National
National LGBTQ Task Force calls for Gaza ceasefire
A Wider Bridge criticized statement
The National LGBTQ Task Force on Tuesday called for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
“The genocide in Gaza and violent attacks in Israel and Palestine must end,” said the group in a series of posts to its Instagram page ahead of its annual Creating Change Conference that is taking place this week in New Orleans.
“As we start Creating Change Conference 2024, we pause to join in solidarity in calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Israel/Palestine,” added the Task Force. “Collectively, #WeAreCreatingChange is a community of folks with shared values and a continued thirst for liberation.”
The Task Force stated its “mission is to build power, take action and create change to achieve freedom, justice and equity for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people by organizing people and money in pursuit of liberation for all.”
“The roots of this conflict are based in fascism, white supremacy and colonialism,” it added. “The collective trauma experienced by these oppressive measures keeps us from moving toward liberation for all.”
Hamas, which the U.S. has designated a terrorist organization, launched a surprise attack against communities in southern Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023.
The Israeli government has said roughly 1,200 people have been killed, including at least 260 people who Hamas militants murdered at an all-night music festival in a kibbutz near the border between Israel and Gaza. The Israeli government also says more than 5,000 people have been injured in the country since the war began and Hamas militants kidnapped more than 200 others.
The Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry says more than 24,000 people have died in the enclave since the war began. Israel after Oct. 7 cut electricity and water to Gaza and stopped most food and fuel shipments.
The International Court of Justice last week heard legal arguments in South Africa’s case that accuses Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Israel has strongly denied the accusations.
“Witnessing reports of Israel and Palestine are weighing on my soul,” said Task Force Executive Director Kierra Johnson on Oct. 14 during a speech at her organization’s 50th anniversary gala that took place in Miami Beach, Fla. “My heart is with communities in the region who have suffered the pain of terrorism and violence and may continue to do so.”
Johnson said the Task Force “condemns terrorism, violence and harm against civilians.” She also led a moment of silence for the “lives shattered and lost in the terror attack by Hamas in Israel and for all those impacted who continue to suffer.”
A Wider Bridge — a U.S.-based organization that seeks to build “a movement of LGBTQ people and allies with a strong interest in and commitment to supporting Israel and its LGBTQ communities” — in 2016 organized a reception at the Creating Change conference in Chicago with two Israeli activists who worked for Jerusalem Open House for Pride and Tolerance. Hundreds of protesters with signs that expressed opposition to “pinkwashing,” which they described as the promotion of Israel’s LGBTQ rights record in an attempt to deflect attention away from its policies toward the Palestinians, and “no pride in apartheid” disrupted the event and forced its cancellation.
“I want to make this crystal clear: The National LGBTQ Task Force wholeheartedly condemns anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic statements made at any Task Force event, including our Creating Change conference,” said then-Executive Director Rea Carey in a statement after the protest. “It is unacceptable.”
A Wider Bridge on Wednesday sharply criticized the Task Force over its ceasefire statement.
“Reducing the complex Israeli-Palestinian conflict to caricatures of right and wrong advances neither justice nor peace, and yet that is precisely what the National LGBTQ Task Force has done in an outrageous statement issued before the curtain opens on their annual Creating Change conference,” said A Wider Bridge in a statement to the Washington Blade.
“The Task Force should know better,” it adds.
A Wider Bridge in its statement said there is “an unfortunate history of allowing the Creating Change conference to become an unsafe space for some members of the LGBTQ community who are Jewish or who feel a connection to Israel.”
“The same is true today,” it added. “By using the harshest language to describe Israeli actions, such as genocide, the Task Force essentially disallows this segment to participate in constructive conversations about what is happening in Gaza today. A more helpful statement might have also noted that the Hamas charter calls for genocide of the Jewish people, and even mentioned the massacre of civilians and rape of Israeli women and men that Hamas militants committed just a few months ago.”
“The Task Force inappropriately applies a Western intersectional lens and declares that this Middle Eastern conflict is grounded in white supremacy,” the statement continues. “This demonstrates a distorted understanding of Israelis, a majority of whom are non-white, or the reality that both parties have long-standing indigenous roots in the land.”
A Wider Bridge in its statement acknowledged Johnson “made a positive statement three months ago, leading a moment of silence at their national gala (in Miami Beach) for the ‘lives shattered and lost in the terror attack by Hamas in Israel and for all those impacted who continue to suffer'” and “said her heart is with the communities in the region who have suffered the pain of terrorism and violence and may continue to do so.”
“We hope this recent misstep can be corrected, and that the Task Force will take measures to make Creating Change a safe space for diverse viewpoints on a contentious and complex issue — and not reduce it to simplistic binaries that incite rather than inform,” said A Wider Bridge.
Johnson on Wednesday during her speech at the conference’s opening plenary said “white supremacy will have us believe that we cannot simultaneously grieve the loss of Israeli lives and call for the end of genocide and demand for Palestinian liberation.”
Some of those in the room applauded her comment.
“It is perfectly human to hold complexity,” said Johnson.
Johnson also said to applause that “Jews, Muslims, Palestinians, Arabs and Israelis are welcome (at the conference) and encouraged to fully be proud of who you are.” Johnson further noted the Task Force has an anti-bullying policy.
“Any forms of violence, intimidation and discrimination violates that policy and will not be tolerated,” she said. “All of you deserved to be protected, respected and celebrated throughout this conference.”
(Creating Change opening plenary)
The Task Force’s Instagram posts also contained links to organizations with which it is working and information designed to “create spaces for ongoing conversations about principled struggle and the dismantling of the systems that oppress us.”
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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