Every time Hayden Powell sits down to apply for a job, she has to relive an experience she went through over two decades ago, when she was discharged from the military because of her sexual orientation. Continue Reading Washington woman joins Read More
More gay and bisexual men are now eligible to donate blood. Health reporter Rachel Sun explains that’s thanks to updated screening questions that are used for all patients, regardless of sexuality. Continue Reading New blood donor guidelines opens door Read More
Providers say education, building trust among communities and building out mobile response teams are top priorities Continue Reading Northwest health providers reflect on first anniversary of 988 hotlineRead More
A barrel race at the Denver Gay Rodeo in 2021. (Credit: Alyson Roy) Listen (Runtime 3:49) Read Curt Westberg sits on the porch of his house in Palouse, Washington. He… Continue Reading Gay rodeos are queer spaces in rural placesRead More
Sense of community. Belonging. Teamwork. Identity. These feelings can come from playing a team sport.
However, sports often are gendered spaces that follow traditional societal expectations. Then, there’s roller derby, which has a history of defying traditional female roles and giving a space for women to compete. One derby league, Dockyard Roller Derby in Tacoma, is Read More
As the United States sees an increase in the number of anti-gay, anti-trans laws, one group of LGBTQ+ people on the Palouse is making its own space for queer joy and community Continue Reading Palouse Gay Baseball: A queer space of one’s ownRead More
A record number of people attended the Richland City Council regular meeting to continue discussion about holding family-friendly drag events in Tri-Cities. Criticism of children's access to drag events has led to demonstrations, vandalism and threats in Pasco and Richland. Read More
Después de que ciudadanos se manifestaran a favor y en contra de los espectáculos drag para toda la familia en Tri-Cities, el restaurante The Emerald of Siam de Richland recibió un sobre amenazador. Continue Read More
Manifestantes han organizado múltiples demostraciones en Tri-Cities. Unos se alinearon afuera de un espectáculo drag con temática de Disney en Pasco. Y en Richland otros protestaron afuera de un drag brunch de Pascua. La discusión se está extendiendo también a las reuniones de los concejos locales y comisiones en los condados de Benton y Franklin. Read More
Manifestantes de Pasco y algunos ciudadanos preocupados de Richland quieren limitar el acceso de menores a los espectáculos drag. Dueños de establecimientos y artistas defienden los espectáculos para todos los públicos. Continue Reading Read More
After supporters and protesters demonstrated for and against family-friendly drag shows in the Tri-Cities, the Emerald of Siam restaurant in Richland received a threatening envelope. Continue Reading Drag show protests Read More
Supporters and protesters outside of The Emerald of Siam in Richland. (Credit: Johanna Bejarano / NWPB) Listen (Runtime 1:52) Read Drag shows in the Tri-Cities have come under protest. Some… Continue Reading Tri-Cities Read More
A More Perfect Union is a media project that explores the complexities of our democracy in order to help strengthen it. Through radio programs, podcasts, and oral histories, A More Perfect… Continue Reading What Does ‘A More Perfect Union’ Mean To Read More
COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — The mass arrest earlier this month of 31 white nationalists allegedly en route to riot at a Pride event in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, drew attention… Continue Reading Idaho’s Fight Against The Far Right, Then Read More
The Tri-Cities Washington chapter of a national non-profit LGBTQ rights group just got a windfall. The money comes after a settlement in the eight-year-long Arlene’s Flowers case. Continue Reading Flower Fight: Same-Sex Read More
By Kathy Tu & Tobin Low Coming out is scary no matter how old you are or how loving your friends and family may be. You’re revealing a deeply… Continue Reading Navigating The Coming Out Conversation — From Both SidesRead More
There are about 1.2 million LGBTQ adults in the U.S. who are nonbinary, according to a first-of-its-kind study released last week by the UCLA School of Law’s Williams Institute, a research center that focuses on the intersection of law and public policy, and sexual orientation and gender identity. Read More
The Supreme Court on Friday declined to take up the case of a Tri-Cities florist who refused to provide services for a same-sex wedding, leaving in place a decision that she broke state anti-discrimination laws. Continue Read More
The Peabody award-winning series Steven Universe, which broke barriers in queer representation by airing the first LBGTQ wedding in a kid's series when Ruby and Sapphire (who are actually living rocks, yes, but feminine-coded rocks who use she/her pronouns and present as female) got married. Read More
The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to wade into a major controversy over the use of bathrooms by transgender students, delivering at least a temporary victory to the trans community. Continue Reading The Supreme Court Leaves A Read More
Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib came out in a personal Instagram post on Monday, saying he has "agonized over this moment for the last 15 years." Continue Reading Carl Nassib Is The First Active NFL Player To Come Out As GayRead More
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday sided with Catholic Social Services in a battle that pitted religious freedom against anti-discrimination laws in Philadelphia and across the country. Continue Reading Supreme Court Rules Read More
The percentage — the highest since the organization began recording the trend in 1996 — marks a 10% increase since 2015, the same year the U.S. Supreme Court ruled all states must recognize same-sex marriages. Continue Reading A Read More
‘Traverse Talks’ Episode 13: Becky Albertalli & Scott Leadingham On Literature Helping Form Identity
In this unique episode of "Traverse Talks with Sueann Ramella," NWPB's Scott Leadingham interviews author Becky Albertalli. The two talk about identity, representation of LGBTQIA+ books in school libraries, and how people come out and present themselves to the world. Read More
In this unique episode of Traverse Talks with Sueann Ramella, NWPB’s Scott Leadingham interviews author Becky Albertalli. The two talk about identity, representation of LGBTQIA+ books in grade school libraries,… Continue Reading 13. Becky Albertalli and Read More
Gay and transgender people will be protected from discrimination in health care, the Biden administration announced Monday, effectively reversing a Trump-era rule that went into effect last year. Continue Reading U.S. Will Read More
Do transgender women and girls have a constitutional right to play on women's sports teams? That question will be argued before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday. Continue Reading Idaho’s Transgender Read More
What the struggle over recognition for WSU's Gay Awareness student group shows is some of the similarities between rural and urban LGBTQ rights. Rural areas — especially college towns like Pullman or Moscow — are also queer places. People in cities who were against gay rights used the same tactic as those in Pullman—the public-referendum—to deny housing or employment Read More
Gov. Asa Hutchinson, a Republican, called the Save Adolescents From Experimentation Act, or SAFE Act, "a vast government overreach." Continue Reading Arkansas Governor Vetoes Ban On Gender-Affirming Care For Trans YouthRead More
While states across the U.S. have picked up a version of the bill this year, U.S. District Court Judge David Nye issued an injunction last summer putting Idaho’s law on hold while a lawsuit over the constitutionality of the law plays out. Read More
The new regulations provide "access to the military in one's self-identified gender provided all appropriate standards are met," the Defense Department said in a statement, and "provide a path for those in service for medical treatment, gender transition, and recognition in one's self-identified gender." Read More
The Senate voted Wednesday to confirm Dr. Rachel Levine as assistant secretary for health in the Department of Health and Human Services. The vote is a history-making one: Levine is the first openly transgender federal official to be confirmed by the Senate. Read More
The Roman Catholic Church cannot bless same-sex marriages, no matter how stable or positive the couples' relationships are, the Vatican said on Monday. The message, approved by Pope Francis, came in response to questions about whether the church should reflect the increasing social and legal acceptance of same-sex unions. Read More
This year, state legislators have introduced 35 bills restricting transgender girls and women — that is, girls and women who were not assigned as female at birth — from playing on girls' and women's sports teams, according to LGBTQ advocacy group Freedom for All Americans. That's up from 29 bills last year and only 2 in 2019. Read More
The Equality Act, which would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, has twice passed the House. Republicans in the Senate have until now blocked its consideration, but Democratic control there should finally ensure at least a hearing. Read More
Pop portrayals of LGBTQ Americans tend to feature urban gay life, from Ru Paul’s “Drag Race” and “Queer Eye” and “Pose." But not all gay people live in cities. Demographers estimate that 15% to 20% of the United States’ total LGBTQ population – between 2.9 million and 3.8 million people – live in rural areas. Read More
The emergence of AIDS provides the impetus for It's a Sin, a hit British series about five young people who share a London apartment over the years from 1981 to '91. The show is the semi-autobiographical brainchild of Russell T. Davies, a writer best known for creating Queer as Folk and resurrecting Doctor Who. With his gimlet eye for the pop jugular, Davies turns the Read More
Johnson says she wrote You Should See Me in a Crown for her readers, yes, but also for herself: "I wanted to remind myself that it is possible to be Black and queer and from where you're from, and still get all the best things out of life." Continue Read More
Today we would recognize Harry Allen as trans. That term and concept did not exist in 1912, but there were many people in the past who had been assigned one sex at birth, but later in life transitioned to the sex that they more readily identified with. Read More
President Biden on Monday repealed a controversial Trump-era ban on transgender people serving in the U.S. military. Biden signed an executive order on the issue as he met in the Oval Office with new Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley and Vice President Harris. Read More
Joe Biden is nominating Pennsylvania health expert Dr. Rachel Levine to be assistant secretary for health in the department of Health and Human Services, in a move that could make Levine the first openly transgender federal official to win Senate confirmation. Read More
Outlawed opens in an alternative America of 1894 that was torn asunder by a flu epidemic some 60 years earlier. West of the Mississippi, centralized government has been replaced by a patchwork of Independent Towns. One of the few things this fragmented America agrees on is that women are put on Earth to bear children. That's it. Read More
Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan star in the new film, which imagines a romantic relationship between British paleontologist Mary Anning and Charlotte Murchison, the young wife of a geologist. Continue Reading Kate Winslet’s Read More
The landmark wins came not in only blue but also red states such as Tennessee, where Republican Eddie Mannis, who is gay, and Democrat Torrey Harris, who identifies as bisexual, won seats in the state House to become the first openly LGBTQ members of that legislature. Read More
Mike Curato's new young adult graphic novel Flamer follows a teenager struggling with self-hate and all the different parts of his identity — being a Catholic, a Boy Scout, and being gay. Continue Reading BOOK REVIEW: Read More
"What we have to create is a civil union law. That way they are legally covered," the pope said in an interview in the film Francesco, which premiered Wednesday at the Rome Film Festival. Continue Reading Pope Francis Calls For Read More
Smith entered the 2020 Tiny Desk Contest with his band Britton & The Sting. He says "Blackstronauts" is about finding joy: "I want us all to put on our freedom suits and fly together," he says. Continue Reading ‘Dust Off Your Read More
Growing up in Chelan, Susan Little knew early being gay was unacceptable in her small town. In today’s StoryCorps Northwest, Susan and her wife Marianne Patton talk about those early days, and how much has changed for gays and lesbians since they fell in love 35 years ago. Continue Read More
A federal judge has put Idaho’s controversial transgender athletics ban on hold. The injunction will allow Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye to review the myriad constitutional questions surrounding the law, which bans transgender women and girls from participating in women’s and girls’ sports. Read More
Two new laws went into effect in Idaho recently that target transgender residents. The enactment comes on the heels of a major U.S. Supreme Court decision in June, which greatly expanded LGBTQ rights. Continue Reading New Laws Restricting Read More