Veterans Day Announcement

Tomorrow is Veterans Day, and we are honored to recognize those who have served. Through publications like AT EASE, to meetings in our PFLAG Connects: Military Community, PFLAG National is proud to support our military families and veterans, today and everyday. 

This morning, our CEO Brian Bond sent a special message of thanks and an urgent ask for military vets to lend their voices to the fight for equality. If you or someone you know is a military vet and willing to take part in advocacy work with PFLAG National, please let us know by filling in this short form.

Thank you for your service—and your support of PFLAG National.

Court Matters

DOJ urges SCOTUS to hear the Tennessee case opposing medically necessary gender-affirming care and reverse the ban. The Administration said that any delay in review would endanger youths who are or will be denied critically needed care.

Families ask SCOTUS to review Appeals Court ruling allowing enforcement of medically necessary care ban in Kentucky. The families are represented by the ACLU of Kentucky, NCLR and two law firms.

Federal Matters

Registering opposition to LGBTQ+ policy riders and amendments on Appropriations bills, 163 Members of Congress, including Congressional Equality Caucus Chair Pocan, send letter to President Biden. PFLAG National is among LGBTQ+ and other civil rights organizations endorsing the letter sent on Nov. 1st ahead of the Nov. 17th funding deadline; signers include eight openly LGBTQ+ Co-Chairs of the Equality Caucus, Congress's largest caucus, plus Chair Pocan and 154 Members who are allies.

State Matters

Self-care note: While some of the following stories celebrate and affirm LGBTQ+ people, many cover legislation targeting the LGBTQ+ community, particularly trans and nonbinary youth. Please be kind to yourself and use your discretion while reading this section. 

Advisory: State news is representative but not exhaustive due to space constraints; feel free to forward news about your state to advocacy@pflag.org to consider for inclusion.

Pro-inclusive education school board candidates win seats across the country. School boards across the country held on November 7th. Pro-inclusive education candidates took control in high-profile races Iowa, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and in other states. The American Federation of Teachers said candidates publicly endorsed by conservative groups such as Moms for Liberty and the 1776 Project lost about 70% of their races nationally in elections this week.

Alabama - Smiths Station Mayor dies by suicide after photos of him dressed in women’s clothing leak. F.L. “Bubba” Copeland was mayor of Smiths Station as well as the pastor of a local Baptist church. A conservative blog posted photos of the Mayor in women’s clothing under the pseudonym “Brittini Blaire Summerlin” on November 1st. Copeland died by suicide on November 3rd. 

District of Columbia - Former headquarters of lesbian feminist group under consideration for National Historic Landmark designation. A rowhouse on Capitol Hill served as the headquarters for the Furies Collective, a lesbian feminist group, in the 1970’s. The National Park System’s National Historic Landmarks Committee is scheduled to discuss and make a recommendation on the Furies Collective house designation at a Nov. 16th virtual meeting.

Florida - Schools require parental consent for nicknames, name and pronoun changes. Many trans and non-binary youth are forced to go by their deadnames at school because they do not feel safe coming out to their parents. 

Iowa - Moms for Liberty-endorsed school board candidates lose races across state. The organization, which broadly supports anti-LGBTQ+ measures in schools and libraries,  endorsed candidates in school board races in the Des Moines and Cedar Rapids metro areas. On November 7th, 92 percent of Moms for Liberty-endorsed candidates lost.

Kentucky - Governor Andy Beshear wins re-election. Kentuckians re-elected the governor by a five percent margin. The governor’s opponent, Attorney General Daniel Cameron, attacked Governor Beshear’s support for medically necessary gender-affirming care for transgender youth during the campaign.

Maryland - Attorney General Anthony Brown files amicus brief in support of Montgomery County inclusive curriculum. Attorney General Brown and 18 other U.S. Attorneys General filed a brief to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in support of Montgomery County’s decision to incorporate inclusive story books into elementary English language arts curriculum without allowing parents to opt-out their students. PFLAG National, joined by PFLAG Metro DC, PFLAG Charlotte, PFLAG Concord-Kannapolis, PFLAG GVL (Greenville, SC), PFLAG Salisbury-Rowan, and PFLAG Westminster-Carroll County in states covered by the Fourth Circuit, filed an amicus brief to support the Montgomery County policy.

Mississippi - Gov. Tate Reeves wins re-election. The governor won a second term in the closest Mississippi gubernatorial election in over 20 years.

Ohio - Voters approve constitutional amendment protecting reproductive rights. Issue 1, which codified access to abortion and other reproductive healthcare into the State Constitution, passed with 57% of voters supporting the measure. Voters approved Issue 2, which legalizes recreational cannabis use, by similar margins. 

Pennsylvania - Moms for Liberty-endorsed school board candidates lose elections. Candidates opposing inclusive education and supporting book bans lost elections in Pennridge and Central Bucks County school districts on November 7th. Concurrent elections were also held for several statewide judicial offices.

Tennessee - Murfreesboro celebrates BoroPride. Murfreesboro’s BoroPride  festival kicked off on October 28th after a judge affirmed the organizers’ First Amendment right to hold the festival after the City Government passed an ordinance effectively banning Pride events. 

Texas - Trans high school student removed from role in school musical. Max Hightower, a trans boy, was cast as the male lead in Oklahoma. However, Sherman High School, located 75 miles north of Dallas, removed Max from the role, citing a policy which stated that “Actors and actresses could only play a role that was the same gender they were assigned at birth.” 

Virginia - Danica Roem elected to State Senate. Ms. Roem became the first openly trans state senator elected to office in any Southern state after the November 7th legislative elections, which also saw the Democratic Party take control of both houses of the state legislature.

Global Matters

Australia - Families of suspected LGBTQ+ hate crime await special commission report. Over 30 cases involving suspected anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes remain unsolved after decades of investigative delays. An inquiry into these cases is expected to result in a report from a special commission by the end of the year. 

Hungary - Cultural Minister fires director of the Hungarian National Museum, accusing the director of failing to comply with law banning display of LGBTQ+ content to minors. The Hungarian government fired Laszlo L. Simon, who ran the Hungarian National Museum in Budapest since 2021, after the Cultural Minister determined that five photos on display at the World Press Photo exhibition violated the law restricting children’s access to content that depicts homosexuality or gender change. 

United Kingdom - Conversion therapy ban proposal left out of King’s speech for the State Opening of Parliament. This means the Government does not intend to outlaw conversion therapy before the next election, as previously thought.

Media Matters

 

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the world and lesbian and bisexual women are more likely to have increased risk. According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer accounts for 30% of all new annual cancer cases in the U.S., 12.5% worldwide, and lesbian and bisexual women are more likely to have certain risk factors that increase their chances of getting certain types of cancer. 

U.S. Department of Transportation Sec. Pete Buttigieg responds to House Speaker Mike Johnson's long-time opposition to same-sex marriage. Sec. Buttigieg said that his family deserves to be supported just like every family in America.

"Serving in Secret: Love, Country and Don’t Ask Don’t Tell," new gay military service documentary, airs on Nov. 12th on MSNBC following DC premiere. The film includes early days of hidden military service, the passage of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and the law’s repeal and was met with accolades at its special premiere showing. 

Dolly Parton expresses support for trans community in interview. In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Parton said, “I just want everybody to be treated good” when asked about Tennessee's anti-trans laws. She went on to say that trans people are God’s children like everyone else and she loves the trans people in her life. 

Tracy Chapman’s LGBTQ+ anthem “Fast Car” wins Song and Single of the Year at Country Music Association (CMA) Awards. Chapman is the first Black songwriter to win Song of the Year in the ceremony's 57-year history; visibility of “Fast Car” is thanks to Luke Combs’s cover.

 

PFLAG National
(202) 467-8180 | love@pflag.org

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