The U.S. Senate voted 52-41 on Tuesday to confirm Mary Kay Costello as a judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, thereby setting a record for the number of LGBTQ federal judicial appointments made under the Biden-Harris administration, 12.

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights says less than three percent of the country’s nearly 900 federal judges are LGBTQ. Until this week, the Obama-Biden administration had appointed the most, 11, over two terms.

Costello is a prosecutor who has served as assistant U.S. attorney in Philadelphia since 2008.

In a post on X, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee’s Democratic majority wrote that she “exhibits a breadth of experience and a strong dedication to public service” and is “ready to serve as a federal judge.”

CONFIRMED: Mary Kay Costello to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

Ms. Costello exhibits a breadth of experience and a strong dedication to public service.

She’s ready to serve as a federal judge. pic.twitter.com/nBAf8pusty

— Senate Judiciary Committee (@JudiciaryDems) September 17, 2024

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), the Democratic majority whip and chair of the committee, shared another post on X celebrating the administration’s record-breaking number of LGBTQ judicial appointments, writing, “We’re diversifying the federal judiciary for generations to come.”

We’re diversifying the federal judiciary for generations to come. https://t.co/WQfOus1YDE

— Senator Dick Durbin (@SenatorDurbin) September 17, 2024

Lazarus Ikaneng Thomas, a 50-year-old gay man from Galeshewe in Northern Cape province has become South Africa’s latest victim of homophobic violence.

The province’s Department of Social Development, Youth, Women, People Living with Disabilities, Sports, Arts, and Culture said authorities discovered Thomas’s decomposing body in a home on Sept. 7 after neighbors complained of a foul smell. Thomas, who was buried at Kimberly’s Phutanang Cemetery last Friday, was reportedly strangled and had acid poured on his body.

Nontobeko Vilakazi, a member of the Department of Social Development, Youth, Women, People Living with Disabilities, Sports, Arts, and Culture’s Executive Council in the Northern Cape province, said Thomas’s murder left her shaken, especially when she saw pictures of his decomposed hand lying on the ground.

“I would firstly want to offer my condolences to the bereaved family,” said Vilakazi. “This tragic incident should never have transpired. It hurts me to see our society exhibiting so much hate.” 

“Why would someone murder someone because of who they are?” she asked. “The stigma and hatred for other people is of grave concern. As a community, we need to do better, we can’t continue like this. As a department we will be offering psychosocial support to the family, this tragic incident has left us utterly distraught.”

Sibonelo Ncanana, civil society engagement officer for OUT LGBT Well-being, echoed Vilakazi. The advocacy group said Thomas’s murder is a stark reminder of the ongoing hate crimes the country’s LGBTQ community are experiencing.

“Firstly, we would like to convey our condolences to the family. It’s really a painful tragedy that transpired,” said Ncanana. “However, over the past few months, we have witnessed a lot of hate crimes with most of the victims succumbing to the hate crimes.”

Ncanana said five people have been killed in suspected hate crimes in Eastern Cape over the last four weeks.

“It’s really worrisome,” said Ncanana. “We are running out of ideas on how to curb these hate crimes. It’s depressing and devastating.”

Inclusive and Affirming Ministries said the police should expedite their investigation of Thomas’s death.

“The LGBT community is united in demanding justice for Lazarus, we urge the police to take swift action in uncovering the truth and holding those responsible accountable,” said IAM.

South Africa is currently witnessing an unprecedented level of attacks on LGBTQ people, with many of them losing their lives. President Cyril Ramaphosa earlier this year signed a law that criminalizes hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity, but the attacks continue. 

Activists have attributed this spike in anti-LGBTQ hate crimes to the National Prosecuting Authority, the police, and other law enforcement officials who they say have not done enough to arrest and prosecute perpetrators. A small handful of people accused of carrying out homophobic attacks have been arrested and prosecuted — and some cases have dragged on for years before a verdict is reached. 

Those who are convicted do not receive maximum — or lengthy — prison sentences. Activists say these punishments enable continued homophobic attacks.

So-called “right-wing socialists” continue their calls for the government to change laws that protect the rights of LGBTQ people.

South African law fully recognizes and protects LGBTQ people, but many South Africans continue to disregard their existence.

We should know what it is about the various parties that keep some who call themselves ‘independent’ from registering as a member. Are they so unhappy with the Democratic, Republican, Green, Workers, or other parties in their state? Each state may recognize different parties, and have different requirements to get a ballot line for a particular party. So, the questions may be slightly different depending on where the voter, who claims to be an independent, lives.

The media are doing a poor job of dealing with the detail when they focus on those who call themselves independents. They need to ask different questions than they now do. They need to get to the bottom of why a person would rather call themselves an independent, instead of joining a political party. One thing we would want to know is do they have a set of principles and positions so different from any existing party, that they would want to make up a new party? Would they be willing to do the work to get that new party on the ballot in their state?

If the answer is no, they would not be willing to work to get a new party in their state, then the first question to ask the voter is, “What does being an independent mean to you?” They should ask them what they believe that stops them from joining an existing political party? What are the principles they have that aren’t represented by any existing party? Then the follow up questions should include: Is there a party they lean to? Is there a party they currently would not consider supporting under any condition? 

We are living in interesting times to say the least. Intelligent people should realize there will never be one candidate of any party, who meets all their expectations. So today when any independent is interviewed on TV, or in newspapers, the first question they are asked should be, “is there any candidate running today who has a set of positions you could never vote for?” The second question should be “is there any candidate today whose personal history makes him/her one you could never vote for?” Their answers to those questions would then lead to the next ones, giving the viewer of a TV interview, or reader of a newspaper interview, a greater understanding and potential to make sense of what the person being interviewed is really thinking. 

If the independent voter says he/she can’t vote for Trump, then you focus on what they want to hear from Harris to get their vote. What she needs to say to them that she hasn’t. Then maybe ask if they have read the Democratic platform which Harris endorses, or looked at her website. Ask them what in the administration she has been a part of, and the votes she actually cast in the Senate, both as senator, and as vice president to break ties, they disagree with? Then, the follow up to that might be, “would you consider not voting?” If they say yes, the interviewer might suggest to them if you don’t consider Trump acceptable, and you don’t vote for Harris, are you in essence helping Trump? Would that make a difference to you? Getting answers to these questions may be a better way to understand what it means to some to be independent.

There is an initiative on the ballot in D.C. to allow “independents” to vote in party primaries. They would not have to indicate they are a member of the party to vote. In D.C., the questions being asked of independents who support this is “why should they help choose the person who will represent a party in the general election, if they don’t even believe in the party enough to join it?”  

In D.C. it’s easy to join a party even just to vote in its primary. If you are a registered voter, but haven’t chosen a party, you can register to join a party up to 21 days before the primary. Anyone listening to the candidates debate the issues will know by then if they want to cast a ballot for one of them. Unfortunately, this initiative has been paired with another proposal giving D.C. ranked choice voting. So there won’t be a clear outcome on whether people like either one of the proposals and because of their being joined, the initiative will most likely be defeated.

Independents are here to stay. We all need to better understand what each person means when calling themselves that.