed a $50,000 as part of Stonewall Day for a Pride Live event in a fundraising benefiting transgender advocacy groups, including Trans Lifeline, the TransLatin@ Coalition, Brave Space Alliance and The Ally Coalition.

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New York

Zohran Mamdani participates in NYC Pride parade

Mayoral candidate has detailed LGBTQ rights platform

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NYC mayoral candidate and New York State Assembly member Zohran Mamdani (Screen capture: NBC News/YouTube)

Zohran Mamdani, the candidate for mayor of New York City who pulled a surprise victory in the primary contest last week, walked in the city’s Pride parade on Sunday.

The Democratic Socialist and New York State Assembly member published photos on social media with New York Attorney General Letitia James, telling followers it was “a joy to march in NYC Pride with the people’s champ” and to “see so many friends on this gorgeous day.”

“Happy Pride NYC,” he wrote, adding a rainbow emoji.

Mamdani’s platform includes a detailed plan for LGBTQ people who “across the United States are facing an increasingly hostile political environment.”

His campaign website explains: “New York City must be a refuge for LGBTQIA+ people, but private institutions in our own city have already started capitulating to Trump’s assault on trans rights.

“Meanwhile, the cost of living crisis confronting working class people across the city hits the LGBTQIA+ community particularly hard, with higher rates of unemployment and homelessness than the rest of the city.”

“The Mamdani administration will protect LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers by expanding and protecting gender-affirming care citywide, making NYC an LGBTQIA+ sanctuary city, and creating the Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs.”

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U.S. Supreme Court

Supreme Court upholds ACA rule that makes PrEP, other preventative care free

Liberal justices joined three conservatives in majority opinion

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The U.S. Supreme Court as composed June 30, 2022, to present. Front row, left to right: Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., Associate Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., and Associate Justice Elena Kagan. Back row, left to right: Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett, Associate Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, Associate Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, and Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. (Photo Credit: Fred Schilling, the U.S. Supreme Court)

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday upheld a portion of the Affordable Care Act requiring private health insurers to cover the cost of preventative care including PrEP, which significantly reduces the risk of transmitting HIV.

Conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh authored the majority opinion in the case, Kennedy v. Braidwood Management. He was joined by two conservatives, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett, along with the three liberal justices, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown-Jackson.

The court’s decision rejected the plaintiffs’ challenge to the Affordable Care Act’s reliance on the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force to “unilaterally” determine which types of care and services must be covered by payors without cost-sharing.

An independent all-volunteer panel of nationally recognized experts in prevention and primary care, the 16 task force members are selected by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to serve four-year terms.

They are responsible for evaluating the efficacy of counseling, screenings for diseases like cancer and diabetes, and preventative medicines — like Truvada for PrEP, drugs to reduce heart disease and strokes, and eye ointment for newborns to prevent infections.

Parties bringing the challenge objected especially to the mandatory coverage of PrEP, with some arguing the drugs would “encourage and facilitate homosexual behavior” against their religious beliefs.

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U.S. Supreme Court

Supreme Court rules parents must have option to opt children out of LGBTQ-specific lessons

Mahmoud v. Taylor case comes from Montgomery County, Md.

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U.S. Supreme Court (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ruled that public schools must give advance notice to parents and allow them the opportunity to opt their children out of lessons or classroom instruction on matters of gender and sexuality that conflict with their religious beliefs.

Mahmoud v. Taylor was decided 6-3 along party lines, with conservative Justice Samuel Alito authoring the majority opinion and liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown-Jackson in dissent.

Parents from diverse religious backgrounds sued to challenge the policy in Maryland’s Montgomery County Public Schools when storybooks featuring LGBTQ characters were added to the elementary school English curriculum in 2022.

The school board argued in the brief submitted to the Supreme Court that “the storybooks themselves do not instruct about gender or sexuality. They are not textbooks. They merely introduce students to characters who are LGBTQ or have LGBTQfamily members, and those characters’ experiences and points of view.”

Advocacy groups dedicated to advancing free speech and expression filed amicus briefs in support of the district.

PEN America argued the case should be viewed in the context of broader efforts to censor and restrict what is available and allowable in public schools, for instance by passing book bans and “Don’t Say Gay” laws.

The ACLU said the policy of not allowing opt-outs is religion-neutral, writing that the Supreme Court should apply rational basis review, which requires only that the school district show that its conduct was “rationally related” to a “legitimate” government interest.

LGBTQ groups also objected to the challenge against the district’s policy, with many submitting amici briefs including: the National Center for Lesbian Rights, GLAD Law, Family Equality, COLAGE, Lambda Legal, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, PFLAG., and the National Women’s Law Center.

The Human Rights Campaign did not submit a brief but did issue a statement by the group’s President Kelley Robinson: “LGBTQ+ stories matter. They matter so students can see themselves and their families in the books they read–so they can know they’re not alone.”

“And they matter for all students who need to learn about the world around them and understand that while we may all be different, we all deserve to be valued and loved,” she said. “All students lose when we limit what they can learn, what they can read, and what their teachers can say. The Supreme Court should reject this attempt to silence our educators and ban our stories.”

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