WeHo Pride is now fully underway with an arts festival happening now, leading up to a weekend-long worth of events celebrating the kick-off of Pride season. 

On Friday, May 31, the Women’s Freedom Festival will take over the Celebration Stage, celebrating women’s rights — and wrongs. The event is co-sponsored and produced by the L-Project, featuring emerging and local artists from the LGBTQ and QTBIPOC identities, including activists, musicians, poets and comedians. 

The exciting lineup of events features an arts festival that is currently hitting the streets of West Hollywood, the historic Dyke March featuring Dykes on Bikes and Pride Riders L.A. — an organization for queer and lesbian women motorcycle riders — and much, much more. 

Katrina Vinson is the founder of Pride Riders L.A., working hard over the last few years to bring much-needed visibility to dykes, women who love women and nonbinary people who identify as sapphics. 

Her application to start the first Dykes on Bikes Los Angeles chapter is about more than branding. It’s about connection to a legacy of activism — dating back to the group’s 1976 founding in San Francisco, when leather-clad lesbians led the Pride parade in defiance of the police force and society’s patriarchal norms.

“It’s not just about riding,” Vinson says. “It’s about showing up for each other and reminding the world that we’re still here, still loud, still proud — and still riding.”

Pride Riders LA will feature an all-women and nonbinary people lineup of motorcycle bike riders, revving their engines all up and down West Hollywood. Pride Riders LA will roll in following the Women’s Freedom Festival, creating a transition from stage to street. The call for riders is already underway—with an emphasis on inclusivity and outreach to younger riders, trans and nonbinary folks, and LGBTQ+ bikers of color.

Jackie Steele is a multi-faceted community organizer and longtime activist who has built a reputation in queer and sapphic spaces. She is the Los Angeles District Attorney LGBTQ+ Advisory Board Chair, LA County Sheriff Robert Luna LGBTQ+ Advisory Board Member, and was previously the Public Safety Commissioner for the City of West Hollywood, Co-Chair of the LGBTQ+ Advisory Board of the City of West Hollywood and a self-proclaimed militant queer.

“Chris Baldwin runs the L-project and what they’ve put together is a concert and an event that is a true celebration of intersectional queer identities,” said Jackie Steele. “We worked really hard to work with the city to create a space that was accessible for everybody, where folks can just come out, enjoy the street fair and enjoy themselves.” 

This year, they are expecting around 50 bikes to roll through for the Dyke March, so if you’ve never been, this will be a moment to remember, some might even call it a canon event. 

“If you’ve never been, Dyke March is a celebration of dykes and what lesbians have done in the community — which is often under-celebrated,” said Steele. “There’s going to be bikes everywhere, engines roaring, a live program on stage and we will be fists in the air, standing together.” 

WeHo Pride will take over Santa Monica Blvd., over the weekend. Check the West Hollywood Pride events page to keep up with street closures, parking information and full lineup of performers and events.

An immigration judge on Tuesday dismissed the asylum case of a gay makeup artist from Venezuela who the U.S. “forcibly removed” to El Salvador.

The Immigrant Defenders Law Center represents Andry Hernández Romero.

The Los Angeles-based organization in a press release notes Immigration Judge Paula Dixon in San Diego granted the Department of Homeland Security’s motion to dismiss Hernández’s case. A hearing had been scheduled to take place on Wednesday.

Hernández asked for asylum because of persecution he said he suffered in Venezuela because of his sexual orientation and political beliefs. NBC News reported Hernández pursued his case while at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego.

The Trump-Vance administration in March “forcibly removed” Hernández and other Venezuelans from the U.S. and sent them to El Salvador.

The White House on Feb. 20 designated Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang, as an “international terrorist organization.”

President Donald Trump on March 15 invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which the Associated Press notes allows the U.S. to deport “noncitizens without any legal recourse.” Hernández is one of the lead plaintiffs in a lawsuit that seeks to force the U.S. to return those sent to El Salvador under the 18th century law.

The Immigrant Defenders Law Center says officials with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection claimed Hernández is a Tren de Aragua member because of his tattoos. Hernández and hundreds of other Venezuelans who the Trump-Vance administration “forcibly removed” from the U.S. remain at El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, a maximum-security prison known by the Spanish acronym CECOT.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem earlier this month told gay U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing that Hernández “is in El Salvador” and questions about his well-being “would be best made to the president and to the government of El Salvador.” Garcia, along with U.S. Reps. Maxwell Alejandro Frost (D-Fla.), Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.), and Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), were unable to meet with Hernández last month when they traveled to the Central American country.

“DHS is doing everything it can to erase the fact that Andry came to the United States seeking asylum and he was denied due process as required by our Constitution,” said Immigrant Defenders Law Center President Lindsay Toczylowski on Thursday in the press release her organization released. “We should all be incredibly alarmed at what has happened in Andry’s case. The idea that the government can disappear you because of your tattoos, and never even give you a day in court, should send a chill down the spine of every American. If this can happen to Andry, it can happen to any one of us.”

Toczylowski said the Immigrant Defenders Law Center will appeal Dixon’s decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals, which the Justice Department oversees.

The Immigrant Defenders Law Center, the Human Rights Campaign, and other groups on June 6 plan to hold a rally for Hernández outside the U.S. Supreme Court. Protesters in Venezuela have also called for his release.

“Having tattoos does not make you a delinquent,” reads one of the banners that protesters held.

Governor Gavin Newsom is “encouraged” by a new policy announced Tuesday by the California Interscholastic Federation which critics say basically erases the concept that finishing first matters. 

The CIF’s “pilot entry process” will give high school girls who lost to a transgender student-athlete at last weekend’s qualifying meet an invitation to compete at the state championship next weekend.

At the conclusion of the CIF Section’s Track and Field qualifying meets this past weekend, the CIF made the decision to pilot an entry process for the upcoming 2025 CIF State Track and Field Championships. Please see the following statement: pic.twitter.com/qOjWl6eybR

— CIF State (@CIFState) May 27, 2025

“CIF’s proposed pilot is a reasonable, respectful way to navigate a complex issue without compromising competitive fairness,” said Newsom spokesperson Izzy Gardon in a statement. “The governor is encouraged by this thoughtful approach.”

The change came hours after President Donald Trump threatened to pull “large scale federal funding” from the state if officials allowed trans athletes to compete according to their gender identity. 

The CIF statement did not address Trump’s comments or whether the pilot entry process was in response to his social media post. 

KCRA quoted a source as saying the policy had been in the works for weeks. The station also reported judges will score trans athletes separately from cisgender competitors, so there will ultimately be three winners: a cisgender male winner, a cisgender female winner, and a trans student-athlete winner. 

“The CIF believes this pilot entry process achieves the participation opportunities we seek to afford our student-athletes,” the statement by CIF said.

CIF did not clarify if this pilot entry process will continue beyond this year’s championship, or how judges will determine whether an athlete is trans. A spokesperson for CIF did not immediately respond to these questions by the news media.

The trans athlete in question, AB Hernandez, 16, qualified to advance to the May 30-31 finals in Clovis by winning regional competitions in long jump and triple jump on May 15. Now, she also will be competing against those same cisgender student-athletes she already beat. 

In an interview with the California news outlet Capital & Main earlier this month, Hernandez refuted claims that she has an unfair advantage because she was presumed to be male at birth. She finished eighth in the high jump and third in the long jump at a recent meet. 

“All I thought was, I don’t think you understand that this puts your idiotic claims to trash,” Hernandez told the paper. Of her critics, who booed so loudly at a recent meet they caused a false start at one event, Hernandez said, she said she pays them no mind. 

“There’s nothing I can do about people’s actions, just focus on my own,” Hernandez told Capital & Main. “I’m still a child, you’re an adult, and for you to act like a child shows how you are as a person.”

The paper reported two of her most stringent opponents confronted the teen’s mother at a recent meet. “What a coward of a woman you are, allowing that,” said local superintendent candidate Sonja Shaw to Nereyda Hernandez. “How embarrassing!”

Shaw was at a meet with Jessica Tapia, an ex-gym teacher who was fired by Hernandez’s high school for refusing to respect trans and nonbinary students’ pronouns. They are part of the Save Girls Sports association that opposes inclusion of transgender female students in girls’ and women’s sports.

As of press time, Trump has not responded on social media to CIF’s announcement. 

Podcaster and anti-trans inclusion activist Riley Gaines, a former college swimmer who tied for fifth place with a trans athlete in a 2022 national championship meet, denounced the CIF’s new policy, claiming “boys would still be competing against girls.”

This is not an adequate response from @CIFSS following Trump's threat to pull funds from CA. Boys would still be competing against girls.

They're fully admitting girls are being pushed out of their sports by boys. They just think the boys feelings matter more. pic.twitter.com/HQ5HD4QWZl

— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) May 27, 2025

For his part, Newsom has already gone on the record against trans female athletes participating in girls’ and women’s sports, calling it an “issue of fairness.” That statement drew the ire of advocacy organizations, including Human Rights Campaign. Although Trump said he planned to speak to the governor, Newsom’s office did not say whether Newsom and the president had spoken.

As Politico reported, Republican lawmakers across California denounced the CIF’s new policy, some claiming it did not go far enough to “safeguard the interests of all female athletes.” 

A spokesperson for the Jurupa Unified School District, where the trans student attends school, noted that the athlete is competing fairly and in accordance with the law.

“Both state law and CIF policy currently require that students be permitted to participate in athletic teams and competitions consistent with their gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records,” said spokesperson Jacquie Paul. 

“We remain committed to following the law as written and ensuring that all students are granted the rights afforded to them in a safe and welcoming environment.”

Healing and uplifting communities through music and unity is the foundation of this event space created by Zacil “DJ Sizzle Fantastic” Pech and Norma “Normz La Oaxaqueña” Fajardo. 

For nearly a decade DJ Sizzle has built a reputation in the queer POC and Spanish-speaking undocumented communities for making the space for them to come together to celebrate their culture and partake in the ultimate act of resistance — joy. 

Couples, companions, comadres all dance together on the dancefloor at Cumbiatón. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

Cumbiatón was created during the first Trump administration as a direct response to the erasure, racism, homophobia and xenophobia that was engrained into the administration’s mission for those first four years. Now that the second Trump administration is upon us, the racism, homophobia, transphobia and xenophobia are tenfold.

This event space is a ‘party for the hood, by the hood.’ It is led by women, queer and trans people of color in every aspect of the production process.

The recent fires that burned through Altadena and Pacific Palisades made DJ Sizzle decide to step back from marketing the event in Los Angeles, an area where people had just lost their businesses, homes and where their lives were completely thrown for a loop. 

Now they’re back, doubling-down on their mission to bring cumbias, corridos and all the music many of us grew up listening to, to places that are accessible and safe for our communities. 

“I started Cumbiatón back in 2016, right after the election — which was weirdly similar because we’re going through it again. And a lot of us come from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) movement. We were the ones to really push for that to happen along with the DREAM Act.”

DJ Sizzle says that she wanted to create a space out on the streets to celebrate life and come together, because of how mentally and physically taxing it is to be a part of the marginalized communities that were and still are, a major target for ongoing political attacks.

Edwin Soto and Julio Salgado pose for a photo at a Cumbiaton event in 2024. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

“We need these spaces so that we can kind of refuel and rejoice in each other’s existence,” said DJ Sizzle. “Because we saw each other out on the street a lot, but never did we really have time to sit down, have a drink, talk, laugh. So I found that music was the way to bring people together and that’s how Cumbiatón got started. It was honestly like a movement of political resistance through music.”

DJ Sizzle is an undocumented community organizer who aims to not only bring awareness to the issues that her communities face, but also to make space to celebrate the wins and bond over the music that brings people in Latin America, East L.A., Boyle Heights and the Bay area together.  

Julio Salgado, a queer, visionary artist and migrant rights activist from Ensenada, Baja California with roots in Long Beach and the Bay Area, connected with DJ Sizzle over their shared passion in advocating for immigrant rights. 

“Cumbiatón was created during the first [Trump] administration, where you know, a lot of people were really bummed out and so what Sizzle wanted to create was a place where people could come together and celebrate ourselves,” said Salgado. “Fast-forward to the second [Trump] administration and we’re here and feel a little bit more like: ‘oh shit, things are bad again.’ But, things have always been bad.”

Salgado is involved with Cumbiatón through his art. He is a mixed-media artist who creates cartoons using his lived experience with his sobriety journey, undocumented status and queer identity.

With a background in journalism from California State University, Long Beach, Salgado documents what activists do in the undocumented spaces he has been a part of throughout his life. 

In 2017, Salgado moved back to Long Beach from the Bay Area, and at the time he started doing political artwork and posters for protests against the first Trump administration, but because the nature of that work can be very tiring, he says that he turned to a more uplifting version of his art where he also draws the joy and unity in his communities. 

When he and Sizzle linked up to collaborate during that time, he thought he could use his skills to help uplift this brand and bring it to the forefront of the many events that saturate the party landscape. 

DJ Sizzle doing her thing on stage, giving the crowd the music they went looking for. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

“We are familiar with using the dance floor as a way to kind of put the trauma a little bit away just for one night, get together and completely forget,” said Salgado. 

Coming from an undocumented background, Salgado and Sizzle say that their experience with their legal status has made them very aware of how to go about the ID-check process at the door for their events. 

“When you’re undocumented, you have something called a [High Security Consular Registration (HSCR)] and it’s kind of like your ID and many of these heterosexual clubs would see that and say it was fake,” said Salgado. “But at the gay club, they didn’t care.” 

Just being conscious of what that form of ID looks like and knowing that it’s not fake, helps many of the hundreds of people who come through for Cumbiatón, feel just slightly more at ease. 

Edwin Soto, who is another community activist and leader in the undocu-queer community, is also involved in the planning and organizing of the event. 

In the long journey of making Cumbiatón what it is now, they say that they have all been very intentional about who they bring in, making sure that whoever they are, they also understand the experience of being undocumented and accepted anyway. 

“Something that Sizzle and the team have been very intentional about is making sure that [the security at the door] knows that someone might be using their consulate card,” said Soto. 

Bringing together this event space is no easy task, considering the fact that their events are deeply thought out, intentional and inclusive of not just people of color, but also people with differing abilities and people who do not reflect the norm in West Hollywood clubs. 

“We created the space that we were longing for that we did not see in West Hollywood,” he said. “[Cumbiatón] is what life could really be like. Where women are not harassed by men. Where people are not body-shamed for what they’re wearing.” 

When it comes to their lives outside of Cumbiatón and partying, Sizzle says that it does get exhausting and planning the event gets overwhelming. 

“It is really difficult, I’m not going to lie,” said DJ Sizzle. “We are at a disadvantage being queer and being undocumented because this administration triggers us to a point that, anyone who is not a part of those identities or marginalized communities would ever be able to understand,” said Sizzle. “There are times where I’m just like: ‘I’m going to cocoon for a little bit’ and then that affects the marketing and the communication.” 

Usually, the events bring in hundreds of people who are looking for community, safety and inclusion. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

That’s a little bit about what goes on behind the scenes — which really shouldn’t come as a surprise for anyone who is out there fighting for basic human rights, while also making the space to party and enjoy themselves.

“I’m really trying to find balance and honestly my life raft are my friends and my community,” she said. “Like, being able to share, being able to have this plática, and be like ‘bitch, I see you and I know its fucked up, but we got each other.’”

Cumbiatón was made with the purpose of making space to include and invite the many different people in these communities who are otherwise sidelined in broader conversations and in party scenes where they are not as inclusive or thoughtful about their attendees. 

“How beautiful is it to be queer and listen to rancheras and to norteñas and cumbia, and to just own it,” said Soto. 

To join Cumbiatón at their next party, visit their Instagram page.

Let’s get one thing straight (well, not too straight), mental health awareness is having its moment — and it’s about damn time.

For LGBTQ+ folks, mental health is not a trend. It is survival. In a time when therapy is finally making its way into casual brunch talk (please stop referring to drinking mimosas as “self-care”), and TikTok is where so many go to share their experiences, we sat down with a psychologist who’s been doing the work long before it was mainstream. Equal parts clinician, advocate and reality TV veteran, Greg Cason offers an authentic and insightful look at queer resilience, the dangerous return of bad policy and why healing often begins with three brave words: I need help.

What does this time signify for you both personally and professionally?

Personally, I am thrilled about how far we’ve come in de-stigmatizing mental health, especially in the LGBTQ community in my lifetime. Professionally, it’s a reminder that my job isn’t just in the therapy room, it’s also about education and advocacy. Social media has helped normalize mental health talk and organizations like National Alliance of Mental Health (NAMI), have been the backbone of that effort. It’s not perfect, but we’ve gone from whispers, to full-blown open dialogues and that’s powerful.  But our work is not over.  

The current administration in D.C. is taking apart decades of needed research, bringing back discrimination against our LGBTQ brothers and sisters and instituting a “health” agenda based on fringe theories as well as giving voice to influencers over experts.  We’ve come a long way, but it’s fragile and if we don’t stand up to the current assaults, we will find ourselves back to the limitations and attitudes that prevailed before most of us were born.

This year’s theme, “Turn Awareness into Action,” emphasizes moving beyond recognition, to tangible change. How can people take meaningful steps to support and promote mental health?

For you personally: start small.

Check in on your friends — really check in. Advocate for better mental health policies at work or school. Normalize therapy. Share your own experiences and together we also need to act.  We can’t fall for the constant demonization of members of our own and other communities.  We must band together to stand up for the less fortunate and to push back against new assaults. If you truly want to improve your mental health, connect with your community.

What are some common mental health issues faced by queer folks and how does therapy address them?

Higher rates of anxiety, depression, substance use and trauma — much of it rooted in or exacerbated by rejection, discrimination, or internalized shame. Therapy helps untangle those experiences, identify core beliefs, and replace harmful narratives with empowering ones. It’s about rebuilding a sense of self that the world may have tried to tear down. 

Even so, therapy is not the only solution.  Don’t underestimate the power of community support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and similar organizations.  These are powerful resources that not only help you with issues like substance abuse, but also help you to rebuild community and connection.  

What’s one myth about queer mental health that you’d like to call out and nip in the bud?

That being LGBTQ causes mental health problems. That’s flat-out wrong. The issue isn’t our identities — it’s the way society treats us. Remove the stigma, support queer folks and the mental health gap shrinks dramatically.  But an honorable mention for a rising tide of a disproven and harmful therapeutic approach called “Conversion Therapy.”  

Though it promises to change sexual and gender orientation, the only thing it does is shame [LGBTQ people] into silence and produce further trauma.  It’s sad when politics and religion drive health priorities without any consideration of science and human functioning.

As a practicing psychologist, how have you seen the conversation around mental health change and evolve, especially within our LGBTQ community?

It used to be shrouded in silence — now it’s becoming part of our culture. I see LGBTQ people openly discussing therapy, boundaries and healing in casual conversations.  That’s revolutionary. But I cannot help but think it was born out of necessity.  

When AIDS was first identified in 1981, the world also saw therapy as only for those who were mentally ill. But it became a necessity for our community.  The ever-present fear of disease and dying was commonplace in our community, combined with the constant assaults from politicians, religious professionals, family, and even friends, we had to identify people that we could open-up to and seek support from.  

Those were dark and difficult times and we have progressed in ways that seemed impossible back then.  That shift is showing up in the language, the pride, and the resilience of our community.

Your particular practice focuses on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). How does CBT serve as an effective tool in addressing mental health challenges in our LGBTQ communities?

I always have to laugh — (CBT) has a very different connotation in our community. But in my world, it stands for the more mundane psychotherapeutic modality. (CBT) is powerful because it helps people understand how their thoughts shape their feelings and behaviors.

That said, it also has a dark past. (CBT) techniques were once used in “Conversion Therapy” to try to change sexual orientation — which is now widely recognized as both unethical and harmful. Today’s (CBT) is different. It’s science-based, jargon-free and focused on helping people recognize and replace harmful beliefs shaped by family, religion, or society.

But it’s not just about thoughts. We also work on behavior change, emotional regulation and achieving goals. It may not sound sexy, but I’ve seen it transform individuals, couples and groups.

I was lucky to do a fellowship with Albert Ellis, one of (CBT’s) pioneers. He taught me two things I always keep close: First, we’re all fallible, fucked-up human beings — and that’s okay. Second, change takes work and practice.

And, as another mentor once said, “change may take a while… so pack a lunch.”

You once starred on Bravo’s LA Shrinks. Did your time in reality television provide you with any new perspectives on psychology or on yourself?

Oh absolutely. Being on “LA Shrinks” was both a wild ride and a mirror (albeit cracked, at times). It reminded me that therapists are human too — flawed, funny, and fully visible. It also deepened my empathy for clients in the public eye. Having your life edited for entertainment is… let’s just say, psychologically complex.

Reality television has become a significant portion of most entertainment and media these days. In what ways and to what scale do you believe it has impacted the mental health of our queer communities?

Reality TV is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it gives visibility to LGBTQ stories — sometimes for the first time. My husband and I were married on the show and that meant so much to me to share that reality with those kids out there like me who grew up without any gay role-models or any hope for a relationship or normal life.  On the other, it can flatten people into caricatures. The audience forgets they’re watching a curated narrative — not a whole human being.

I have known some people who were portrayed in a certain way that did not capture their full character, and they suffered as a result. The danger lies in mistaking visibility for authenticity. Reality TV can inform, inspire, or exploit — and often does all three at once.  Nonetheless, I cannot tell you how many people said they watch reality TV while they did other things like ironing or laundry.  They said it was having their friends with them.  That always made me smile.

As someone who’s both a therapist and a public figure, how do you personally stay grounded while continuing to hold space for others?

I have always believed that it is important to leave the therapist at the office. There are people in my profession that don’t allow themselves to be vulnerable in their relationships, silly with their friends, and thrilled to be home alone with a pint of ice-cream and a remote control. We are humans first. So am I.  As for anyone approaching me because they saw me on TV or now listen to my podcast, I am always flattered.  I realize they are offering me a gift.  I don’t have to question the gift or tell them that it is not my size.  Rather, my only job is to graciously accept. Doing that has only made my heart grow larger, not my ego.

What advice would you offer to encourage people who hesitate to seek help and begin their journey toward healing?

Therapy doesn’t mean you’re broken — it means you’re brave. Start with one conversation. One resource. One step. You don’t have to commit to a lifetime of therapy — just be open to the possibility that healing is available and that you deserve it.

Looking ahead, what changes or improvements would you like to see in mental health care for the LGBTQ community?

Access, affordability and cultural competency. We need more LGBTQ therapists — and more allies who understand our lived experiences. A personal desire of mine is that therapists focus on science rather than cultural trends or social media diagnoses and treatments.  I know the era of social media is making everything a popularity contest.  But I hope we can also not forgo expertise just to follow the latest fad.

Whether you’re starting therapy, advocating for others, or simply sharing your story — remember: awareness is only the beginning. Action creates change.

Among other queer and ally big names like Lizzo, Alyssa Edwards, Kim Petras and Frankie Grande will be taking center stage on Saturday, May 31, at this year’s OUTLOUD Music Festival at WeHo Pride. In the wake of the queer community’s current political strife, Grande is taking the spotlight, unapologetically and ready to bring the party, celebrating activism and sexuality unabashedly.

Hot off the heels of his recent two hit singles, “Rhythm of Love” and “Boys,” Grande is gearing up for the release of his new album, Hotel Rock Bottom, hitting platforms on June 27. The album is bringing queer aesthetic to the pop genre and is a retelling of Grande’s life as he has gone from party boy to stage, screen, and reality TV personality, to getting married and living a sober family life (dog and all).

We sat for a chat with Grande as he prepares for his WeHo Pride extravaganza. With everything socially and politically considered, Grande is not holding anything back this Pride season.

Pride is recharging and gearing up for battle. I feel like we’re in a place where our community is under attack, and this is the time where we get the microphone so recharge and get ready to be loud and be prouder than we ever have before. We need to show the world that we are not to be fucked with. We got the mic, so let’s use it.

No stranger to taking the stage, Grande promises a spectacle for his Outloud appearance.

I’m so excited. I’ve put so much effort into crafting a very beautiful show, a very gay show, a very hot show. I’ve selected some really fun songs from my album that people are going to get to hear for the first time because the album won’t be out. I’m also doing some fun and clever covers of songs that have inspired me. I’m excited that I’ve mixed it up and it’s going to be really fun and really gay.

This Pride, Frankie’s call to the gay community is clear.

Support our trans siblings. It is more important than ever. Go to your trans friends and be like, “Hey, what do you need? And how can I help?” Because they’re the ones who are directly being scapegoated at this moment. To think that it’s happening to them means it’s not happening to you is crazy. We are all part of the same community. We’re all under the rainbow umbrella, so let’s go support the community that is directly under attack right now.

Grande’s album comes at a time when queer folk could use a little levity and party attitude. He has been a long-time spokesperson for the LGBTQ community. He has used his platform from reality TV to his role as GLAAD board member to incite activism. He knows full well the fatigue that many of the queer community face as we continue to resist a brutal Presidential administration.

You have to find moments of joy. Honestly, that’s a lot of what this album is to me. It’s like, let’s dance around and bop and be silly to boys tonight so that we can hit the ground running tomorrow and go get some legislation overturned. My whole life, I’ve turned to the dance floor during times of stress, and I think we do need to do that. We have to go celebrate. We have to remember why it is so fun to be a huge homosexual and what we’re fighting for. But then we need to go fight. Don’t get so fucked up that you have to be in bed for three days because we actually do need to go to work.

Grande has also become the poster boy for sober party gays. Celebrating 8 years of sobriety, he has been very open about his journey and how it fits into gay culture. Being openly sober has gained momentum in the queer community and many Prides now include dry events. Grande knows the triggers that Pride can include and has some advice to his fellow sober folk.

First of all, sober gays are fun gays, let’s just say that. If you’re triggered, get the fuck out. You know? There are a lot of drugs, there’s a lot of drinking, there’s a lot of partying, and sometimes you’re just not fully ready to be in those environments. And if that is true, then just leave. The people who are drinking and using will have no idea that you left.

Also go find some sober friends to go with. I did everything in sobriety, like linked with my sober BFFs, Salina EsTitties and stylist Mandoh Melendez. They were my bodyguards and they were my shield, and they had more sobriety than I did. They showed me the ropes, and to this day, they’re still sober and my best friends. So, get a sober buddy and GTFO when you’re triggered, just leave.

Grande is being very vulnerable in his upcoming album Hotel Rock Bottom. Not only is he leaving himself to be compared to other family members in the business, but he is also telling his story on his own terms with music. What is his intent with his album?

 My mission with this album is to inspire others to be themselves by being so open and honest. If you just want to listen to the surface value of my album, then you’re going to have a great fun dance time being like, this is so much fun. But if you want to actually go and listen to the lyrics and dissect it, you’ll see that there’s a lot of darkness and a lot of light on both sides of this album. I organized this album into side A and side B, or top and bottom, as we’re calling it on the vinyl. There’s sobriety and using days, there’s good and bad, and highs and lows on both. So, no judgment, it’s all about just be yourself, live your life, live authentically, and you’re going to get through whatever you’re dealing with.

And his message to the queer LA community this Weho Pride?

We’re very privileged and we’re very blessed because we’re in a very liberal and very blue state, so we need to have the best time and show up. But let’s make sure that we’re constantly beaming our love, light, and energy, and thinking about how we can help people in red states who are not going to have a governmentally and a community-supported Pride, because that is a reality these days. Let’s try to figure out how we’re going to help the country while we’re in the most liberal, most protected state in the world, which is fabulous.

Catch Grande onstage at Outloud on Saturday, May 31^st. Hotel Rock Bottom will be released June 27^th, available wherever you stream your music.

Governor Gavin Newsom’s May Revise for the 2025-26 budget proposes to eliminate two major initiatives from the California Department of Public Health’s Office of Health Equity: the California Reducing Disparities Project (CRDP) and the Gender Health Equity Section (GHES). 

The move would rescind funding which has already been awarded through existing contracts with nearly 70 community-based organizations across the state, with nearly 40 of those organizations being in Los Angeles. 

“These cuts come at a time when LGBTQ communities are already facing national rollbacks, from Medicaid slashes and  cuts to bans on gender-affirming care and shrinking access to mental health services,” said Dannie Ceseña, MPH, Director of the California LGBTQ Health and Human Services Network. “With trauma mounting from political attacks, California should be leading, not cutting lifelines. Slashing nearly half of the Office of Health Equity’s budget, the only state office specifically dedicated to addressing health disparities, breaks trust.”

Earlier this year, L.A. County’s Department of Public Health sent a notice to 39 organizations across the county, alerting them of the termination of over $19 million in Centers of Disease Control and Prevention funding, effective May 31. 

The Trump administration released a budget proposal for 2026, where $3.59 billion would be cut from the CDC — which currently handles 90% of all HIV prevention funding on a federal level.  This includes the elimination of millions of dollars worth of funding for community-based healthcare providers in Los Angeles, such as the LA LGBT Center, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Equality California, Trans Latin@ Coalition and others. 

Meanwhile, the Trump administration has also moved to eliminate the CDC’s prevention division as part of the plan to restructure the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 

Due to the widespread budget cuts coming from all levels of government, healthcare providers are now urging state legislators to allocate over $60 million from the AIDS Drug Assistance Program rebate fund to supplement and sustain the HIV prevention programs for the next year. 

Healthcare providers like the LA LGBT Center have expressed their concerns and have sounded the alarm for the serious repercussions this budget cut will have on the progress that has been made over the past 30 years. 

“We are sounding the alarm: Los Angeles County’s decision to eliminate HIV prevention services now is a direct threat to public health. It will fuel a surge in new HIV transmissions, deepen existing health disparities and saddle the county with far greater long-term costs,”  continued. “We demand that the Department of Public Health and the Board of Supervisors immediately reverse these reckless terminations and honor their contractual funding commitments.” 

The proposed cuts include cutting grants from programs that were created with explicit legislative direction and funded by the Legislature in previous budget cycles. These include programs supporting health equity, LGBTQ foster youth and access to reproductive healthcare. 

The grants fund grassroots mental health services, trauma-informed care, peer support and capacity-building in underserved regions and communities too often overlooked by mainstream systems.

“If the County has truly lost federal funding at a level that warrants terminating all HIV prevention contracts, its leadership should be working overtime with the State, elected officials, and community partners to secure emergency support and fill the gap,” said Joe Hollendoner, CEO of the LA LGBT Center. Instead, last week’s actions revealed a troubling lack of commitment to HIV prevention—and to the very communities most at risk for the virus.”

Ending the HIV Epidemic, a statewide coalition advocating for funding to eliminate health inequities, end HIV, STI, viral hepatitis deaths and substance overdoses in California, is pushing for state legislators to allocate around $60 million in the state’s fiscal budget for next year, toward sustaining HIV prevention programs across the state, including L.A. County. 

“In this critical moment, California must double down, not retract, its efforts to advance health equity and reduce health disparities,” said Jodi Hicks, CEO and president of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California.

Cuban lawmakers are reportedly poised to consider a proposal that would allow transgender people to legally change the gender marker on their ID documents without surgery.

Cubadebate, a government-run website, on May 11 referenced the proposal in an article about an International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia march in Havana that the National Center for Sexual Education organized.

Mariela Castro, the daughter of former Cuban President Raúl Castro who spearheads LGBTQ issues on the island, is CENESEX’s director.

Cubadebate notes the National Assembly in July will consider an amendment to the country’s Civil Registry Law that “for the first time would allow citizens to determine the sex on their identification cards without the need for a court order or gender assignment surgery.”

Argentina, Uruguay, Germany, and Malta are among the countries that allow trans people to legally change their name and gender without surgery.

Cuba’s national health care system has offered free sex-reassignment surgery since 2008, but activists who are critical of Mariela Castro and CENESEX have said access to these procedures is limited. Mariela Castro, who is also a member of the National Assembly, in 2013 voted against a measure to add sexual orientation to Cuba’s labor code because it did not include gender identity.

The Cuban constitution bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, among other factors. Authorities routinely harass and detain activists who publicly criticize the government.

While global powers negotiate with Iran’s regime under Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to curb its advancing nuclear program, the oppressed LGBTQ+ community is building and operating a secret underground network to resist state-coerced sex reassignment surgeries. 

These surgeries, mandated for gay and lesbian people as a state-sanctioned alternative to execution for homosexuality, are part of Iran’s penal code that criminalizes consensual same-sex sexual relations. The network provides safe houses, forged identification documents, and covert communication channels to protect members from government raids and imprisonment.

Precise data on LGBTQ+ people prosecuted in Iran for resisting state-coerced sex reassignment surgeries over the past decade remains elusive, as the regime’s opaque judicial system obscures such cases under vague charges like “corruption on earth” or “sodomy.” NGOs, including 6Rang, report that thousands of gay and lesbian Iranians face pressure to undergo surgeries to avoid execution for same-sex conduct, with resistance often leading to arrests or harassment for violating gender norms.

Zahra Seddiqi Hamedani and Elham Choubdar, two prominent activists, in 2022 were sentenced to death for their social media advocacy, charged with “corruption” and “human trafficking,” though their convictions were overturned in 2023. Similarly, Rezvaneh Mohammadi in 2019 received a five-year sentence for promoting “homosexual relations,” a charge hinting at resistance to the regime’s heteronormative mandates.

Arsham Parsi in 2003 escalated his clandestine fight for Iran’s LGBTQ+ community by launching Voice Celebration, a secret Yahoo chat group where 50 queer Iranians, using aliases, exchanged coded messages to evade the regime’s surveillance. Operating like operatives in a shadow network, participants shared text messages about human rights and survival tactics, knowing a single breach could lead to torture or execution. Parsi, then 23, orchestrated the group’s encrypted communications, building a virtual lifeline that connected isolated individuals across the country until his cover was nearly blown, forcing a desperate escape in early 2005.

Parsi in an exchange with the Los Angeles Blade revealed a defiant undercurrent in Iran, a movement too elusive to be called traditional resistance yet pulsing with covert rebellion against the regime. 

The state’s relentless push to force gay men into coerced surgeries — marketed as a “solution” to their sexuality — seeks to erase their identities through enforced conformity. Parsi, steering the International Railroad for Queer Refugees, disclosed how queer Iranians fight back with clandestine measures: Underground education to counter state propaganda, discreet psychological support to fortify resilience, and encrypted networks to forge secret alliances. These efforts, veiled to evade regime detection, dismantle the state’s narrative with every hidden signal and guarded connection.

“We are working to create a true grassroots resistance by empowering people to understand their identity, seek safe alternatives, and reclaim their agency despite the oppressive context,” said Parsi. “The Iranian regime’s policies are built on denial of sexual orientation and a forced alignment with a binary gender model.” 

“Rather than recognizing gay, lesbian, or bisexual individuals, the system pressures them — particularly gay men — to undergo irreversible surgeries in order to be legally tolerated,” he added. “This systemic violence creates deep psychological harm and compels many to resist, even quietly, to protect their truth. The lack of legal recognition and the threat of arrest, harassment, or blackmail fuels the underground defiance we see today. It’s not only resistance for survival — it’s a rejection of state-imposed identity suppression.”

IRQR, guided by Parsi, for nearly two decades has operated as a lifeline, orchestrating daring escapes and running a covert network for Iran’s hunted queer community. 

Parsi said his work relies on secret, encrypted channels — meticulously managed to avoid detection — to funnel at-risk individuals to safety, smuggle life-saving information, secure hidden safe houses, and deliver emotional support. Every operation faces threats not only from the regime’s security forces but also from Basij militia operatives who masquerade as queer individuals to infiltrate networks, heightening the peril for those marked by their identities.

Black-clad Basij militia members respond at the first signs of defiance; tearing through crowds on motorcycles with batons and guns at the ready, poised to crush any challenge to Iran’s regime. These paramilitary volunteers, bound by fierce loyalty to the Islamic Republic, serve as the state’s enforcers, their plainclothes operatives slipping into dissident networks to root out the defiant. 

The Basij fill queer Iranians with dread; their so-called morality patrols and digital traps stalking those who dare to exist outside the regime’s rigid norms.

“Their goal is not only to gather intelligence but to undermine, divide, and cancel the work of activists and organizations like ours,” said Parsi. “This divide-and-conquer strategy is designed to break solidarity and generate mistrust.” 

“We have seen numerous cases where trusted circles were compromised by these informants, and it has made our work — and survival — even more complex,” he further noted. “Despite this, we persist. Through our underground connections, we have helped thousands of queer Iranians seek safety, community, and ultimately, freedom.”

Parsi told the Blade that international support — through funding, advocacy, policy pressure, or amplifying his stories — can significantly strengthen his work to protect Iran’s persecuted queer community. He emphasized IRQR operates with limited resources, making global solidarity essential to improve outreach, enhance safety measures, and respond swiftly to those in need. Parsi underscored such support brings visibility to the crisis in Iran, reminding those at risk they are not forgotten while exerting pressure on a regime that thrives on silence and fear.

One of the things that Parsi’s underground network offers is online workshops that educate queer Iranians about how they can remain beyond the regime’s reach. 

He said these sessions, designed for safety and accessibility, encompass peer support, mental health education, digital security training, and guidance on refugee pathways. Parsi explained the workshops give vulnerable Iranians the tools to navigate persecution, defy state surveillance, and pursue escape, exposing the resilience of a community under relentless scrutiny.

“Due to the high risk of persecution in Iran, traditional protests are not feasible,” said Parsi. “Instead, acts of resistance take quieter forms — like anonymous storytelling which are just as powerful in building awareness and connection within the community. While discreet, these activities help create a sense of solidarity and empowerment among queer Iranians.”

Parsi, undeterred by Iran’s unyielding regime, asserted with measured confidence that while underground acts of defiance — living authentically, supporting one another, resisting forced medicalisation — may not shift policy overnight, they are already improving lives. He stressed these quiet rebellions that queer Iranians stage challenge the regime’s narrative of shame and invisibility, forging a resilient foundation for future change. Each act, Parsi emphasized, dismantles the regime’s grip, offering hope to those navigating a landscape of relentless oppression.

“At IRQR, we view each life saved, each network built, and each truth spoken as a small but powerful act of resistance,” said Parsi. “These are the seeds of future liberation. Over time, as they multiply and gain visibility — locally and internationally — they will help reshape the landscape for queer Iranians.”

ILGA Asia Executive Director Henry Koh said queer Iranians’ underground resistance is a powerful assertion of bodily autonomy and self-determination. He described it as a deeply courageous act in a regime where visibility invites immense personal risk, from arrest to execution. 

When asked by the Blade if the Iranian regime’s punitive measures against openly queer people fuel underground resistance, Koh responded unequivocally. 

“Absolutely,” he said. “The climate of criminalization and repression leaves little safe space for queer people to live openly. This forces many into secrecy or underground networks as a means of survival, resistance, and mutual support. Such conditions are not only unjust but also profoundly harmful to the well-being of LGBTIQ+ individuals.”

“It is important to distinguish between affirming gender-affirming care and any form of coercive medical intervention,” he added. “When states or authorities mandate medical procedures as a condition for recognition or safety, it constitutes a grave violation of human rights. Gender identity is deeply personal, and no institution should override an individual’s self-defined identity.”

The Chilean Chamber of Deputies on May 15 approved a report that recommends the immediate suspension of a program that provides psychosocial support to transgender and gender non-conforming children and adolescents and their parents.

The 56-31 vote in favor of the Investigation Commission No. 57’s recommendations for the Gender Identity Support Program sparked outrage among activists in Chile and around the world. Six lawmakers abstained.

The report proposes the Health Ministry issue a resolution against puberty blockers, cross-hormonalization, and other hormonal treatments for minors, regardless of whether they have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The report also suggests Chilean educational institutions should not respect trans students’ chosen names.

The report, among other recommendations, calls for a review of the background of all minors who are currently receiving hormone treatments. The report also calls for the reformulation of hormone therapy guidelines and sending this background information to the comptroller general.

Report ‘sets an ominous precedent’

Frente Amplio Congresswoman Emilia Schneider, the first trans woman elected to the Chilean Congress and a member of the commission, sharply criticized her colleagues who voted for the report.

“Today in the Chamber of Deputies the report of hatred against trans people was approved; a report that seeks to roll back programs so relevant for children, for youth, such as the Gender Identity Support Program; a program that, in addition, comes from the government of (the late-President) Sebastián Piñera,” Schneider told the Los Angeles Blade. ”This is unacceptable because the right-wing yields to the pressures of the ultra-right and leaves the trans community in a very complex position.”

Schneider noted “this report is not binding; that is, its recommendations do not necessarily have to be taken into account, but it sets an ominous precedent.” 

“We are going backwards on such basic issues as the recognition of the social name of trans students in educational establishments,” she said.

Ignacia Oyarzún, president of Organizing Trans Diversities, a Chilean trans rights group, echoed Schneider’s criticisms. commented to the Blade. 

“We regret today’s shameful action in the Chamber of Deputies, where the CEI-57 report issued by the Republican Party was approved in a context of lies, misinformation and misrepresentation of reality,” Oyarzún told the Blade. “This only promotes the regression of public policies and conquered rights that have managed to save the lives of thousands of children in the last time.” 

Oyarzún added the “slogan ‘children first’ proves to be an empty phrase without content used by those who today promote measures that push to suicide a significant number of children for the fact of being trans.”

The Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation, a Chilean LGBTQ+ rights group known by the acronym Movilh also condemned the approval of the report, calling it “transphobic” and accusing the commission of omitting the opinions of organizations and families that support the current policies. 

Movilh notes lawmakers approved both the Gender Identity Law and Circular 812, which promotes respect for trans students’ rights, within the framework of an agreement with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

“The text of the approved report is scandalous, because it seeks to take away the access to health to trans minors, including denying them the psychosocial accompaniment that also includes their respective families,” said María José Cumplido, executive director of Fundación Iguales, another Chilean LGBTQ+ advocacy group. “Likewise, it attempts against school inclusion, since it intends to eliminate something as essential as the use of the social name in educational spaces. In short, it takes away rights and freedoms to trans people, especially to minors.”

Cumplido, like Schneider, pointed out that “although its content is not binding, we will be alert to the political and legislative consequences that it may produce and we will continue working to avoid setbacks with respect to the rights of trans people.”

The report’s approval reflects a global trend that has seen neighboring Argentina, the U.S., and other countries reserve policies for trans and nonbinary young people. The Peruvian Health Ministry recently classified gender identity as a mental illness, and lawmakers have passed a law that prevents trans people from using public restrooms based on their identity.

Experts and human rights activists warn the suspension of Chile’s Gender Identity Support Program and other programs could adversely impact the mental health of trans and nonbinary children who already face high levels of discrimination and are at heightened risk to die by suicide.

“We will defend the Gender Identity Support Program and the right to exist of trans children and youth across the country,” said Schneider. “I want to reassure the trans families of our country that we will not rest until our rights are respected and that we can continue advancing because there is still much to be conquered.”