The Supreme Court heard two cases today that could change how the Equal Protection Clause and Title IX are enforced.

The cases, Little v. Hecox and West Virginia v. B.P.J., ask the court to determine whether state laws blocking transgender girls from participating on girls’ teams at publicly funded schools violates the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause and Title IX. Once decided, the rulings could reshape how laws addressing sex discrimination are interpreted nationwide.

Chief Justice John Roberts raised questions about whether Bostock v. Clayton County — the landmark case holding that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity — applies in the context of athletics. He questioned whether transgender girls should be considered girls under the law, noting that they were assigned male at birth.

“I think the basic focus of the discussion up until now, which is, as I see it anyway, whether or not we should view your position as a challenge to the distinction between boys and girls on the basis of sex or whether or not you are perfectly comfortable with the distinction between boys and girls, you just want an exception to the biological definition of girls.”

“How we approach the situation of looking at it not as boys versus girls but whether or not there should be an exception with respect to the definition of girls,” Roberts added, suggesting the implications could extend beyond athletics. “That would — if we adopted that, that would have to apply across the board and not simply to the area of athletics.”

Justice Clarence Thomas echoed Roberts’ concerns, questioning how sex-based classifications function under Title IX and what would happen if Idaho’s ban were struck down.

“Does a — the justification for a classification as you have in Title IX, male/female sports, let’s take, for example, an individual male who is not a good athlete, say, a lousy tennis player, and does not make the women’s — and wants to try out for the women’s tennis team, and he said there is no way I’m better than the women’s tennis players. How is that different from what you’re being required to do here?”

Justice Samuel Alito addressed what many in the courtroom seemed reluctant to state directly: the legal definition of sex.

“Under Title IX, what does the term ‘sex’ mean?” Alito asked Principal Deputy Solicitor General Hashim Mooppan, who was arguing in support of Idaho’s law. Mooppan maintained that sex should be defined at birth.

“We think it’s properly interpreted pursuant to its ordinary traditional definition of biological sex and think probably given the time it was enacted, reproductive biology is probably the best way of understanding that,” Mooppan said.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor pushed back, questioning how that definition did not amount to sex discrimination against Lindsay Hecox under Idaho law. If Hecox’s sex is legally defined as male, Sotomayor argued, the exclusion still creates discrimination.

“It’s still an exception,” Sotomayor said. “It’s a subclass of people who are covered by the law and others are not.”

Justice Elena Kagan highlighted the broader implications of the cases, asking whether a ruling for the states would impose a single definition of sex on the 23 states that currently have different laws and standards. The parties acknowledged that scientific research does not yet offer a clear consensus on sex.

“I think the one thing we definitely want to have is complete findings. So that’s why we really were urging to have a full record developed before there were a final judgment of scientific uncertainty,” said Kathleen Harnett, Hecox’s legal representative. “Maybe on a later record, that would come out differently — but I don’t think that — ”

“Just play it out a little bit, if there were scientific uncertainty,” Kagan responded.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh focused on the impact such policies could have on cisgender girls, arguing that allowing transgender girls to compete could undermine Title IX’s original purpose.

“For the individual girl who does not make the team or doesn’t get on the stand for the medal or doesn’t make all league, there’s a — there’s a harm there,” Kavanaugh said. “I think we can’t sweep that aside.”

Justice Amy Coney Barrett questioned whether Idaho’s law discriminated based on transgender status or sex.

“Since trans boys can play on boys’ teams, how would we say this discriminates on the basis of transgender status when its effect really only runs towards trans girls and not trans boys?”

Harnett responded, “I think that might be relevant to a, for example, animus point, right, that we’re not a complete exclusion of transgender people. There was an exclusion of transgender women.”

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson challenged the notion that explicitly excluding transgender people was not discrimination.

“I guess I’m struggling to understand how you can say that this law doesn’t discriminate on the basis of transgender status. The law expressly aims to ensure that transgender women can’t play on women’s sports teams… it treats transgender women different than — than cis-women, doesn’t it?”

Idaho Solicitor General Alan Hurst urged the court to uphold his state’s ban, arguing that allowing participation based on gender identity — regardless of medical intervention — would deny opportunities to girls protected under federal law.

Hurst emphasized that biological “sex is what matters in sports,” not gender identity, citing scientific evidence that people assigned male at birth are predisposed to athletic advantages.

Joshua Block, representing B.P.J., was asked whether a ruling in their favor would redefine sex under federal law.

“I don’t think the purpose of Title IX is to have an accurate definition of sex,” Block said. “I think the purpose is to make sure sex isn’t being used to deny opportunities.”

Becky Pepper-Jackson, identified as plaintiff B.P.J., the 15-year-old also spoke out.

“I play for my school for the same reason other kids on my track team do — to make friends, have fun, and challenge myself through practice and teamwork,” said Pepper-Jackson. “And all I’ve ever wanted was the same opportunities as my peers. But in 2021, politicians in my state passed a law banning me — the only transgender student athlete in the entire state — from playing as who I really am. This is unfair to me and every transgender kid who just wants the freedom to be themselves.”

Outside the court, advocates echoed those concerns as the justices deliberated.

“Becky simply wants to be with her teammates on the track and field team, to experience the camaraderie and many documented benefits of participating in team sports,” said Sasha Buchert, counsel and Nonbinary & Transgender Rights Project director at Lambda Legal. “It has been amply proven that participating in team sports equips youth with a myriad of skills — in leadership, teamwork, confidence, and health. On the other hand, denying a student the ability to participate is not only discriminatory but harmful to a student’s self-esteem, sending a message that they are not good enough and deserve to be excluded. That is the argument we made today and that we hope resonated with the justices of the Supreme Court.”

“This case is about the ability of transgender youth like Becky to participate in our schools and communities,” said Joshua Block, senior counsel for the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project. “School athletics are fundamentally educational programs, but West Virginia’s law completely excluded Becky from her school’s entire athletic program even when there is no connection to alleged concerns about fairness or safety. As the lower court recognized, forcing Becky to either give up sports or play on the boys’ team — in contradiction of who she is at school, at home, and across her life — is really no choice at all. We are glad to stand with her and her family to defend her rights, and the rights of every young person, to be included as a member of their school community, at the Supreme Court.”

The Supreme Court is expected to issue rulings in both cases by the end of June.

On Jan. 12, West Hollywood residents packed the City’s chambers at 6 p.m. to honor the work of outgoing mayor Chelsea Byers and witness councilmembers John Heilman and Danny Hang take their oath of office as they respectively assume their roles as Mayor and Vice Mayor for 2026.

In her last address as Mayor, Byers spoke about the optimism she holds onto in these unsteady times. To her, West Hollywood is a unique City: one that has become a model for what can be possible in an unjust society. “It’s us against the world. It’s West Hollywood on the stage,” Byers said. “It’s our story to tell, and every single person here contributes in such great ways to that.” 

Byers was awarded a plaque on behalf of West Hollywood council members for her outspoken commitment to LGBTQ+ rights, economic justice, housing affordability, and policies that emphasize equity and inclusivity in West Hollywood. 

Her leadership remains a bright, guiding light for Mayor Heilman, who was part of West Hollywood’s first city council after the independent city was incorporated in 1984. The spirit of that initial group remains today: queer, progressive, and led for and by the people. Yesterday’s ceremony marked the beginning of Heilman’s ninth time serving as Mayor, as well as his last year on the city council due to term limits. 

Now, he leads side-by-side with a self-proclaimed “newcomer,” Danny Hang. 

From the 626 to the Westside: Hang’s roots and journey  

Hang was born in Monterey Park, a city in the San Gabriel Valley. The region is known for its diverse communities and AAPI-rich culture and history, and Hang recounted to the Blade the deep sense of belonging and comfort he felt growing up there. “I could go to a restaurant, speak Vietnamese or Chinese,” Hang said. “There are people who look like me out there. It is my home away from home.”

After college, he worked at the Social Security Administration, where he helped retirees, disabled people, and those impacted by loss file for Supplemental Security Income (SSI). The work was fulfilling, and he loved feeling that he had a tangible impact on others’ lives: that he could help residents grappling with difficult bureaucratic processes.

This passion grabbed the attention of L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who tapped Hang into serving on West Hollywood’s Disabilities Advisory Board in 2017. Hang eagerly accepted the role, having always been drawn to the vibrant, queer cultural hub. “WeHo was always the land of the unicorn: the land of magic,’ Hang told the Blade. “[This] was a town where I could be open, by myself, and find other people who were also LGBTQ+.” 

After serving on the City’s Disabilities Advisory Board and, subsequently, the county’s Business License Commission, Hang noticed a lack of AAPI representation in local leadership. “There aren’t many AAPI people at all in West Hollywood. After I was on the commission, [I thought]: Hey, I think I want to run for city council,” Hang told the Blade. 

Creating more inclusive leadership in WeHo

In 2024, Hang was elected to West Hollywood’s city council, becoming the first AAPI councilmember in the City’s 40 year legacy. “I want to see people who look like me in local government, because I want this community to be reflective of the modern-day people who live here. We’re a diverse community, and there’s no reason why we shouldn’t have people of color on the council, as well as more people of color appointed to our boards and commissions.” 

Last night, local officials offered encouragement, support, and affirmation to Hang after he took his oath of office. “You’re already making history and certainly making waves across, not just your home region of the San Gabriel Valley, but certainly in California,” said Monterey Park councilmember Henry Lo. 

Afterwards, Hang addressed the room, thanking residents, fellow council members and his family. “Standing here as the first AAPI elected to the West Hollywood City Council is deeply meaningful, and I couldn’t have done it without my parents. [They’re] right here in the front row,” Hang said. “My dad was a union worker, who showed me why standing up for workers matters. And my mom worked in a small business, owning a little nail salon in South Pasadena. She taught me what it means to care for others and to keep the community going.” 

The year ahead: Heilman calls for residents to unite

Afterwards, Mayor Heilman spoke at length about the upcoming transitional year, the urgency of the current political climate, and ways that community members can step up to support each other. In his last term, he has set his eye on revitalizing the Sunset Strip, stabilizing rent and increasing housing affordability as well as examining the safety of the City’s foundational buildings, including the library and fire station.

He concluded his speech by making an unwavering stance on the “appalling” state of the federal government, stating that every West Hollywood resident must step up together in the face of ongoing federal attacks on the rights of LGBTQ+ people, specifically transgender people, as well as immigrants and other marginalized community members. 

“This is a direct attack on our residents. It’s a direct attack on all of us,” Heilman said. “Now is not the time to hide. We need you…Ask what you can do to help people in the community,” he said, galvanizing residents to volunteer for the City’s various social services, nonprofits like Hollywood Food Coalition and Ascencia. 

This call for unity and communal bravery echoes Byers’ belief in the courage of the people of West Hollywood. “41 years ago, a group of people defined what government could be,” Byers said. “We’re living the wildest dreams of people decades ago…and we get to be a bridge for that hope for the future. In such a critical moment, it’s truly our responsibility.” 

Kristie Song is a California Local News Fellow placed with the Los Angeles Blade. The California Local News Fellowship is a state-funded initiative to support and strengthen local news reporting. Learn more about it at fellowships.journalism.berkeley.edu/cafellows.

Are you or a friend looking to find a little love in 2026? We are looking for the most eligible LGBTQ singles in Los Angeles. Nominate you or your friends until January 23rd using the form below or by clicking HERE.

Our most eligible singles will be announced online in February.

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis as she attempted to drive away from law enforcement during a protest on Wednesday.

The Star Tribune newspaper identified the victim as Renee Nicole Good, 37, a Minneapolis resident who lived blocks from where she was shot in the Central neighborhood, according to reports. Donna Ganger, Good’s mother, told the Star Tribune that her daughter lived in the Twin Cities with her wife.

Multiple videos of the shooting have gone viral on social media, showing various angles of the fatal incident — including footage that shows Good getting into her car and attempting to drive away from law enforcement officers, who had their weapons drawn.

In the videos, ICE agents can be heard telling Good to “get out of the fucking car” as they attempted to arrest her. Good, who press reports say was married to a woman, ended up crashing her car into an electric pole and other vehicles. She was later transported from the scene of the shooting and died at the hospital.

President Donald Trump defended the ICE agent on Truth Social, saying the officer was “viciously” run over — a claim that coincides with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s assessment of the situation. Noem, a South Dakota Republican, insisted the officer “fired defensive shots” at Good after she attempted to run over law enforcement agents “in an attempt to kill them — an act of domestic terrorism.”

Multiple state and local officials disputed claims that the shooting was carried out in self-defense at the same time Noem was making those assertions.

An Instagram account that appears to belong to Good describes her as a “poet and writer and wife and mom and shitty guitar strummer from Colorado; experiencing Minneapolis, MN,” accompanied by a rainbow flag emoji.

A video posted to X after the shooting shows a woman, reportedly her wife, sitting on the ground, crying and saying, “They killed my wife. I don’t know what to do.”

“We’ve dreaded this moment since the early stages of this ICE presence in Minneapolis,” Mayor Jacob Frey said during a Wednesday press conference. “Having seen the video myself, I want to tell everybody directly that [the DHS’s claim of self-defense] is bullshit. This was an agent recklessly using power that resulted in somebody dying, getting killed.”

“I have a message for ICE. To ICE, get the fuck out of Minneapolis,” Frey continued. “We do not want you here. Your stated reason for being in this city is to create some kind of safety, and you are doing exactly the opposite. People are being hurt. Families are being ripped apart. Long-term Minneapolis residents that have contributed so greatly to our city, to our culture, to our economy are being terrorized, and now somebody is dead. That’s on you, and it’s also on you to leave.”

Across the Capitol, members of the House and the Senate condemned the actions of the officer.

“There’s no indication she’s a protester, there’s nothing that at least you can see on the video, and therefore nothing that the officers on the ground could see that identify her as someone who’s set out to try to do harm to an ICE officer,” U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Wednesday night on MS NOW’s “The Weeknight.”

“There is no evidence that has been presented to justify this killing,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said in a statement on his website. “The masked ICE agent who pulled the trigger should be criminally investigated to the full extent of the law for acting with depraved indifference to human life.”

“ICE just killed someone in Minneapolis,” U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) the highest-ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, posted on X. “This administration’s violence against communities across our country is horrific and dangerous. Oversight Democrats are demanding answers on what happened today. We need an investigation immediately.”

In a statement to the Advocate, Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson wrote, “Today, a woman was senselessly killed in Minneapolis during an ICE action — a brutal reminder that this agency and the Trump regime put every community at risk, spreading fear instead of safety. Reports that she may have been part of the LGBTQ+ community underscore how often the most vulnerable pay the highest price.”

National LGBTQ Task Force President Kierra Johnson also responded to Good’s death.

“We recognize and mourn the loss of Renee Nicole Good and extend our condolences to her family, loved ones, and community,” said Johnson in a statement. “This loss of life was preventable and reprehensible, particularly coming at the hands of federal agents.”

BOGOTÁ, Colombia — A gay Venezuelan man who has lived in Colombia since 2018 says he feels uncertain about his homeland’s future after the U.S. seized the now former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

“On one hand I can feel happy, but on the other hand I feel very concerned,” Heberth Aguirre told the Washington Blade on Tuesday during an interview at a shopping mall in Bogotá, the Colombian capital.

Aguirre, 35, is from Maracaibo, Venezuela’s second-largest city that is the heart of the country’s oil industry.

He developed cultural and art initiatives for the Zulia State government.

“Little by little, I suddenly became involved in politics because, in a way, you had to be involved,” recalled Aguirre. “It was necessary to be involved because the regime often said so.”

“I basically felt like I was working for the citizens, but with this deeply ingrained rule we had to be on their side, on the side of the Maduro and (former President Hugo) Chávez regime,” he added.

Maduro in 2013 became Venezuela’s president after Chávez died.

“There are things I don’t support about the regime,” Aguirre told the Blade. “There are other things that were nice in theory, but it turned out that they didn’t work when we put them into practice.”

Aguirre noted the Maduro government implemented “a lot of laws.” He also said he and other LGBTQ Venezuelans didn’t “have any kind of guarantee for our lives in general.”

“That also exposed you in a way,” said Aguirre. “You felt somewhat protected by working with them (the government), but it wasn’t entirely true.”

Aguirre, 35, studied graphic design at the University of Zulia in Maracaibo. He said he eventually withdrew after soldiers, members of Venezuela’s Bolivarian National Guard, and police officers opened fire on students.

“That happened many times, to the point where I said I couldn’t keep risking my life,” Aguirre told the Blade. “It hurt me to see what was happening, and it hurt me to have lost my place at the university.”

Venezuela’s economic crisis and increased insecurity prompted Aguirre to leave the country in 2018. He entered Colombia at the Simón Bolívar Bridge near the city of Cúcuta in the country’s Norte de Santander Province.

“If you thought differently, they (the Venezuelan government) would come after you or make you disappear, and nobody would do anything about it,” said Aguirre in response to the Blade’s question about why he left Venezuela.

Aguirre spoke with the Blade three days after American forces seized Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, at their home in Caracas, the Venezuelan capital, during an overnight operation.

The Venezuelan National Assembly on Sunday swore in Delcy Rodríguez, who was Maduro’s vice president, as the country’s acting president. Maduro and Flores on Monday pleaded not guilty to federal drug charges in New York.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday in a Truth Social post said Venezuela’s interim authorities “will be turning over between 30 and 50 million barrels of high quality, sanctioned oil, to the United States of America.”

“This oil will be sold at its market price, and that money will be controlled by me, as president of the United States of America, to ensure it is used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States,” wrote Trump.

Trump on Sunday suggested the U.S. will target Colombian President Gustavo, a former Bogotá mayor and senator who was once a member of the M-19 guerrilla movement that disbanded in the 1990s.

Petro has urged Colombians to take to the streets on Wednesday and “defend national sovereignty.” Claudia López, a former senator who would become the country’s first female and first lesbian president if she wins Colombia’s presidential election that will take place later this year, is among those who criticized Trump’s comments.

“Let’s be clear: Trump doesn’t care about the humanitarian aspect,” said Aguirre when the Blade asked him about Trump. “We can’t portray him as Venezuela’s savior.”

Meanwhile, Aguirre said his relatives in Maracaibo remain afraid of what will happen in the wake of Maduro’s ouster.

“My family is honestly keeping quiet,” he said. “They don’t post anything online. They don’t go out to participate in marches or celebrations.”

“Imagine them being at the epicenter, in the eye of the hurricane,” added Aguirre. “They are right in the middle of all the problems, so it’s perfectly understandable that they don’t want to say anything.”

‘I never in my life thought I would have to emigrate’

Aguirre has built a new life in Bogotá.

He founded Mesa Distrital LGBTIQ+ de Jóvenes y Estudiantes, a group that works with migrants from Venezuela and other countries and internally placed Colombians, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Aguirre told the Blade he launched the group “with the need to contribute to the general population, not just in Colombia.”

Aguirre met his husband, an American from California, at a Bogotá church in December 2020 during a Christmas event that SDA Kinship Colombia, an LGBTQ group, organized. A Utah judge virtually officiated their wedding on July 12, 2024.

“I love Colombia, I love Bogotá,” said Aguirre. “I love everything I’ve experienced because I feel it has helped me grow.”

He once again stressed he does not know what a post-Maduro Venezuela will look like.

“As a Venezuelan, I experienced the wonders of that country,” said Aguirre. “I never in my life thought I would have to emigrate.”

The Colombian government’s Permiso por Protección Temporal program allows Aguirre and other Venezuelans who have sought refuge in Colombia to live in the country for up to 10 years. Aguirre reiterated his love for Colombia, but he told the Blade that he would like to return to Venezuela and help rebuild the country.

“I wish this would be over in five years, that we could return to our country, that we could go back and even return with more skills acquired abroad,” Aguirre told the Blade. “Many of us received training. Many of us studied a lot. We connected with organizations that formed networks, which enriched us as individuals and as professionals.”

“Returning would be wonderful,” he added. “What we’ve built abroad will almost certainly serve to enrich the country.”

President Trump’s anti-LGBTQ agenda dominated national news in 2025, particularly his cruel attacks on trans Americans. Here are our picks for the top 10 LGBTQ news stories the Blade covered in 2025.

10. Trump grants clemency to George Santos

President Donald Trump granted clemency to disgraced former Long Island Rep. George Santos. Santos was sentenced to 87 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft and had served just 84 days of his more than seven-year sentence. He lied to both the DOJ and the House Ethics Committee, including about his work and education history, and committed campaign finance fraud.

9. U.S. Olympics bans trans women athletes  

The United States Supreme Court decided in 2025 to take up two cases — Little v. Hecox and West Virginia v. B.P.J.— both of which concern the rights of transgender athletes to participate on sports teams. The cases challenge state laws under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, which prevents states from offering separate boys’ and girls’ sports teams based on biological sex determined at birth. Both cases are set to be heard in January 2026. The developments follow a decision by the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee to change eligibility rules to prohibit transgender women from competing in women’s sporting events on behalf of the United States, following Trump’s Executive Order 14201, “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.”

8. FDA approves new twice-yearly HIV prevention drug

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on June 18 approved a newly developed HIV/AIDS prevention drug that needs to be taken only twice a year, with one injection every six months. The new drug, lenacapavir, is being sold under the brand name Yeztugo by pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences. According to trial data, 99.9 percent of participants who received Yeztugo remained HIV negative. This emerging technology comes amid direct cuts to HIV/AIDS research measures by the Trump–Vance administration, particularly targeting international HIV efforts such as PEPFAR. 

7. LGBTQ people ‘erased’ from gov’t reports

Politico reported in March that the Trump–Vance administration is slashing the State Department’s annual human rights report, cutting sections related to the rights of women, people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+ community, and more. Members of Congress objected to the removal of the subsection on “Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or Expression, or Sex Characteristics (SOGIESC)” from the State Department’s Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.

In a Sept. 9 letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Reps. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), Julie Johnson (D-Texas), and Sarah McBride (D-Del.) urged the department to restore the information or ensure it is integrated throughout each report, noting that the reports serve as key evidence for asylum seekers, attorneys, judges, and advocates assessing human rights conditions and protection claims worldwide.

6. Trump admin redefines ‘sex’ in all HHS programs

The Trump administration canceled more than $800 million in research into the health of sexual and gender minority groups. More than half of the National Institutes of Health grants scrapped through early May involved studies of cancers and viruses that disproportionately affect LGBTQ people.

The administration is also pushing to end gender-affirming care for transgender youth, according to a new proposal from the Department of Health and Human Services, NPR reported. The administration is considering blocking all Medicaid and Medicare funding for services at hospitals that provide pediatric gender-affirming care. “These rules would be a significant escalation in the Trump administration’s attack on access to transgender health care,” said Katie Keith, director of the Center for Health Policy and Law at Georgetown University.

5. FBI plans to label trans people as ‘violent extremists’

The Human Rights Campaign, Transgender Law Center, Equality Federation, GLAAD, PFLAG, and the Southern Poverty Law Center condemned reports that the FBI, in coordination with the Heritage Foundation, may be working to designate transgender people as “violent extremists.” The concerns followed a report earlier this month by independent journalist Ken Klippenstein, who cited two anonymous national security officials saying the FBI is considering treating transgender subjects as a subset of a new threat category.

That classification—originally created under the Biden administration as “Anti-Authority and Anti-Government Violent Extremists” (AGAAVE) — was first applied to Jan. 6 rioters and other right-wing extremists. Advocates said the proposal appears to stem from the false claim that the assassination of Charlie Kirk was committed by a transgender person.

4. Pentagon targets LGBTQ service members

Acting in agreement with the growing anti-LGBTQ sentiment from the Trump administration, during a televised speech to U.S. military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico in late September, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denounced past military leadership for being too “woke,” citing DEI initiatives and LGBTQ inclusion within the Department of Defense. During the 45-minute address, Hegseth criticized inclusive policies and announced forthcoming directives, saying they would ensure combat requirements “return to the highest male standard only.”

Since 2016, a Navy replenishment oiler had borne the name of gay rights icon Harvey Milk, who served in the Navy during the Korean War and was separated from service under other than honorable conditions due to his sexuality before later becoming one of the first openly LGBTQ candidates elected to public office. In June 2025, the ship was renamed USNS Oscar V. Peterson.

The U.S. Air Force also announced that transgender service members who have served between 15 and 18 years would be denied early retirement and instead separated from the military without benefits. Transgender troops will be given the option of accepting a lump-sum payout offered to junior service members or being removed from service.

In February, the Pentagon said it would draft and submit procedures to identify transgender service members and begin discharging them from the military within 30 days.

3. Trump blames Democrats, trans people for gov’t shutdown

Republicans failed to reach an agreement with Democrats and blamed them for the government shutdown, while Democrats pointed to Republicans for cutting health care tax credits, a move they said would result in millions of people paying significantly higher monthly insurance premiums next year. In the White House press briefing room, a video of Democrats discussing past government shutdowns played on a loop as the president continued to blame the Democratic Party and “woke” issues, including transgender people.

“A lot of good can come from shutdowns. We can get rid of a lot of things. They’d be Democrat things,” Trump said the night before the shutdown. “They want open borders. Men playing in women’s sports. They want transgender for everybody.”

2. Supreme Court joins attacks on LGBTQ Americans

The U.S. Supreme Court issued multiple rulings this year affecting LGBTQ people. In Mahmoud v. Taylor (6–3), it ruled that public schools must give parents advance notice and the option to opt children out of lessons on gender or sexuality that conflict with their religious beliefs. The case arose after Montgomery County, Md., schools added LGBTQ-inclusive storybooks to the elementary curriculum.

In June, the court upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors, protecting similar laws in more than 20 states. Lawmakers and advocates criticized the ruling, and a coalition of seven medical associations warned it strips families of the right to direct their own health care.

The Court also allowed the Trump administration to enforce a ban on transgender military personnel and to implement a policy blocking passports with “X” gender markers, with the federal government recognizing only male and female designations.

1. Trump inaugurated for second time

President Donald Trump became the 47th president after winning Wisconsin, securing 277 of the 270 electoral votes needed. His guidebook, Project 2025, outlined the Republican Party’s goals under his new leadership, with a particular focus on opposing transgender rights.

Trump nominated openly gay hedge fund executive Scott Bessent as U.S. Treasury Secretary, a role he eventually assumed. Bessent became the highest-ranking openly gay U.S. government official in American history.

Honorable mention: The war on rainbow crosswalks escalates around the country

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) ordered state transportation officials to remove a rainbow-colored crosswalk in Orlando next to the Pulse gay nightclub, where 49 mostly LGBTQ people were killed in a 2016 mass shooting. The move follows a July 1, 2025, announcement by U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy that, with support from President Trump, the department adopted a “nationwide roadway safety initiative” that political observers say could be used to require cities and states to remove rainbow street crosswalks.

This Thursday, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) will march in the highly-anticipated Rose Parade in Pasadena. AHF will present a Jack and the Beanstalk float with the titular character climbing amongst ginormous tomatoes, eggplants, strawberries, and tomato plants. It’s befitting of this year’s parade theme: “The Magic in Teamwork,” which celebrates the power of collective effort and unity. 

The whimsical design also honors the organization’s “Food for Health” program, an initiative that began in 2021 to respond to food insecurity across the U.S. For nearly five years, “Food for Health” has hosted free food pantries and farmers’ markets, providing hot meals and fresh groceries nationally for families and veterans in need of food assistance. 

“Food for Health” was also crucial in the wide-sweeping emergency response various nonprofits were trying to organize after the devastating Palisades and Eaton Fires in January. AHF’s program delivered over 75,000 hot meals to evacuees and Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) first responders. 

The float also honors the individuals fueling these on-the-ground efforts, like Janet and Christy Lee, the sisters behind Altadena’s Fair Oaks Burger. For eight months after these major fires broke out, the Lee sisters worked closely with “Food for Health” to host free weekly farmers’ markets in the parking lot of their restaurant to support community members who had been displaced and impacted by the wildfires. 

Both sisters will join fellow local advocates and leaders like labor activist Dolores Huerta, LAFD Captain Thomas ‘Kit’ Kitahata, Champions of Caring Connections executive director Bettye Randle, and “Food for Health” directors Carlos Marroquin and Tara O’Callaghan as riders on the AHF float. 

The Rose Parade begins at 8 a.m. on Thursday morning, marching through 5 miles of Colorado Blvd. Now in its 137th year, the parade’s inaugural event was held in 1890 and continues to delight local residents and usher in the new year with illustrious musical performances and grand floats. More information about tickets and parade guidelines can be found on Pasadena’s Tournament of Roses website.

Kristie Song is a California Local News Fellow placed with the Los Angeles Blade. The California Local News Fellowship is a state-funded initiative to support and strengthen local news reporting. Learn more about it at fellowships.journalism.berkeley.edu/cafellows.

On Dec. 17th, the Williams Institute found that hate crimes targeting people based on their gender identity have more than tripled in California since 2013. The research center’s latest report on statewide gender identity hate crimes utilizes data reported to the California Department of Justice from 2001 to 2024, and outlines the increasing violence transgender and gender nonconforming people face. 

Hate crimes motivated by gender identity and sexual orientation have made up 23% of all reported hate crimes in California since 2001, and nearly half of these incidents between 2013 and 2024 were reported in Los Angeles County alone. The study’s lead author, Jordan Grasso, points to several possible reasons for such high numbers in L.A., including the county’s overall population size, its large transgender community, and local law enforcement policies around identifying and reporting hate crimes.

It’s difficult to compare these numbers across counties, though, Grasso explained to the Blade, since practices like reporting, investigating, and recording incidents “are shaped at the local level and can vary widely from agency to agency.” 

While these practices can vary, one overarching statewide shift occurred in 2013, when the California Department of Justice added “anti-gender nonconforming” as its own bias subcategory: one that was separate from “anti-transgender.” Since then, over 500 gender identity hate crimes targeting transgender and gender nonconforming people have been recorded in California.

This marked a step towards creating more nuance in the ways gender identity hate crimes are understood, reported, and responded to by law enforcement officials. Five years later, in 2018, California passed a law that required all law enforcement trainees to receive training on sexual orientation and gender identity. 

“This matters because once someone reports a hate crime, officers who have a better understanding of these issues may be more likely to recognize the incident as a hate crime and record it as such, rather than treating it as a general offense,” Grasso wrote to the Blade.   

As transgender and gender nonconforming people face increasing violence, they are also reporting lower levels of trust in police. They are more likely than cisgender people to experience discrimination, harassment, and bias when seeking help from law enforcement, which then discourages them from seeking help at all. 

“There are clear gaps between transgender and nonbinary Californians’ experiences of violence and what shows up in official hate crime reports,” Grasso wrote. “These gaps are shaped in large part by longstanding and persistent negative interactions between LGBTQ people, especially transgender people, and law enforcement.” 

Grasso found in another recent study that, while almost 60% of transgender and nonbinary survey respondents reported experiencing violence or harassment in the last year, their self-reported experiences may outnumber actual reported hate crimes. “This suggests that officially recognized hate crime reports capture only a small fraction of the violence and victimization that transgender and nonbinary people experience across the state,” they explained. 

These gaps widen even more when considering transgender and gender nonconforming people who experience intersectional forms of hate. Transgender women, notably, face a disproportionate amount of violence and harassment, but current law enforcement recording policies around gender identity hate crimes can water these facts down. 

Grasso explained that when law enforcement officers make hate crime reports, they are required to note a single “most serious bias,” a practice that aims to create one digestible explanation out of what are often very layered and complicated incidents of violence. “This has two consequences,” Grasso wrote. “First, gender identity hate crimes are likely undercounted, especially among people who are multiply marginalized. Second, patterns of victimization among people who are targeted for multiple, intersecting reasons—such as race and transgender identity—remain largely invisible.” 

These limitations fuel new solutions, and several public policy recommendations are detailed in the report. Many of these suggestions urge improved data collection and access: namely, that law enforcement officials explain all applicable bias motivations in their hate crime reports to California’s Department of Justice. This way, researchers can better understand the scope and impact of those who are targeted by multiple biases. 

The report’s authors are also supportive of the development of alternative options for reporting hate crimes because of the stigma and fear transgender and gender nonconforming people experience with law enforcement. Grasso points to CA vs. Hate, the California Civil Rights Department’s non-emergency resource and reporting hotline. 

The local offshoot LA vs. Hate similarly provides a community-centered and non-law enforcement system that encourages Angelenos to report the hate crimes they experience and access various social services offered by grassroots organizations. This trust in community solutions also allows researchers to better comprehend and respond to increasing violence based on gender identity, as people are more willing to lean on these alternatives to share their stories.

Kristie Song is a California Local News Fellow placed with the Los Angeles Blade. The California Local News Fellowship is a state-funded initiative to support and strengthen local news reporting. Learn more about it at fellowships.journalism.berkeley.edu/cafellows.

In the early hours of Monday morning, burglars broke through three walls of the Sun Valley LGBTQ+ community center Somos Familia Valle. They rummaged through two main rooms and left with $8,000 worth of technology: 15 Chromebooks, two iPads, a camera, two microphones, and a large audio system that staff members used to host programs like Queer Yoga and Vogue Classes. “I was scared because I was wondering if it was a hate thing,” said Somos Familia Valle co-founder and president Kevin Al Perez. 

Perez had woken that day with his usual routine of checking the building’s cameras and Wi-Fi systems remotely. Suddenly, he jolted after noticing they’d been turned off for hours. Since he was away, he asked his father to check on the space. “Everything’s fine,” his father replied, who said that the main door looked untouched. 

After stepping inside, the damage became clear. Pieces of walls were torn out and strewn across the floor, items were hastily tossed aside, and the technology normally utilized for the center’s phone banking program, fitness classes, and community workshops were missing. “This is our first space,” Perez told the Blade, noting how devastating this break-in has been, both physically and mentally, for himself and his community members. 

Somos Familia Valle began as a grassroots movement in 2014, when Perez and other LGBTQ+ locals noticed the absence of a Pride parade in the San Fernando Valley. Together, they organized a vibrant, joyous celebration of queer identity, planting the roots of what is now an intersectional space that uplifts and pours into the Valley’s diverse residents. For nearly a decade, they hosted programs at other community spaces, such as the Sherman Oaks East Valley Adult Center, before moving into their brick-and-mortar location on Sheldon Street.

With this physical space, Perez and Somos Familia Valle’s community organizer, Damiana Cano, have evolved that core mission with new branches. It is important for them to not only prioritize queer education and empowerment but also voter engagement mobilization, know your rights workshops, computer literacy classes, and physical health programs to fuel the safety and strength of people who seek support from the center.

“As someone who was born and raised in this community, I think it is so fulfilling and beautiful that LGBTQ people of all generations have a safe space to come together and create beautiful art here in the Northeast SFV,” Cano wrote to the Blade. “Over time, this…became more than a community; these people are my family.” 

In response to the break-in, the community has stepped up. Perez opened a GoFundMe campaign, and within three days, it has surpassed its initial $8,000 goal. Right after the break-in, the center halted all programming. Now, with this wave of support, Perez says that these offerings, which include a TGI support group, mental health task force, Pride committee, and Queer Country will likely resume in January. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Somos Familia Valle (@somosfamiliavalle)

Somos Familia Valle will also move forward with their upcoming “Queer Together” holiday party, which will be held at their center on Sheldon Street. Perez told the Blade that the walls have been repaired, and he is determined to honor the resilience of the center and the people it serves. “It’s heartbreaking and traumatizing [but] they’re not going to take that away from us,” Perez said. 

The break-in is currently under investigation by local law enforcement agents. To support Somos Familia Valle, their GoFundMe campaign is linked here. 

Kristie Song is a California Local News Fellow placed with the Los Angeles Blade. The California Local News Fellowship is a state-funded initiative to support and strengthen local news reporting. Learn more about it at fellowships.journalism.berkeley.edu/cafellows.

On Tuesday, Dec. 16th, a special city council meeting for Palm Desert, which rests in the Coachella Valley, opened up with a passionate public comment session that lasted for two hours. Resident after resident took to the podium, their voices tinged with outrage, to speak against recent moves made by Mayor Pro Tem Joe Pradetto to amend and rescind two City resolutions focused on diversity, inclusion, and LGBTQ+ pride.

These action items are outlined in a staff report that was prepared for yesterday’s special meeting. One included updating Resolution No. 2018-09, a formal statement that was adopted in 2018 to uphold the City’s commitment to nondiscriminatory policies. Pradetto motioned to edit a section of the resolution that initially focused on celebrating and learning from differences. He was in favor of changing this sentence to “the values that unite us” instead.

Pradetto also wanted to rescind Resolution No. 2024-038, which established for the City a policy related to LGBTQ+ Pride month commemorations last year. This includes the City’s issuing of a proclamation recognizing Pride Month and the displaying of a banner at City Hall in November, to coincide with local events like the neighboring Palm Springs Pride.

Pradetto claimed that the motivation for these motions came from “concerns…[about] unequal treatment” he received from community members about the Pride banner. After public comment concluded, Pradetto doubled down on his stance, stating that the government “should not be in the business of celebrating one group’s private identity over another’s.” 

To this, queer residents like Bekz Lorton objected. “Actions like this proposal have given Palm Desert residents the power to treat us as less than human,” said Lorton, a programs manager at the LGBTQ Community Center of the Desert. “My existence is not a private identity, and I will not walk around in my hometown silenced, shunned or made invisible.”

Pradetto’s reframing of his motions to remove a resolution that promotes queer visibility as a step forward in inclusivity earned bitter laughs from the crowd. “Let the records show that today, Joe Pradetto took a stand for liberty, tolerance, and equality,” he stated, as attendants stared and guffawed in disbelief. Many argued that the sterile kind of “unity” he is trying to achieve is predicated on the alteration and removal of language and policies that explicitly protect the rights and visibility of marginalized community members. 

“Recognizing one group does not prioritize a group over others, despite what you say,” resident Eugene Williams stated during public comment. “Recognition is not exclusion. Visibility is not favoritism. What that banner represented was safety, belonging and hope, especially for young people who are watching closely [as] to whether or not they matter in a place they call home.”

Towards the end of the meeting, Pradetto realized how outnumbered he was in his perspective and resolved that his motion would simply “die” without a seconding approval from the other councilmembers. To this, the crowd began to grow discontent. “Vote — don’t chicken out!” someone called out. 

Councilmember Jan Harnik motioned to take no action on the resolutions, keeping their policies as they exist presently without any changes to how they are worded. The other councilmembers, including Gina Nestande, Karina Quintanilla, and Mayor Evan Trubee, voiced their unanimous support while Pradetto committed to his stance. He was the only “no” vote, and the motion passed to loud cheers and applause. 

Resolutions No. 2018-09 and No. 2024-038 will remain as they are, in a victory bolstered by a great wave of community advocacy and support for queer identity. The win marks the continued importance of the Pride banner as a symbol for LGBTQ+ history, activism and resilience — one that will not be used to “score cheap political points by hurting others,” as stated by Palm Springs Pride in response to the situation.

Kristie Song is a California Local News Fellow placed with the Los Angeles Blade. The California Local News Fellowship is a state-funded initiative to support and strengthen local news reporting. Learn more about it at fellowships.journalism.berkeley.edu/cafellows.